Snyder Holds 11th place in Heptathlon after First Day of Pacific Multi-Event

By Robert McKinney, Assistant Athletics Director, Communications

FOREST GROVE, Ore. -- Willamette University women's track and field athlete Erica Snyder (So., Longview, WA/Mark Morris HS) held 11th place in the heptathlon standings at the end of the first day of competition on Sunday, March 24 at the Pacific Multi, hosted by Pacific University. A total of 17 athletes completed Sunday's four events. The Pacific Multi will conclude with the final three events in the heptathlon on Monday, March 25.

Snyder, who is competing in her first collegiate heptathlon, earned her highest first-day score of 632 points when she completed the 100-meter hurdles in 16.69 seconds. She added 621 points in the high jump by clearing 4' 11". In the shot put, Snyder's top distance was 25' 2.50". She registered a time of 29.68 seconds in the 200-meter dash.

She tied with two other athletes for eighth place in the high jump and she was ninth in the 110-meter hurdles. She placed 14th in the 200-meter dash and finished 16th in the shot put.

The next event in the heptathlon will be the long jump, which is scheduled to begin at 12 p.m. PST on Monday. The long jump will be followed by the javelin throw. The 800-meter run will be the final event.

Four participants each won a single event on Sunday. Cocome McKamey from Cal Poly Humboldt (Calif.) took first place in the 100-meter hurdles in 15.17 seconds (819 points). Kayla Morgan of Corban University won the high jump by clearing 5' 6" (830 points). Lizzy Grandle of Eastern Oregon won the shot put with a toss of 37' 1.75" (616 points). Grace Kasberger from Cal Poly Humboldt prevailed in the 200-meter dash with a time of 26.70 seconds (737 points).

Grandle was in first place in the overall standings with a combined score of 2,808 points. Kasberger was second at 2,768 points, and Morgan was third at 2,638 points. Corona Parker of Evergreen State College (Wash.) followed in fourth place with 2,631 points, and Macy Clemens from Western Oregon University was fifth with 2,558 points.

Snyder's score at the end of Sunday's events was 2,137 points. She was just two points out of 10th place, 40 points away from ninth place, and just 70 points out of eighth place.