By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

NEWBERG, Ore. -- Willamette University track and field athletes Clara Thomas (Fy., Kennewick, WA/Kamiakin HS), Whitley Stepp (Fy., Silverton, OR/Regis HS), Annabelle Smith (Fy., Blissfield, MI/Blissfield HS), and William Hennum (Jr., Philomath, OR/Liberty HS, Nev./ SW Oregon CC) each won an event at the Rich Allen Classic, hosted by George Fox University on Saturday, March 18. The Bearcats also took second place in four events and earned five third place finishes.

Thomas took first place in the women's 400-meter hurdles. Her winning time was 1:08.98. She finished with a margin of 1.27 seconds, as unattached runner Leilani Mays placed second in 1:10.25.

Stepp prevailed in the women's high jump as she won with a height of 5' 2.25". Logan Roberts from Linfield University placed second by clearing 5' 0.25" on fewer jumps than Marina Carrol of George Fox, who was third, and Maddie O'Hare of GFU, who was fourth.

Smith won the women's long jump with a top mark of 17' 2.25", as she finished just 4.25 inches away from Willamette's all-time top 10. Victoria Azar from George Fox took second at 16' 8.50".

Hennum placed first in the men's 1,500-meter run. He completed the race in 4:06.08. Alex Oathout of Linfield was second at 4:06.40 and Willamette runner Jay Chew (Fy., Elk Grove, CA/Laguna Creek HS) was third at 4:06.65.

Second place results were achieved by Mashani Coleman Toliver (Fy., Bellevue, WA/Sammamish HS) in the women's 100-meter dash, Zoe Heino (Fy., Portland, OR/Mountainside HS) in the women's 800-meter run, Oliver Anderson (Sr., Salem, OR/Home Schooled) in the men's triple jump, and by the Willamette men's 4 x 400-meter relay team.

Coleman Toliver earned a time of 13.30 seconds in the women's 100-meter dash for her second place finish. McKenzie Feinglas of Linfield took first place in 12.69 seconds. Sophia Olson of GFU was third in 123.39 seconds. The event included 21 competitors.

Heino placed second in the women's 800-meter run by completing the race in 2:28.48. Breanna Schmitt from George Fox was the winner in 2:25.20. Mary Sturley of Linfield was third at 2:31.87 and Anna Bikle (Fy., Woodside, CA/Half Moon Bay HS) of WU placed fourth in 2:31.92.

The second place registered by Anderson in the men's triple jump was obtained with a distance of 43' 11.25" on his final jump. He trailed only Ethan Kassebaum of GFU whose top mark was 46' 0.75".

Willamette's runners in the 4 x 400-meter relay were Simon Kidder (Jr., M, Bend, OR/Summit HS), Kayden Gonzalez (Fy., Ridgefield, WA/Hudson Bay HS), Jonas Cherry (Fy., Browns Valley, CA/Marysville HS), and Mason Williams (Fy., Happy Valley, OR/Clackamas HS). They combined for a time of 3:46.18. Linfield took first place in 3:34.44.

In addition to Chew in the men's 1,500, the Bearcats also recorded third place finishes in the men's pole vault, men's 110-meter hurdles, men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, and men's long jump.

Elijah Jones (Fy, Salem, OR/Central HS) took third in the men's pole vault at 14' 7.50". His successful top attempt moved him into eighth on Willamette's all-time list.

Cherry placed third in the men's 110 hurdles with a time of 16.30 seconds. Ian Curtis (Sr., Eugene, OR/South Eugene HS) was third in the men's steeplechase at 10:45.89. Kaleb Mcarthur (Fy., Independence, OR/Central HS) took third in the men's long jump with a mark of 21' 1.50".

Three athletes on the Willamette women's track and field team placed fourth on Saturday. In addition to Bikle's fourth place result in the 800-meter run, other fourth place finishes were Katherine Thornton (Jr., Reno, NV/Reno HS) in the 100-meter hurdles at 16.15 seconds and Kenzie Lee (Fy., Kaneohe, HI/Mid-Pacific Institute) in the 200-meter dash with a time of 27.29 seconds.

The Bearcats will host the Willamette versus Corban Dual on Wednesday, March 22 and Thursday, March 23. Most of the events will take place on Thursday at the Charles Bowles Track at Bush's Pasture Park starting at 3:30 p.m. (PDT). The hammer throw events will be held at Corban University on Wednesday at 4:30 p.m.