Morning session highlights from Washington state athletes...

Former Washington State University star Bernard Lagat runs in the pack in heat three of the men's 1500 meter qualifying heats /photo by Paul Merca

6:50 pm--The evening session is about to begin shortly, but I wanted to give you an update on Diana Pickler in the heptathlon.

Pickler stands in 14th position after the high jump, where she cleared 5-8 1/2, worth 903 points.

When the evening session starts, Pickler will be throwing the shot (she's throwing in group B, if you're watching on wcsn.com), then finish day one with the 200 meter dash (lane 5, heat 4). Remember that she got in trouble in the 200 at the NCAA meet, where she was DQ'd for running inside her lane.

I'll post a recap after tonight's session concludes.

12:15 pm--Bernard Lagat, the former Washington State University standout, had a little bit of a minor glitch as he advanced to the semi-finals with his third place finish in heat 3 in the men's 1500 meters, running 3:41.68, behind Spaniard Arturo Casado, and Mekonnen Gebremehdin of Ethiopia.

According to Lagat, he got bumped around a bit in the early going. "I didn't run as smart of a race as I normally would. I'm not the kind of person who will run, get tripped, and get boxed in the middle. I learned a lesson today and I'm going to run differently in the semis."

"Running as bad as I did, I really feel strong."

In the women's heptathlon, Washington State's Diana Pickler stands seventh after one event, as she ran 13.34 in the 100 meter hurdles. The high jump is currently in the second hour of competition.

And earlier today, Uli Steidl, the eight-time winner of the Seattle Marathon, finished 37th with a time of 2:30:03.