Several members of the Seattle University track and field team achieved season and personal bests Saturday as the Redhawks participated in the Ralph Vernacchia Meet, hosted by Western Washington University at Civic Stadium.
Alyssa Gonzales (Pasadena, Calif.) started her day by leading off the Redhawk 4x100 meter relay, joining with Abby Wachter (Beaverton, Ore.), Maia Sparkman (Langley, Wash.), and Madison Lichter (Snohomish, Wash.) in finishing third in 49.04 seconds, just 4/100ths of a second off the school record. Gonzales also finished second in the 100 meter dash in 12.55 seconds, just ahead of Lichter in third place in 12.67 seconds, and fourth in the 200 meter dash in 26.11 seconds.
Sparkman finished 12th in the 200 meter dash with a season-best time of 27.28 seconds, plus she finished fourth in the long jump with a season-best mark of 5.06 meters (16’ 7.25”). Valerie Wu (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) finished third in the long jump with a mark of 5.09 meters (16’ 8.5”) and 13th in the 100 meter dash in 13.22 seconds. Wachter finished seventh in the 400 meter hurdles with a season-best time of 67.90 seconds.
Collin Overbay (Spokane, Wash.) led the Redhawks in the 1500 meter run, finishing fourth overall in 3:57.82, just ahead of Joe Charbonneau (Bellingham, Wash.) in fifth place in 3:59.94. Chay Weaver (Louisville, Colo.) finished seventh in the event in 4:01.67, followed by Jacques Hebert (Honolulu, Hawaii) in ninth place in 4:02.65, Tyler Flannery (Auburn, Wash.) in 14th place in 4:12.37, and Louis Rodrigues (Alameda, Calif.) in 17th place in 4:18.97. Weaver also finished 20th in the 800 meter run in 2:01.74.
In the women’s 1500 meter run, Johanna Erickson (Edgewood, Wash.) finished 10th with a personal-best time of 4:59.28, with Haley Kruell (Portland, Ore.) finishing 16th with a season-best time of 5:15.61. Rebecca Lassere (Boise, Idaho) finished fifth in the 3000 meter steeplechase with a personal-best time of 11:21.68, while Emily Hedberg (Phoenix, Ariz.) also posted a personal-best mark in the 5000 meter run, crossing the finish line in seventh place in 18:03.57. Also in the women’s 5000 meter run, Lindsay Frederick (Seattle, Wash.) posted a season-best time of 18:58.90, and Meghan Arigo (San Luis Obispo, Calif.) finished fourth in the 10,000 meter run in 41:48.74.
Nathan McLaughlin (Puyallup, Wash.) posted a personal-best time in the men’s 3000 meter steeplechase, finishing fifth with a mark of 9:37.68. The Redhawk men also performed well in the 5000 meter run, led by Joseph Nakao (Sammamish, Wash.) in 12th place in 15:31.90, followed by Collin Olson (Newcastle, Wash.) in 14th place in 15:40.15 and Miles Hille (Woodinville, Wash.) in 23rd place in 15:54.67.
In the field events, Nick Redlew (Honolulu, Hawaii) finished ninth in the triple jump with a mark of 12.65 meters (41’ 6”) and 13th in the long jump in 5.52 meters (18’ 1.5”). After finishing 10th in the long jump at 4.51 meters (14’ 9.75”), Sandy Dasalla Good (Mountlake Terrace, Wash.) finished fifth in the triple jump with a mark of 10.47 meters (34’ 4.25”), ahead of teammate Alanna McCarthy (St. Paul, Ore.) in sixth place with a mark of 10.42 meters (34’ 2.25”).
In the throws, Malaki Seanoa (Everett, Wash.) finished sixth in the javelin throw with a mark of 51.30 meters (168’ 4”) and seventh in the hammer throw with a mark of 46.19 meters (151’ 6”). Chris Scaffa (Lake Oswego, Ore.) finished eighth in the hammer throw at 44.57 meters (146’ 3”), while Devon Walker (Ventura, Calif.) finished 10th in the hammer throw at 42.97 meters (141’) before ending up eighth in the discus throw at 43.37 meters (142’ 3”). In the women’s hammer throw, Alexa DeYoung (Gig Harbor, Wash.) finished 11th with a mark of 39.52 meters (129’ 8”).
The Seattle University track and field team will head south to Corvallis, Ore., to participate in the Oregon State University High Performance Meet Friday, May 1, starting at 12 noon.