Beckmann Holds First Place after Five Events in NWC Decathlon
By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications
McMINNVILLE, Ore. -- Keaton Beckmann (Sr., Salem, OR/Sprague HS) of Willamette University was in first place in the decathlon with 3,700 points after the first day of the Northwest Conference Multi-Event Championships on Monday, May 3 at Maxwell Field. Beckmann won four of the five events on the first day and placed second in the high jump. He set personal records in the 100-meter dash and the 400-meter dash, while moving onto Willamette's top 10 lists in both events. He also won the long jump and the shot put.
Beckmann held a lead of 217 points in the overall standings. Nicholas McGill from Whitworth University, who won the high jump, was in second place with 3,483 points. Travis Herrera, also from Whitworth, was third with 3,274 points. Ronan Krutzikowsky of Linfield was fourth at 3,076 points. A total of six student-athletes are competing in the decathlon.
In the 100-meter dash, Beckmann placed first in 10.85 seconds for a personal record and his high score of the day at 894 points. He is now fifth all-time at Willamette in the 100-meter dash, just 0.01 away from third place, held by Gordon McKenzie and Mark Nolan, who both earned times of 10.84 seconds in 1994. The school record in the 100-meter dash is 10.74 seconds by Tim Archer in 1978 and Rich Torquato in 1986.
Beckmann won the 400-meter dash in 48.94 seconds as he set another personal record and scored 864 points. He is 10th on WU's all-time list, tied with Jeff Johnson from 1983.
On Monday, Herrera placed second in the 100-meter dash in 11.32 seconds and was second in the 400-meter dash in 50.44 seconds.
The long jump ended with Beckmann in first place at 22' 6.25". McGill earned second place at 21' 10.25".
Beckmann added a win in the shot put with a top distance of 38' 7", while McGill followed at 38' 1.25". Beckmann was second in the high jump at 5' 8" behind McGill, who cleared 6' 2".
Six competitors are involved in the heptathlon. Brecken VandenHoek of George Fox University was in first place after Monday's four events with 2,682 points. Elisabeth Jensen of GFU held second place at 2,382 points, while Kalina Buhler of GFU was in third place at 2,278.
Vendenhoek won the 100-meter hurdles in 15.22 seconds, the shot put at 34' 2", and the 200-meter dash in 27.52 seconds. Vandenhoek and Jensen tied for first place in the high jump at 4' 11.75". Willamette does not have a student-athlete entered in the heptathlon.
The NWC Multi-Event Championships will conclude on Tuesday, May 4, starting at 11 a.m. (PDT). The final five decathlon events are the 110-meter hurdles, discus throw, pole vault, javelin, and 1,500-meter run. The last three events in the heptathlon are the long jump, javelin, and 800-meter run.