Dominic Baez

Despite the overcast sky, the lack of wind and rain aided the Wildcat track and field athletes in a crushing performance over George Fox University at the Frank Haskins Invitational.
The invitational, hosted by GFU on Feb. 28 in Newberg, Ore., resulted in the men winning 89.5 – 74.5 and the women finishing 86.5 – 73.5. The next meet for the Wildcats will be the annual Linfield Icebreaker on March 6 and 7.
While both the men’s and women’s teams did well, several key players shined.
For the women, junior Marci Klimek moved to third in the women’s all-time in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. Freshman Kelly Marineau achieved what would have been a provisional qualifying mark in the women’s javelin; however, she threw a day too early. Only qualifying throws after March 1 count toward competition in the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championship; Marineau threw Feb 28.
“I was kind of surprised that I hit that mark,” Marineau said. “We weren’t marking during practice. I didn’t know what I was throwing. But this will just push me to hit it again.”
Marineau placed first in the javelin, throwing 41.03 meters. The provisional qualifying distance is 38.5 meters; the automatic qualifying standard is 44.2 meters. Her mark is the second-best javelin marks by a Linfield woman and is fewer than two feet from the school record. Her personal record is 43.815 meters.
“It feels good,” she said. “I’m just surprised. I was nervous. I wanted to do well, but then the other [Linfield] throwers were, like, ‘You’re just a freshman, just throw.’ It really helped to calm me down. It’s a good start to the season.”
Even more impressive, this was Marineau’s first collegiate meet.
“It’s different,” she said. “That’s why I was nervous: I didn’t know what to expect with competition. But I get attention from coaches. It’s nice that Travis critiques me a lot to perfect my form, which is important in javelin.”
Marineau said she just hopes to improve on her PR and then to qualify.
Other outstanding women athletes include senior Michelle Harteloo, who earned first in 1,500-meter run with a time of 5 minutes and 1.72 seconds, and freshman Brittany Brostrom, who finished first in the 400 with a time of 1:02.69. Junior Rebeca Fister earned top marks in the 800 with a final time of 2:32.77.
Sophomore Brooke Bekkedahl won the 400 hurdles, 1:07.83, and helped the 4×400 relay to victory, along with the freshman trio of Brostrom, Misty Corwin and Lynn Robinson, with a time of 4:13.00.
Sophomore Kaycee Hallstrom earned first place in both the discus, 34.47 meters, and the shot put, 10.42 meters.
Sophomore Chelsea Machida won the high jump with a height of 1.55 meters. Freshman Catherine Street placed first in the pole vault at 3.20 meters. Freshman Lani Speer placed first in the long jump with a jump of 9.92 meters.
A host of male athletes also performed well.
For the men, senior Mat Strum achieved top place in the 200. Junior Shawn Fisher won the 1,500 with a final time of 4:10.34. In the distances, freshman Alex Van Slyke took first place in the 5,000, 16:19.48. Junior Chris McIsaac took top prize in the 3,000 steeplechase, 9:41.58. Strum, Fisher and juniors Josh and Jeremy Lovell produced a 4×400 relay victory at 3:26.87.
The men conquered the field events, as well. Josh Lovell won the high jump, 1.93 meters, and the long jump, 6.93 meters. Senior Gabe Haberly soared to first place in the pole vault, with a height of 4.39 meters. Junior Russell Sells won the shot put with a final distance of 11.87 meters.