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Bearcats to Host Willamette Opener in Track and FieldPublished by
Willamette will Take on Western Oregon University and University of Portland SALEM, ORE. -- The Willamette University men's and women's track and field teams are ready for the start of the 2015 season, which begins on Saturday, March 7 with the Willamette Opener at Charles Bowles Track. The Bearcats will be led by five returning athletes who won Northwest Conference titles or competed at the NCAA Championship last season. Action in the Willamette Opener will get underway at 10 a.m. (PST). The meet will feature Willamette University, Western Oregon University, University of Portland, several running clubs and unattached athletes. Willamette has three athletes on the women's team who competed at the 2014 NCAA Division III Track and Field Championships. Meka Townsend (Jr., Okanogan, WA/Okanogan HS) took 10th place in the nation in the javelin throw with a top distance of 138' 3". Taylor Ostrander (Jr., Kenai, AK/Kenai Central HS) placed 11th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:59.08. Ostrander was 22nd in the steeplechase as a freshman in 2013. Michaela Freeby (Sr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) ran in the preliminary heats and placed 17th in the 3,000-meter steeplechase despite battling back from an injury. She placed fourth in the NCAA in the steeplechase in 2013 and was 13th in 2012. Ostrander won two events at last year's NWC Championships. She took first place in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:56.37 and was first in the 5,000-meter run at 17:42.58. Freeby was the winner of the 5,000-meter run with a time of 4:42.49, while Ostrander was second in 4:44.32. Townsend placed second in the NWC last season in the javelin with a personal record throw of 138' 8". Hannah Bressler (Jr., Oak Harbor, WA/Oak Harbor HS) took second in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 11:08.08. Two Bearcats return on the men's team after winning NWC titles last spring. They are Dylan Jones (Sr./Jr., Santa Maria, CA/Ernest Righetti HS) and Hans Lehndorff (Jr., Boulder, CO/Boulder HS). In addition, Yonny Castillo (Jr., Parkdale, OR/Hood River Valley HS) placed third in one event and fifth in another. Jones was part of Willamette's championship 4 x 100-meter relay team for the second consecutive year. The Bearcats won the 2014 NWC title with a time of 42.20 seconds. Lehndorff placed first in the discus throw with a top mark of 144' 9". Castillo was third in the 5,000-meter run at 15:21.34. He also placed fifth in the 10,000-meter run in 32:35.14. Willamette will feature a talented group of distance runners, including several who competed at the NCAA Cross Country Championships this past fall. Running for the WU women's team at the NCAA Championships were Ostrander, Freeby, Bressler, Olivia Mancl (So., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS), Juliet Farnan (Jr., Lafayette, CA/Campolindo HS), Alyssa Reese (Fr., Louisville, CO/Monarch HS) and Hannah Swanson (Fr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS). Castillo competed at the NCAA Cross Country Championships for the Bearcat men's team. Mancl was Willamette's top finisher at the national meet, as she achieved 48th place. The Bearcats placed 15th in the team standings. Head Coach Matt McGuirk, who leads the Bearcat teams in cross country and track and field, was named NWC Men's Cross Country Coach of the Year and NWC Women's Cross Country Coach of the Year after guiding both teams to NWC titles this past season. 2015 Willamette OpenerSaturday, March 7* Field Events Track Events * Starting times are approximate Read the full article at: willamette.edu
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