PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland State head track and field coach Brent Ericksen announced his first four signees while at the helm for the Vikings Tuesday, welcoming in Michael Biedebach, Cameron Gaskell, Maya Jackson and Raquel Pellecer to the Vikings' program.
 
"We are excited to announce the signing of four student-athletes during our early signing period," coach Ericksen said. "Due to our August hires, we got a late start to the recruiting process, but I think our staff has done a really nice job of not only just adding these four, but continuing to build on our recruiting class for next year."
 
Biedebach, Gaskell and Jackson will enter Portland State as freshmen out of high school, while Pellecer will be eligible right away after spending the 2015-16 season at Western Washington University.
 
Michael Biedebach
Distances
El Toro High School
Lake Forest, Calif.
 
PREP PERSONAL BESTS:
Cross Country:
3 Mile – 14:49 – 2015
5,000m – 15.45 – 2015
Outdoor:
1,600m – 4:28 – 2015
3,200m – 9:35 – 2015
 
EL TORO HIGH SCHOOL:
Lettered in track & field during all four years of high school…Ran three years of cross country…Won the Thomas Mejia award as a sophomore and a coaches award as a junior in cross country…Placed first with his cross country team at the Laguna Hills Cross Country Invitational in 2014…Also placed first as a team at the Mt. Sac Sweeps Invitational in 2015…Also played JV soccer as a freshman in high school.
 
PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS:
Son of Thomas and Ana…Has a brother, Matthew…Lists hiking and dog watching as hobbies/interests…Plans on majoring in earth science, with minors in history and/or German.
 
COACH ERICKSEN ON BIEDEBACH:
"Michael really impressed me with the amount of improvement he has shown each year. He started out a soccer player and has really come into his own as a senior in cross country and I expect him to continue that through his track season."
 
Cameron Gaskell
Distances
Acalanes High School
Lafayette, Calif.
 
PREP PERSONAL BESTS:
Outdoor:
Mile – 4:26 – 2015
2 Mile – 9:28 – 2013
5,000m – 15:18 – 2015
 
ACALANES HIGH SCHOOL:
Lettered in cross country and track & field during all four years of high school…Won a DFAL championship as a junior.
 
PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS:
Son of Tim and Anna…Has a brother, Ronan…Lists Frisbee, basketball, Magic: The Gathering and running as hobbies/interests…Plans on majoring in architecture.
 
COACH ERICKSEN ON GASKELL:
"Cameron has been one of the top guys in the bay area and his combination of academics and athletics is exactly what we are looking for as Coach McCaffrey and I begin the building process here."
 
Maya Jackson
Sprints
The Northwest School
Seattle, Wash.
 
PREP PERSONAL BESTS:
Outdoor:
100m – 12.54 – 2015
200m – 25.30 – 2014
400m – 57.04 – 2015
 
THE NORTHWEST SCHOOL:
Back-to-Back 400-meter state champion (2014, 2015)…Placed 24th in the 400 meters at the Junior Olympic National Championships in 2014…Finished second with her team at the 2015 state meet…Team finished second in its league in 2014 and 2015…Placed fourth in the 200 meters at the state meet in 2015…Placed sixth in the 100 and 200 meters at the 2014 state meet…Placed eighth in the 100 meters at the 2015 state meet…Has won three straight district titles in the 400 meters (2013, 2014, 2015)…Holds school records in the 100, 200 and 400 meters, and was also part of the school record-breaking 4x400-meter relay team…Has won three straight league titles in the 100, 200 and 400 meters (2013, 2014, 2015)…Part of the 4x400-meter relay team that won a league title in 2015…Named a state athlete of the week in 2014…Named the Northwest School Track Athlete of the Year in 2013, 2014 and 2015…Competed in track & field during all four years of high school while also playing three years of volleyball…Has also competed for the Auburn Elite Track Club since 2013.
 
PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS:
Daughter of Katrina and Kevin Jackson…Has a brother, Jordan Jackson…Says playing volleyball is a hobby…Also lists volunteering at Petco, working with cats at a local animal shelter, spending time with friends and traveling as hobbies…Aspires to become a civil rights lawyer after her time at Portland State…Plans on majoring in political science with a minor in philosophy.
 
COACH ERICKSEN ON JACKSON:
"Maya has all the intangibles you look for and is a great fit for us. Her marks are very similar to the junior marks of some of our best ladies and I'm really looking forward to getting to work with her."
 
Raquel Pellecer
Javelin
Sandy High School
Boring, Ore.
 
PREP PERSONAL BESTS:
Outdoor:
Javelin – 134-07 (41.02m) – 2015
 
SANDY HIGH SCHOOL:
Three-sport athlete while at Sandy High School, lettering in basketball (four years) and softball (one year) in addition to track & field (three years)…Earned first-team all-league honors in the discus and javelin as a senior in 2015, as well as honorable mention in the shot put…Placed second in the javelin at the 2015 5A State Championships, as well as sixth in the discus…Earned second-team all-league honors in the javelin in 2014, as well as honorable mention in the shot put in the same year…Placed fifth in the javelin at the 2014 5A State Championships…Placed first in the javelin at the 2015 Sandy Invitational…Placed third in the javelin at the 2015 Oregon Relays after placing eighth at the same meet a year earlier…Two-time first-team all-league selection as a basketball player at Sandy, and was a second-team all-league selection as a sophomore in 2013…Named her team's MVP as a senior in 2015…Named athlete of the month as a sophomore in 2013…Finished her basketball career at Sandy as the school's third leading scorer and third leading rebounder…Won the 5A state title with her softball team as a sophomore in 2013…Named an OSAA Scholar Athlete as a senior in 2015.
 
PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS:
Daughter of Scott and Jennifer…Has a brother, Cameron…Participated in the 2015 Media Olympics, earning honors for Excellence in Sports Feature, Superior in Sports Photo (2x) and Honorable Mention in Sports Photo…Lists hiking, camping and being in the great outdoor as hobbies/interests…Hopes to become an international representative for an outdoor adventure company…Plans on majoring in business: management and leadership, with a minor in international business.
 
COACH ERICKSEN ON PELLECER:
"Raquel is a 2015 grad who will be eligible right away. She did a nice job of placing 2nd in the 5A division of the Oregon state meet last year and has a personal best throw of 134 feet in the javelin. The throws has been an area where we haven't scored a lot of points and I think with some hard work that she has the ability to come in and do that right away."