Bearcats Outperform the River Otters in Dual Meet

SALEM, Ore. — Willamette hosted the Eldon & Chuck Throwdown today to commemorate the intense rivalry between Eldon Fix and Chuck Bowles, who coached Lewis & Clark and Willamette Track & Field, respectively. Aided by the bright, warm weather, the Willamette Women's Track and Field team defeated Lewis & Clark in the dual meet.

Starting on the field, notable throwing perfomances include Olivia Jacobson's first-place hammer throw of 43.49 meters, a new personal best (PB). Both Willamette competetors in Javelin achieved new personal bests, Erica Snyder taking first with a distance of 33.14 meters and Ella Thompson in third with 26.85 meters. In Shot Put, Henri Osborne took first place with a throw of 11.70 meters. Willamette continued to dominate in throwing events with Jacobson and Osborne claiming second and third in Discus, the final throwing event.

Amanda Mcarthur leaped to first place in Triple Jump with a distance of 10.29, while Janae Howard followed in third. In Pole Vault, Rema Holmes landed first with a height of 2.53 meters. Whitley Stepp and Ella Thompson took first and second in High Jump; however, Snyder did not make the first bar.

Track events opened with the 4x100m Relay. Lavender Bel began with a strong start as the first leg, handing off to Mashani Coleman Toliver. Coleman kept the lead, exchanging with Thompson, who then had the final exchange with Wendy Brannon. Brannon extended the early lead and the team finished the race in 48.70 seconds, a first-place time against Lewis & Clark.

In the 1500m, Elise Henderson secured second place with 4:58.47 minutes (PB). Following in the 100m Hurdles, Willamette swept the top four spots, Coleman in the lead, Bel chasing close behind to take second. Next came Snyder and Sage Miller to take third and fourth. In the 100m, the top four again were claimed by Bearcats: Stepp in first with 12.94 seconds (PB), followed by Thompson, Brannon, and Addie Gage.

Anna Bikle had a season best in the 800m, achieving second place. In the 400m Hurdles, Coleman delivered another first-place performance, while in the 200m Bel outpaced her competitors to win first in 25.49 seconds (PB). Anastasiia Lemesh dominated in the 3000m Steeple Chase, even passing her competitors at one point to secure first place.

Closing out the track events was the 4x400m Relay, comprised of Coleman, Juniper Ammirati, Bel, and Brannon. The team began with a strong second-place position, thanks to Coleman, which Ammirati maintained. Bel slid the team into first-place position as she reached Brannon, who started off strong but was ultimately passed by the Lewis & Clark A team on the backstretch of the track. The relay team took second place with a season best of 4:07.66 minutes.

Next week are the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, as well as the Rich Allen Classic on March 14, in Newberg, Oregon.