Busy day of competition: NCAA regionals, plus Olympic Games & US Olympic Trials qualifying marks...
Going into Saturday, we knew it was going to be busy...how busy? Here we go!
NCAA REGIONALS PUTS ATHLETES ONE STEP CLOSER TO EUGENE...
In College Station, Texas, Washington State advanced seven athletes, while the University of Washington advanced eight and Gonzaga one on the final day of competition at the NCAA West Preliminary round hosted by Texas A&M.
High jumper Suzy Pace (photo courtesy WSU Athletics) had one of the most dramatic finishes to secure a spot to Eugene.
Pace posted an official mark of 5-9.75 (1.77m), tying her personal best, went on to outlast the competition in an intense jump-off between four athletes to secure the number 12 spot in the event and advance herself to Eugene.
Paul Ryan and Zach Stallings advanced to Eugene in the 1500, along with the Huskies' Sam Tanner in the first of two heats.
Ryan finished second in 3:38.87 behind Oregon's Cole Hocker, who ran 3:38.29. Stallings was fifth in 3:39.32 to get the final automatic qualifier in the heat, while Tanner was seventh in 3:39.70.
Fortunately for Tanner, he got one of the two time qualifiers to Eugene along with Nebraska's Dais Melebana, who was sixth in the heat in 3:39.36. The fifth and final auto qualifier in heat 2 ran 3:40.61, giving the time qualifiers to Melebana and Tanner.
110 hurdler Sam Brixey earned the final time qualifier in his event, running 13.70 in finishing fifth in the second of three heats.
Colton Johnsen finished third in his heat of the 3000 steeplechase to secure an automatic qualifier to Eugene, running a personal best of 8:39.99.
Charisma Taylor only needed one jump to secure her ticket to Eugene, jumping a personal best 44-8.75 (13.63m) to finish third overall, and passed her two remaining jumps.
The Cougars' Stephanie Cho and the Huskies' Darhian Mills got two of the three time qualifiers in the 400 hurdles, with Cho running a personal best 57.75 in heat 1 to finish fourth, and Mills running a season best 58.20 to get fourth in heat 3.
One Husky moved through with absolutely no drama or suspense and that was senior Katie Rainsberger, who ran away with her heat of the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Rainsberger, who broke the UW school record at Pac-12s in a runner-up finish, led from start to finish and opened up a big late lead to win in 9:47.38 and earn herself a chance at a 13th career All-America honor, and what would be the first in the steeplechase.
Madison Heisterman earned her first NCAA individual qualifier in the 1500 as she took sixth in her heat with a new lifetime-best of 4:14.62, a three-second PR.
West Seattle HS grad Cass Elliott of the Dawgs ran 50.11 in the men's 400 hurdles to finish fifth in his heat, and get one of the three time qualifiers.
Washington's Isaac Green ran a phenomenal race in a stacked field, running in the lead pack and then knowing when to make his move. He had plenty left for a big sprint finish to take third overall in heat 2 in 13:52.40 and make his first NCAA Track Championships, indoors or out.
In the previous heat of the men's 5000, James Mwaura of Gonzaga earned a spot in his second event, finishing fourth in 14:00.07 to advance to Eugene on place. He punched his ticket to Eugene on Wednesday in the 10000.
Washington's Haley Herberg will join Gonzaga's Mwaura in doing a 5000/10000 double at the NCAA championship meet, as she finished fourth in heat 1, running 15:58.56.
All in all, Washington has 12 qualifiers in 13 events, Washington State has eight athletes, Eastern Washington has Morgan Fossen in the women's pole vault, and Gonzaga has Mwaura doubling in the 5000 & 10000.
In Jacksonville, Florida, Woodinville native Olivia Markezich of Notre Dame secured her spot in the NCAA championships with a second place finish in her heat of the 3000 steeplechase at the NCAA East Preliminary.
Markezich, who ran a US Olympic Trials qualifying time of 9:45.72 at the ACC championship meet two weeks ago, ran 9:53.01.
UW ALUMS BATT-DOYLE & MARKOVC GET OLYMPIC STANDARD; BREAKTHROUGH RACES IN PORTLAND...
In Nijmegen, the Netherlands, 2019 Washington alum Izzi Batt-Doyle ducked under the Olympic Games standard of 15:10.00 in winning the 5000 meters at the Next Generation Athletics meeting Saturday.
Batt-Doyle ran a personal best 15:04.10, surpassing her previous personal best of 15:11.07 that the native of Australia ran on March 2nd in Melbourne.
She is one of three Australians who possess the Olympic standard in the 5000 meters.
In Attleboro, MA (just outside of Boston), another UW alum ducked under the Olympic standard in the 5000, as Amy-Eloise Markovc ran 15:05.96 at the Tracksmith Platinum PT Qualifier.
Markovc, the reigning European champion indoors for Great Britain at 3000 meters, finished second behind Emily Sisson's 14:59.12.
Markovc will have to run in the British Olympic Trials to get a spot on their Olympic team.
Results of the Tracksmith Platinum PT Qualifier are available here.
In Portland, Henry Wynne of the Brooks Beasts made a major breakthrough with his fourth place finish in the men's 1500 at the Portland Track Festival at Griswold Stadium on the campus of Lewis & Clark College Saturday night.
Wynne ducked under the Olympic Games standard of 3:35.00, as he ran 3:34.08, as Craig Engels won in 3:33.64.
In the women's 800, Nia Akins of the Brooks Beasts, who already possessed a US Olympic Trials qualifying standard in that event, edged closer to the Olympic standard of 1:59.50, as she won her heat in 2:00.40.
David Ribich just missed the US Olympic Trials standard in the 5000 of 13:25.00, as he finished fourth in 13:26.41, while teammate Allie Buchalski, who has the Olympic standard in the 5000, dropped down in distance to 1500 & missed the US Olympic Trials standard of 4:06.00, running 4:06.19 to finish eighth.
NOTE: The NCAA, Portland Track, Tracksmith, Nijmegen Atletiek and the sports information offices of the University of Washington, Washington State & Gonzaga contributed to this report.
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