All nine Washington Division I/II schools in action this weekend as outdoor season begins...

Just as quickly as the indoor track & field season has concluded, Washington’s Division I schools are making the transition to the outdoors, with all five schools in action this weekend.

Gonzaga and Eastern Washington got things started Thursday at the Buc Scoring Invitational meet hosted by Whitworth University in Spokane.  Shelby Mills (above/photo courtesy Gonzaga University) of the Zags won the women’s 5000 in 17:21.20, while Danny Lunder led a 1-2-3-4 Gonzaga finish in the men’s 5000, winning in 14:58.52.

The bulk of the competition at the Buc Scoring Invitational continues Friday on the campus of Whitworth University.


Washington State travels to Los Angeles for a pair of meets, starting with the USC Trojan Invitational March 20-21st at Loker Stadium/Cromwell Field on the campus of the University of Southern California.  Three days later, the Cougars will head across town to UCLA to compete in the Jim Bush Collegiate Invitational against Long Beach State and the host Bruins at Drake Stadium, which will also host the Pac-12 championships in May.

The Jim Bush Collegiate Invitational will be telecast Tuesday by the Pac-12 network live beginning at 4 pm.

Only one week after seeing their athletes compete at the NCAA indoor track & field championships in Fayetteville, Arkansas, the Washington Huskies will open up the outdoor season in Tempe, Arizona at the Baldy Castillo Invitational against a field that includes the host Sun Devils, along with Texas A&M, Illinois, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Iowa, Iowa State, New Mexico, and others.

The majority of the meet takes place Saturday, with the hammer throws and the 1500 meters contested Friday night.  Host Arizona State will provide a free live stream of the meet on its web site.

Finally, Seattle University opens its outdoor season in Gresham, Oregon at the Rose City Preview meet at Mount Hood Community College, co-hosted by Portland State University, Mt. Hood CC & the University of Portland.  Western Washington and Seattle Pacific will also have athletes competing in that meet.

This meet takes the place of the Oregon Preview meet in Eugene, which the University of Oregon previously hosted.

Saint Martin’s will compete at the Lewis & Clark Invitational in Portland, while Central Washington travels to Hermiston, Oregon for the Eastern Oregon University team challenge meet.

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