MISSOULA, MONT. –
Link to Results
Eastern Washington University athletes continued with day two of the Al Manuel Northwest Invitational in Missoula Mont., on Saturday (March 27) and had another weekend full of great performances.
Parker Bowden improved his school-record time in the 110-meter hurdles for the third weekend in a row. Bowden won the event and ran a new best of 13.87. That time currently ranks him No. 5 in the West Region and No. 10 in NCAA Division I.
"Leading today's performances was
Parker Bowden, who lowered his school record again in the hurdles," added men's head coach
Stan Kerr. "His race was a very good show for everyone who attended the meet at Dornblaser Stadium."
Morgan Fossen won the women's pole vault with a jump of 13-0 1/4 – which also places her No. 8 on the Eagle top-10 all-time list. Right behind Fossen was
Katrina Terry, who placed second in the event with a mark of 12-0 3/4.
Savannah Schultz had the same mark of 12-0 3/4 but finished fourth due to more failed attempts.
"
Morgan Fossen led the field events with a personal record and team-leading mark in the pole vault," mentioned women's head coach
Marcia Mecklenburg. "She now has the top mark of the season for the crew of three outstanding EWU pole vaulters, which includes Morgan,
Savannah Schultz, and
Katrina Terry."
"It warmed up for us and the athletes took advantage of it," added Mecklenburg. "We had many season-best performances across all the event areas."
Among Eastern's athletes, four other teams took part in the competition – University of Montana, Montana State University, Utah State University, and Carroll College.
Other Men's Top Performances
On day one of the invitational,
Justin Roosma ran a time of 9:19.10 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase to claim Eastern's first victory of the weekend.
Jonah Mathews led an Eagle sweep in the 100 meters after running 10.54 to win the event. Following in second was
Joe Gauthier with a time of 10.70, and finishing third was
Daniel Gaik with a time of 10.76.
Gaik also placed the highest in the 200 meters after finishing fourth with a time of 22.08, and
Joe Gauthier finished behind him with a time of 22.35.
Bobby Say had another weekend of strong performances in both the triple jump and long jump. Say won the triple jump with a leap of 47-6 1/2 and finished third in the long jump with a new personal best of 22-9.
Colton Kautz earned a second-place finish in the men's hammer throw with a distance of 175-0. Kautz also threw the discus and finished fourth with a mark of 152-6.
Benjamin Howard placed third in the men's shot put with a PR of 51-1 3/4. Howard also competed in the hammer throw where he threw 140-5 and finished fifth.
Alex Bishop competed for the Eagles in the high jump to tie the second-place mark of 6-4 3/4, but took third place due to a greater amount of failed attempts.
Other Women's Top Performances
Faith Kennedy claimed a victory on the women's side after winning the 200 meters with a time of 25.31. Kennedy also ran the 100 meters where she placed sixth with a time of 12.65.
Right behind Kennedy in the 200 meters was
Katie Petsch, who ran a time of 25.58 to place second in the event. Petsch also finished fifth in the 100 meters with a time of 12.37.
Placing second and running a career best was
Alyssa Hoffman in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 1:05.19. Following Hoffman in third was freshman
Haven Nutting, followed by
Felicity Hempstead in fourth.
Vernice Keyes threw just under her PR in the women's hammer throw with a mark of 174-0 to earn a second-place finish.
Freshman
Samiah Kuntz tied for third in the 100 meters with a time of 12.33. Kuntz earned the highest place for Eastern in the event.
Hadassah Ward had the highest finish for the Eagles in the women's shot put where she threw 42-1 1/2 to place fourth. Ward also finished fourth in the hammer throw with a distance of 164-9, and a seventh-place finish in the discus with a mark of 129-3.
Kaitlyn Paller also earned a fourth-place finish and was the highest-scorer for Eastern in the women's discus after throwing a PR mark of 140-1. Paller also competed in the hammer throw where she followed right behind Ward to finish fifth with a mark of 162-6, and Paller finished sixth in the shot put with a throw of 39-8.
Comments from Men's Head Coach Stan Kerr
"The Al Manuel meet was once again the source of several strong performances for our team. I believe having a handful of spectators in the stands today helped us feel more motivated. The applauses that we heard for the athletes after a race, jump, or throw were a welcoming blast from the past."
"Friday night we were treated to Justin Roosma's opening steeplechase race. Justin ran most of that race by himself which is a mentally, tall order."
"Jonah Mathews had a good day in the 100 meters. He's been very consistent each week in delivering fast times."
"Bobby Say did a good job in the long and triple, and like our whole team, is looking forward to warmer training and competition weather to unleash even better performances."
"I also want to highlight Benjamin Howard on his PR in the shot put. Ben, along with Colton Kautz, led the way for the throws crew. Their consistency is a sign of being great competitors."
"Another consistent performer is Zach Klobutcher in the pole vault. He's very close to a breakthrough mark that will come sooner rather than later."
"We're off to a great start this outdoor season. Competing at the level that we are right now, especially given the impact that COVID has had – on all sports, it's the best feeling to see this team showcasing its talent every week."
Comments from Women's Head Coach Marcia Mecklenburg
"We are slowly improving in the hammer and discus with numerous personal records. Five discus throwers made it to the finals with Kaitlyn Paller leading the group. I think every one of them threw a personal or season-best mark. Now we need to take it to the next level and come out with the wins in those events."
"The sprinters and hurdlers had a great day also and recorded several personal records. Faith Kennedy led the way winning the 200 meters, while teammates Katie Petsch and Samiah Kuntz had good showings in both the 100 and 200. Alyssa Hoffman ran away with the 400 hurdles also with a season-best time."
"Overall it was another great opportunity for our athletes and they took advantage of it."
On the Horizon
Eastern track and field athletes will be in Spokane Wash., next Friday (April 2) for the H.I.R. Invitational, which will be hosted by Whitworth University and kick-off at 2pm Pacific Time.
EWU Top-10 Lists
Updates Include:
2020-21 Remaining EWU Outdoor Track & Field Schedule
Friday - April 2, 2021 - H.I.R. Invitational - Spokane, Wash. (Whitworth) - 2 pm
Saturday - April 10, 2021 - WAR XIV Meet - Spokane, Wash. (SFCC) - 10 am
Th/Fri - April 15-16 - Bigfoot Multi Events - Spokane, Wash. (SFCC) - 11:00 am
Saturday - April 17, 2021 - Sam Adams Classic - Spokane, Wash. (Whitworth) - 2 pm
Fri/Sat - April 23-24, 2021 - Idaho Invite - Moscow, Idaho - TBA
Fri/Sat - Apr 30-May 1, 2021 - Oregon State High Performance Meet - Corvallis, Ore. - TBA
Thursday - May 6, 2021 - Whitworth Twilight - Spokane, Wash. (Whitworth) - 2 pm
Wed/Th - May 12-13, 2021 - Big Sky Combined Events - Ogden, Utah - TBA
Fri/Sat - May 14-15, 2021 - Big Sky Outdoor Championships - Ogden, Utah - TBA
Th/Fr/Sat - May 27-29, 2021 - NCAA West Regional Championships - College Station, Texas (A&M) - TBA
We/Th/Fr/Sat - June 9-12, 2021 - NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships - Eugene, Ore. - TBA
Fr-Sun - June 18-27, 2021 - U.S. Olympic Trials - Eugene, Ore. - TBA
