By Charlie McGuire, Athletics Communications Assistant
SALEM, Ore. – The Willamette University women's track & field team had a number of top ten finishes at the Willamette Invitational at the Charles Bowles Track in McCulloch Stadium on Saturday, March 23. Whitley Stepp (So., Silverton, OR/Regis HS) led the way, winning the high jump at a height of 5' 3".
Kaiona Apio (Sr., Edmonds, WA/Edmonds-Woodway HS) placed second in the javelin with a throw of 106' 6.25" while Tenley Grant (Jr., Longview, WA/Kelso HS) and Abigail House (Sr., Oakland, OR/Oakland HS) earned third and seventh, respectively, in the shot put. Grant had a throw of 35' 8" and Grant went 31' 0.5".
A trio of Bearcat sophomores ran to second, third and fourth in the 400-meter hurdles. Mashani Coleman Toliver (Bellevue, WA/Sammamish HS) led the way with a time of 1:10.32, followed by Katie Briggs (Las Vegas, NV/Faith Lutheran HS) and Sage Miller (Valley Springs, CA/Calaveras HS) at 1:10.88 and 1:13.66. Miller added a fourth-place showing in the 100-meter hurdles, crossing the line in 16.86. Lavender Bel (Fy., Puyallup, WA/Graham-Kapowsin HS) was fifth in 16.97.
Coleman and Bel claimed fifth and 11th in the 100 meters. They put up times of 12.75 and 13.08. Kenzie Lee (So., Kaneohe, HI/Mid-Pacific Institute) ran to fifth in the 400 meters (1:01.93) and was sixth in the 200-meter race, coming around in 27.52.
Anastasiia Lemesh (So., Chernihiv, Ukraine/Ukraine) posted a time of 11:52.46 to finish second in the 3000-meter steeplechase. Zoe Heino (So., Portland, OR/Mountainside HS) was third in the event with a mark of 12:09.73.
Willamette placed four runners in the top ten of the 1500 meters. Aven Roberts (So., Missoula, MT/Hellgate HS) was sixth with a time of 5:08.77. Anna Bikle (So., Woodside, CA/Half Moon Bay HS) and Leila Fischer (Sr., Wenatchee, WA/Wenatchee HS) were eighth and ninth, clocking times of 5:12.44 and 5:12.62. Grace Kosmicki (So., Pocatello, ID/Highland HS) crossed the line in 5:13.53 to place 10th.
The Bearcats travel to Hanson Stadium in Forest Grove, Oregon, on Sunday for the Pacific University Multi-Event Invitational. Competition will be held on Sunday, March 24 and Monday, March 25.
