The Seattle University track and field team started the weekend on a strong note, as the men’s and women’s distance medley relay school records were broken to highlight the first session of the UW Invitational Friday evening at Dempsey Indoor.
The women’s record fell first, as Madison Davis (Camano Island, Wash.), Candice de Sauvage (Foster City, Calif.), Sophie Curatilo (Honolulu, Hawaii), and Lila Rice (Redmond, Wash.) combined for a time of 12:08.66, finishing sixth in the event. That time was almost eight seconds faster than the previous school record set at this meet last year.
The Redhawk men followed suit when Nathan McLaughlin (Puyallup, Wash.), Zachary Schlachter (Tigard, Ore.), Collin Overbay (Spokane, Wash.), and Joe Charbonneau (Bellingham, Wash.) posted a mark of 10:15.18, over 10 seconds faster than the previous standard set at the 2012 Great West Conference Championships. Seattle U would finish in seventh place in the event.
“It was a good start for us this weekend, as the two distance medley relay teams were able to set new school records,” Seattle U head track and field coach Trisha Steidl said. “Hopefully the records will give the rest of the team the confidence to continue those types of performances tomorrow.”
Schlachter finished seventh overall in the 200 meter dash with a time of 22.25 seconds, a tenth of a second faster than the mark he posted two weeks ago at the UW Indoor Preview. Also in the men’s 200 meter dash, Austin Thummel-Gravitt (Puyallup, Wash.) finished in 16th place overall in 22.89 seconds, Samuel Engle (Portland, Ore.) finished in 23.30 seconds, and Trayvon Webster (Houston, Texas) posted a mark of 24.05 seconds.
In the women’s 200 meter dash, Alessandra Gonzales (Pasadena, Calif.) finished in 26.50 seconds, followed closely by Mandy Rusch (Redmond, Wash.) in a heat-winning time of 26.56 seconds and Alyssa Tao (Fountain Valley, Calif.) in 27.10 seconds.
It was a busy day from Amanda Maddux (Gresham, Ore.) as she competed in the five-event pentathlon, starting with a time of 10.01 seconds in the 60 meter hurdles. She cleared 1.60 meters (5-3) in the high jump and posted a top throw of 10.25 meters (33-7.5) in the shot put. After posting a top leap of 4.64 meters (15-2.75) in the long jump, Maddux concluded the day with a time of 2:32.85 in the 800 meter run, finishing in 12th place overall with 3,114 points.
Caleb Herrera (Tucson, Ariz.) earned a personal best time in the men’s 5000 meter run, finishing 13th in his section with a time of 15:24.43. Lauren Hammerle (Seattle, Wash.) led the Redhawks in the women’s 5000 meter run with a time of 17:56.72, followed by Taylor de Laveaga (Gilbert, Ariz.) in 18:16.70, Meghan Arigo (San Luis Obispo, Calif.) in 19:24.38, and Justine Bates (Arlington, Wash.) in 20:04.81.
In the men’s weight throw, Chris Scaffa (Lake Oswego, Ore.) finished fourth in his flight with a top toss of 13.45 meters (44-1.5), followed by Devon Walker (Ventura, Calif.) in fifth with a mark of 13.39 meters (43-11.25) and Malaki Seanoa (Everett, Wash.) in sixth with a top effort of 11.55 meters (37-10.75). Bethany Richards (Shoreline, Wash.) finished 14th overall in the women’s weight throw after a top toss of 14.71 meters (48-3.25), with Melissa Oeser (Belmont, Calif.) finishing at 9.85 meters (32-3.75) and Alexa DeYoung (Gig Harbor, Wash.) at 9.75 meters (32-0).
Seattle University will continue its participation in the UW Invitational Saturday, Feb. 1, at 9:15 a.m. with the men’s 3000 meter run, concluding with Thummel-Gravitt in the 400 meter dash invitational and Stephen Squatrito (Phoenix, Ariz.) in the pole vault invitational, both scheduled to begin at 3:30 p.m.