The Seattle University men's track and field team won four events, while the women's team also earned some top performances at the annual WAR Meet pitting schools from Washington against those from Oregon, Idaho, and Montana Saturday at Spokane Falls Community College.
Zach Stanfield (Adna, Wash.) and Austin Thummel-Gravitt (Puyallup, Wash.) finished 1-2 in the 200 meter dash, with Stanfield winning in 21.61 seconds, only 3/100ths of a second off his school record time, and Thummel-Gravitt finishing second in 22.01 seconds. Thummel-Gravitt won the 100 meter dash in 11.20 seconds, with Zachary Schlachter (Tigard, Ore.) finishing fourth in the event in 11.24 seconds.
Thummel-Gravitt ran the second leg of the 4x100 meter relay team, joining with Eric Patterson-Floyd (Seattle, Wash.), Schlachter, and Stanfield to win the event in 42.42 seconds. Samuel Engle (Portland, Ore.), Colton Misono (Newcastle, Calif.), Thummel-Gravitt, and Schlachter concluded the meet with a victory in the 4x400 meter relay with a time of 3:21.24.
Stephen Squatrito (Phoenix, Ariz.) once again improved on his own school record in the pole vault, finishing in a tie for fifth after clearing 4.40 meters (14' 5.25"). Other top performances for the men include a fourth place finish for Kelton Sears (Maple Valley, Wash.) in the 3000 meter steeplechase in 9:43.34, Erik Barkhaus (Whitefish Bay, Wis.) finishing fourth in the 1500 meter run in 3:58.81, Stanfield finishing third in the 400 meter dash with a time of 48.92 seconds, and Dan Auld (Eugene, Ore.) placing eighth in the 800 meter run in 1:54.63.
Katie Tougas (Edmonds, Wash.) was a multiple-event threat for the Redhawk women, finishing fourth in the long jump with a top effort of 5.18 meters (17'), sixth in the 100 meter dash in 12.79 seconds, and first in her heat of the 200 meter dash in 26.32 seconds. She also anchored the 4x100 meter relay, teaming with Alyssa Lout (Tempe, Ariz.), Cali Cull (Marysville, Wash.), and Meeghan Bergmann (Portland, Ore.) for a time of 49.81 seconds, good enough for fourth place.
Besides the relay effort, Lout was first in her heat and seventh overall in the 100 meter dash in 12.81 seconds and 15th overall in the 200 meter dash in 26.37 seconds. Also on the track, Sarah Bolce (Sacramento, Calif.) finished eighth in the 5000 meter run in 18:23.92, just ahead of teammate Sophie Curatilo (Honolulu, Hawaii) in ninth place with a time of 18:25.79.
In other field events, Bethany Richards (Shoreline, Wash.) finished seventh in the shot put with a top throw of 11.51 meters (37' 9.25") and 15th in the hammer throw with a best effort of 39.02 meters (128'). Renate Wescott (Puyallup, Wash.) finished 10th in the women's javelin throw with a top toss of 35.75 meters (117' 3").
"Overall, we had a good meet today. The weather was by far the best we've had - sunny and calm. While we used this mostly as a 'training' meet, we took advantage of the weather and put together a lot of very solid performances," Seattle U head coach Trisha Steidl said.
In the track events only, the Seattle U men scored 72 points, while the Redhawk women picked up 11 points.
The Seattle University track and field team will next compete at the Oregon Relays at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., April 19-21.