Western Washington aims to repeat as GNAC men's and women's indoor team champs...
It's quite honestly a little early to have a indoor track and field championship meet, but given the lack of proper indoor track facilities in the Pacific Northwest, you have to take what you can get.
Monday, The Podium in Spokane hosts the first of three indoor meets in a week when the Great Northwest Athletic Conference gets things started with their championship meet at 9 am with the heptathlon 60 meter dash followed by the pentathlon 60 dash.
The meet proper begins at 2:30 with preliminary heats of the 60 hurdles on the track and on the field with the men's long jump finals.
Other field event finals contested Monday include both weight throws, and both the men's pole vault and high jumps.
Monday's track finals include the 5000s and the distance medley relays.
Defending men's and women's team champs Western Washington (photo courtesy Great Northwest Athletic Conference) are looking to continue their reign as GNAC champs, but could be pressed for the team title, especially on the women's side by Central Washington.
The Vikings have the top GNAC times this season in three of the four relay races, including the men’s 4x400 meters (3:13.10), the men’s distance medley relay (9:46.21) and the women’s distance medley relay (11:26.85). The women’s DMR time was the third-fastest in GNAC history, as the Vikings look to bring home their third straight title in that event. The men’s 4x400 relay time was also third-fastest in GNAC history and the Vikings are also the reigning champion in that race.
One of the most highly anticipated matchups could come in the finals of the women's 60 and 200, featuring Central Washington's E'lexis Hollis against Simon Fraser's Canadian Olympian Marie-Eloise Leclair.
Hollis ran a GNAC-record 60 meters time of 7.29 seconds to win the gold medal just 0.01 seconds ahead of Leclair in an unforgettable dash last year. Hollis is the favorite to defend her title, having run the second-fastest 60 meters time in Division II this year at 7.32 seconds. Hollis is also expected to compete at the top of the 200 meters field, as she currently occupies the No. 3 spot on the GNAC performance list with a time of 23.94 seconds.
In the men's sprints, Central Washington newcomer Bautista Diamante from Argentina will be another key competitor in the two shortest races, as he enters the meet with the seventh-fastest 60 meters time in GNAC history at 6.80 seconds and tied with Hall at 21.51 seconds in the 200 meters.
Western Washington's Bec Bennett is a heavy favorite in the women's 400, as the Australian world championships competitor in the 4 x 400 relay goes in with the fifth fastest NCAA D2 time at 54.40, set last month at the UW Preview.
Central Washington's Johan Correa raced Saturday at the Husky Classic, where he ran a school record 1:48.90 in the 800, while many of the GNAC schools sent skeleton teams to Seattle. It's also the second fastest in GNAC history.
A potential matchup with Western Oregon's Isaiah Rodriguez, who was the conference leader before Saturday's race is in order, but Correa will have to navigate through Monday's qualifying race before the finals on Tuesday.
Western's Mia Crocker ran 2:10.12 Saturday in Seattle, which is the second fastest by a GNAC runner this season, but must contend with Alaska Anchorage's Jess Chisar, who ran 2:08.27 two weeks ago at the UW Invitational.
Western's Kevin McDermott, who was the men's outstanding perfomer at last year's championship meet, will not go for the distance triple that he won at last year's meet, as he's only entered in Monday's 5000 and Tuesday's 3000.
McDermott ran a school 7:57.88 in the 3000 on Saturday at the Husky Classic, which puts him at number 11 on the NCAA D2 descending order list, and the third fastest time in conference history.
Seattle Pacific's All-American Annika Esvelt is the favorite in the women's 3000 and 5000, as she stands number 8 in the 3000, and number 4 in the 5000 on the national D2 list this season.
Reigning GNAC Freshman of the Year Emy Ntekpere of Central Washington has continued the momentum she built last season into what has become a record-setting sophomore campaign. She enters the meet No. 1 in Division II in the triple jump, breaking the GNAC record with a leap of 42-1.25 feet (12.83 meters). Also the reigning indoor champion in the high jump, Ntekpere’s season-best height of 5-8.5 feet (1.74 meters) ranks her second on the GNAC performance list this season.
That said, Western Washington’s Kora Cook has the top high jump this season at 5-9.25 feet (1.76 meters) and could press Ntekpere in an event that has team scoring implications.
The women’s pole vault competition is an all-out slugfest on paper, with three of the conference’s top competitors set to go head-to-head. Reigning indoor champion Lauryn McGough of Central Washington broke the GNAC record as a freshman, clearing 13-3.5 feet (4.05 meters) last season. She came close to surpassing that mark a week ago when she hit a GNAC-leading 13-2.25 feet (4.02 meters) in a meet at the Podium.
Right behind her are a pair of Seattle Pacific vaulters who finished first and second at last year’s GNAC Outdoor Championships. Lizzy Daugherty was the outdoor gold medalist and ranks second in the GNAC this season at 12-10 feet (3.91 meters) – the seventh-best mark in GNAC indoor history. Emily Thomason is close behind, also holding a provisional qualifying mark of 12-4 feet (3.76 meters).
The men’s pole vault has been dominated the last two seasons by reigning heptathlon champion Drew Klein of Central Washington. The senior has already matched his own PR of 16-2.75 feet (4.95 meters) this season, keeping him tied for fourth on the GNAC all-time indoor performance list. That’s more than a foot higher than the next-best men’s pole vault mark thus far in 2025, with Ryan Doidge of Saint Martin’s clearing 15-1.75 feet (4.62) to sit second in the GNAC.
Klein, who is also entered in the heptathlon, will face a challenge against the meet's time schedule on Monday. The heptathlon high jump goes off at 12:10 pm, while the pole vault finals are at 3:15. Fortunately, there are only five competitors in the heptathlon.
Reigning men’s triple jump champion Isaiah Webster of Central Washington appears to be in top shape, entering the meet with the top jump in the conference at 49-0.25 feet (14.94 meters). He's in the top 25 nationally, but will need to improve his mark in order to go to the national championships in Indianapolis.
Noah Turner of Western Washington is another reigning champion who is the favorite on paper to repeat, as his shot put of 53-4.25 feet (16.26 meters) was the best in the conference this season and just missed an all-time GNAC top-10 distance.
Turner’s teammate Jessica Polkinghorn sits atop the GNAC performance list with a shot put of 46-0.5 feet (14.03 meters). She will ride the 10th-best throw in GNAC indoor history with hopes of becoming the first-ever Viking woman to claim the indoor crown in the event.
Media partner RunnerSpace.com ($) will stream both days of the meet.
STUFF WE MISSED...
On Friday, Washington alum Luke Houser finished second in the mile at the Boston University David Hemery Valentine Invitational, running a season best 3:53.19 behind Harrison Witt of Princeton's 3:52.87.
Dillon Maggard of the Brooks Beasts was seventh in the 3000, running 7:40.47.
NOTE: The Great Northwest Athletic Conference and Boston University contributed to this report.
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