Johnson, Mancl, Freeby Earn Times on WU's All-Time Lists at OSU Meet

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

CORVALLIS, Ore. -- Kylea Johnson (Jr., Onalaska WA/Onalaska HS), Olivia Mancl (So./Fr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) and Michaela Freeby (Sr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) each recorded a time on one of Willamette University's top 10 lists in women's track and field during the OSU High Performance Meet on Friday, May 1 at the Whyte Track & Field Center.

Johnson moved up from seventh into fifth on the all-time list in the 100-meter dash. She registered a new personal record time of 12.42 seconds, improving on her previous top time of 12.53 seconds set in 2014.

Mancl and Freeby both attained their times in the women's 1,500-meter run invitational section. Mancl lowered her personal-best time to 4:34.64, a reduction from her previous best of 4:34.71 at this year's Willamette Invitational. She remained fifth on Willamette's all-time list and also held at 13th on the NCAA Division III performance list for 2015.

Freeby set a new personal record of 4:35.18 and is now eighth on the Bearcats' all-time list. She also moved into 17th on the Division III performance list.

Hannah Swanson (Fr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS), who joined Mancl and Freeby in the 1,500-meter invitational section, also set a personal record. Her new top time in the event is 4:38.04, as she cut 0.61 from her time at the NWC Championships last weekend of 4:38.65. She advanced from 32nd to 27th on the NCAA list.

At the end of the regular season, the top 22 athletes in each women's event will qualify for the 2015 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. The NCAA Championships are set for May 21-23 at St. Lawrence University in Canton, N.Y.

Other Performances for the Bearcats:

Daniel Swanson (Sr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) established a season-best time of 3:56.72 in the men's 1,500-meter run invitational section. His previous top time of the season was 4:00.14 at the Willamette Invitational.

Forrest Smith (Fr., Crested Butte, CO/Crested Butte Comm. School) set a personal record of 4:01.86 in the men's 1,500-meter run. He made a significant reduction from his time of 4:05.07 at the NWC Championships on April 25.

Maura Forbush (So., Hollister, CA/San Benito HS) ran a solid time of 58.11 seconds in the women's 400-meter dash to take seventh out of 16 runners. She was just 0.16 away from her personal record of 57.95 seconds, which she earned at this year's Willamette Invitational.

Yonny Castillo (Jr., Parkdale, OR/Hood River Valley HS) completed the men's 5,000-meter run in 15:07.80. He was 11.60 seconds away from his personal record of 14:56.20, set at the Willamette Invitational earlier this year.

Parris Joyce (Jr., Portland, OR/Catlin Gabel School) finished the men's 800-meter run in 1:56.96. Jacob Shafi (Jr., Pleasanton, CA/Amador Valley HS) was timed at 4:05.86 in the men's 1,500-meter run.

In the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase, Hannah Bressler (Jr., Oak Harbor, WA/Oak Harbor HS) attained a time of 11:16.62. Juliet Farnan (Jr., Lafayette, CA/Campolindo HS) registered a time of 18:14.49 in the women's 5,000-meter run.