By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
NEWBERG, Ore. -- Elijah Jones (So., Salem, OR/Central HS) from the Willamette University men's track and field team took second place in the pole vault on the first day of the 2024 Northwest Conference Track and Field Championships on Friday, April 19 at Stoffer Family Stadium. Willamette's Roan Bashioum (Fy., Salem, OR/North HS) earned third place in the hammer throw and teammate Kaleb Mcarthur (So., Independence, OR/Central HS) was fourth in the long jump.
On the track, a total of seven Bearcats recorded qualifying times in the prelims and will compete in the finals of three events on Saturday.
Jones tied for the top height in the pole vault with a season-best 15' 4.25" and took second place on jumps. Levi Gibson of George Fox University also cleared 15' 4.25", but won the event with fewer jumps. Mauhia Kimata of GFU placed third at 14' 10.25".
Bachioum's best mark in the hammer throw on Friday was good for third place at 153' 10". He registered the toss on his third throw of the prelims. Cody Wheeler of Whitworth University won the hammer at 169' 11" and Nathaniel Koenig of George Fox was second at 165' 11". Bashioum finished eighth in the discus throw with a top distance and personal record of 134' 5".
In the long jump, Mcarthur's top distance was 22' 7.25" on his fifth of six attempts. He almost caught the two jumpers who tied for second at 22' 8" -- Blake Smith and Drew Pierson of GFU -- missing by just three-quarters of an inch (0.75"). Zaanan Bane from Whitworth won the long jump by improving from 21' 8.25" to 23' 2.50" on his final attempt. Mcarthur and all of the other top eight finishers each set a personal record.
William Hennum (Jr., Henderson, NV/Liberty HS/SW Oregon CC) of Willamette placed seventh out of 24 runners in the men's steeplechase with a personal record time of 9:33.92. He broke his previous top time of 9:37.80, set while taking fifth place at the 2023 NWC Championships.
Jones and Bashioum received All-Conference honors for their top 3 finishes. Competition at the 2024 NWC Track & Field Championships will continue on Saturday, April 20, starting at 10:30 a.m. All track events will be finals, while flights and finals will be held in the remaining field events.
Through eight events, George Fox topped the men's team standings with 128 points. Whitworth University was second with 80 points, and Pacific Lutheran University was third at 32. Willamette followed in fourth at 22 points, Linfield University was fifth at 17, Pacific University was sixth at 16, and Lewis & Clark was seventh at 13. The University of Puget Sound was eighth with four points and Whitman College was ninth with no points. Whitman only competes in distance events.
Top Results for the Bearcats in the Prelims
The seven Willamette athletes on the men's team who registered qualifying times in the preliminary heats on Friday included three Bearcats in the 110-meter hurdles, and two qualifiers in both the 400-meter dash and the 400-meter hurdles.
In the 110-meter hurdles, Matthew Nivala (Fy., Salem, OR/West Salem HS) led the way with a time of 15.61 seconds for the fifth-fastest time in the prelims. Mason Williams (Fy., Happy Valley, OR/ Clackamas HS) was sixth in 15.79 seconds, and Jonas Cherry (So., Browns Valley, CA/Marysville HS) was seventh in 15.82 seconds.
Finn Gibson (Fy., New Paltz, NY/New Paltz HS) of Willamette was fourth in the prelims with a personal-record of 50.06 seconds. Myles Crandall (Fy., Monmouth, OR/Central HS) was seventh as he registered a season-best time of 50.72 seconds.
Simon Kidder (Sr., Bend, OR/Summit HS) placed fourth overall in the prelims of the 400-meter hurdles with his top time of the season at 57.11 seconds. Williams also advanced to the final with the eighth-best time at 58.31 seconds. Cherry narrowly missed advancing in ninth place at 58.62 and Caleb Graham was 10th at 58.66.
Bearcats Competing on Saturday
Saturday, April 20 (Track Events are Flights and Finals; All Track Events are Finals)
10:30 a.m. - Men's Javelin Throw (Two Flights and Final) - Judah Ali'ifua (Flight 1)
10:30 a.m. - Women's Shot Put (Two Flights and Final) - Tenley Grant (Flight 1), Abigail House (Flight 1)
10:30 a.m. - Men's Triple Jump (Two Flights and Final) - Kaleb Mcarthur (Flight 2)
10:30 a.m. - Women's High Jump (One Flight and Finals) - Whitley Stepp (Flight 1), Erica Snyder (Flight 1)
12:00 p.m. - Women's 4 x 100-meter Relay (Final) - Willamette (Lavender Bel, Mashani Coleman Toliver, Kenzie Lee, Salah Williams)
12:05 p.m. - Men's 4 x 100-meter Relay (Final) - Willamette (Simon Kidder, Finn Gibson, Myles Crandall, Matthew Nivala)
12:10 p.m. - Women's 1,500-meter Run (Final in Two Heats) - Morgan Shaw (Heat 1), Zoe Heino (Heat 1)
12:20 p.m. - Men's 1,500-meter Run (Final in Two Heats) - Adam Lewis (Heat 1), William Hennum (Heat 1)
12:35 p.m. - Women's 100-meter Hurdles (Final) - Lecia Sincere, Lavender Bel
12:40 p.m. - Men's 110-meter Hurdles (Final) - Matthew Nivala, Mason Williams, Jonas Cherry
1:30 p.m. - Women's Triple Jump (Two Flights and Final) - Salah Williams (Flight 2), Erica Snyder (Flight 2), Lecia Sincere (Flight 2)
1:30 p.m. - Women's Javelin Throw (Two Flights and Final) - Kaiona Apio (Flight 2)
1:30 p.m. - Women's 400-meter Dash (Final) - Kenzie Lee
1:35 p.m. - Men's 400-meter Dash (Final) - Finn Gibson, Myles Crandall
2:15 p.m. - Women's 400-meter Hurdles (Final) - Mashani Coleman Toliver, Katie Briggs, Sage Miller
2:25 p.m. - Men's 400-meter Hurdles (Final) - Simon Kidder, Mason Williams
3:15 p.m. - Men's 5,000-meter Run (Final) - Jay Chew
3:40 p.m. - Women's 4 x 400-meter Relay (Final) - Willamette (Kenzie Lee, Mashani Coleman Toliver, Katie Briggs, Katie Wingo)
3:50 p.m. - Men's 4 x 400-meter Relay (Final) - Willamette (Myles Crandall, Simon Kidder, Nolan Wright, Finn Gibson)
