Daniel Wins 100-Meter Hurdles and Long Jump at Willamette vs. Concordia Dual

By Robert McKinney, Athletics Communications Director, (503) 370-6110

SALEM, ORE. -- Willamette University track and field athlete Bekah Daniel (Jr., Silverdale, WA/Central Kitsap HS) set a personal record while winning the women's 100-meter hurdles, and also took first place in the women's long jump, during the Willamette vs. Concordia Dual on Saturday, April 5 at the Charles Bowles Track.

Daniel's two victories were among the many highlights for the Bearcats. She won the 100-meter hurdles in 15.17 seconds, as she moved up from eighth into fifth place on Willamette's all-time list. Her previous top time was 15.26 at the 2013 Northwest Conference Championships.

Her time also advanced Daniel into 30th on the NCAA Division III performance list for the 2014 season. She ranks fourth in the NWC.

Daniel won the long jump with a leap of 17' 4.75", less than four inches from her personal record of 17' 8" set at the Lane Preview earlier this year. Taylor Ottomano (Jr., Poulsbo, WA/North Kitsap HS) placed second in the long jump on Saturday with a distance of 16' 1".

Michaela Freeby (Jr., Milwaukie, OR/Rex Putnam HS) of Willamette continued her exceptional running in middle distance and long distance races this spring. On Saturday, she won the 800-meter run in 2:15.93, reducing her personal record from 2:17.69, set at the Lane Preview just a few weeks ago.

Freeby took over fifth place on the NCAA performance list in the 800. She also surged into ninth on Willamette's all-time list. She is ranked third in NCAA Division III in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, fifth in the 5,000-meter run and 15th in the 1,500-meter run.

Taylor Ostrander (So., Soldotna, AK/Kenai Central HS) of WU was third in the 800-meter run against Concordia while setting a career-best time of 2:23.96. She took more than six seconds off her previous top time of 2:30.26, recorded at the Lane Preview last spring.

In the men's 4 x 100-meter relay, Willamette recorded the fastest time in the Northwest Conference this season at 42.11 seconds. Concordia won the race in 41.72 seconds in a high quality match-up between the Bearcats and the Cavaliers. WU joined Wabash University (Ohio) in a tie for 12th on the NCAA performance list.

Willamette's relay unit included Matt Paparella (So., Glendale, AZ/Ironwood HS), Chris Luetjen (Sr., Lake Oswego, OR/Lake Oswego HS), Tom Fiechtner (Sr., Poway, CA/Cathedral HS) and Dylan Jones (So., Santa Maria, CA/Ernest Righetti HS). All four were on WU's 4 x 100 team that won the NWC title last spring in 42.06 seconds for second on the Bearcats' all-time list.

In addition to contributing to the nationally ranked relay performance, Luetjen and Jones ran well in the 100-meter dash. Luetjen took second place and set a personal record of 10.98 seconds. Jones placed third in 11.03. Carlos Ortiz of Concordia won the event in 10.96.

Fiechtner and Paparella finished third and fourth in the 400-meter dash. Fiechtner was timed at 50.92 seconds, while Paparella achieved a time of 51.59. Edgar Vazquez claimed first place for the Cavaliers in 50.14 seconds.

Jordan Loos (Jr., Springfield, OR/Thurston HS) of Willamette added nearly 13 feet to his personal best in the men's hammer throw while placing fourth. His top toss went 172' 6.25". His previous top mark, set at the Willamette Invitational a week ago, was 159' 10." His new personal record ranks him ninth on WU's all-time list and 18th in the NCAA this year.

During the women's hammer, Kaeleigh Thorp (Jr., Sam Leandro, CA/Encinal HS) earned a personal record and took second place. She registered a top throw of 144' 10", improving on her mark of 144' 3.75" at the Willamette Invitational. She remained fourth all-time at WU. Jessica Mattos of Concordia won the event at 149' 3.25". Thorp placed third in the discus at 119' 9".

Ami Boucher (Fr., Concord, CA/Northgate HS) earned a time of 11:40.78 for a personal record in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase. She broke her previous top time of 11:43.59 set in Willamette's dual with Corban on March 20. She is 30th in NCAA Division III, giving WU four runners in the top 30.

Ottomano and Maya Bowton (So., Spokane, WA/Ferris HS) earned a 1-2 finish in the women's high jump. Each cleared 5' 2.25", with Ottomano taking first place on jumps. Holly Pfaff of Concordia also successfully jumped at 5 '2.25", but Bowton placed second on jumps.

In the final team standings, the Willamette women's team defeated Concordia, 76-65. The Cavaliers won the men's competition, 72-44.

Other top performances for the WU women's team:

Maura Forbush (Fr., Hollister, CA/San Benito HS) won the 400-meter dash and set a personal record at 59.76 seconds. Her top time prior to the race was 1:00.32 at the Lewis & Clark Tri Meet on March 8.

Kylea Johnson (So., Onalaska WA/Onalaska HS) took first place in the 100-meter dash in 12.76 seconds, while Audrey Taylor (So., Portland, OR/La Salle HS) placed second at 12.95.

Jossalyn Wright(Jr., Aumsville, OR/Cascade HS) was second in the shot put with a top distance of 35' 3.25". Kelsey Engstrom (Jr., Clinton, WA/South Whidbey HS) earned third place at 35' 2.50".

Meka Townsend (So., Okanogan, WA/Okanogan HS) placed fourth in the javelin at 119" 6.25".

Additional results of note for the Bearcat men's team:

Kit Kingstad (Sr., Beaverton, OR/Beaverton HS) was second in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:58.20. Daniel Swanson (Jr., Seattle, WA/Roosevelt HS) was third at 1:58.61.

Jacob Shafi (So., Pleasanton, CA/Amador Valley HS) finished second in the 1,500-meter run at 4:06.93.

Shawn Wong (Fr., Fremont, CA/American HS) earned a personal record in the 100-meter dash. He was timed at 11.58 seconds, reducing his previous best time of 11.76.

Michael Underwood (Fr., Palo Alto, CA/Henry M. Gunn HS) recorded a career-best time of 10:22.97 in the 3,000-meter steeplechase. He lowered his time from 10:33.25 at the WU versus Corban meet.

Paul Schot (Fr., Forest Grove, OR/Forest Grove HS) took second in the long jump at 20' 1", while Tyler Higley (Jr., Aloha, OR/Aloha HS) placed fourth in the shot put at 45' 3".

Up Next for the Bearcats:

The Bearcats will compete at the John Knight Twilight on Friday, April 11 in Monmouth, Ore. The meet, hosted by Western Oregon University, will get underway with field events at 1 p.m. (PDT) and running events at 4 p.m.