Complete Meet Notes (PDF)

PORTLAND, Ore. — If there's ever been a track midterm, it's this week for four athletes within the Portland State track & field program.
 
Alex Cisneros, Kaila Gibson, Sarah Medved and Donté Robinson will all chase qualifying marks for the NCAA regional and national meets this weekend as they compete at the Bryan Clay Invitational and Mt. SAC Relays down in the L.A. area. Gibson and Medved will run in the women's 5,000 meters and 3,000-meter steeplechase, while Robinson will compete in the decathlon at the Bryan Clay Invitational. Cisneros, meanwhile, will run in the second section of the invitational elite division of the 10,000 meters at the Mt. SAC Relays.
 
Gibson will be running her second 5,000-meter race of the outdoor season, after she finished in 17:24.46 at the SF State Distance Carnival on March 30. Gibson has had a breakout 2017-18 season between the cross country, indoor and outdoor seasons. Gibson led the Viking women at all five meets during the cross country season, including a top-20 finish at the Big Sky Championships, and a top-80 finish at the NCAA West Regional. Gibson then broke the school record in the indoor 5,000 meters at the UW Invitational, as she became the first Viking to crack 17 minutes in the event with her finish in 16:53.60.
 
Gibson will likely have to shave more time off her indoor school record in the 5k if she hopes to make the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, as the final qualifying time last season was 16:21.62.
 
Medved, meanwhile, will be running only her second 3,000-meter steeplechase ever at the Bryan Clay Invitational Thursday. Medved had as good of a debut as anyone could ask for in the event, as she broke the school record while becoming the first Viking to crack 11 minutes with her finish in 10:58.17. Medved currently ranks 67th in the NCAA West region off that time, but like Gibson, she will have to shave off more time if she hopes to make the west regional meet. The final qualifying time in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase last season was 10:29.13, just under 30 seconds better than Medved's debut time.
 
Cisneros has had the best season of any Viking distance runner, but he too will need to shave time off his previous best in the 10,000 meters if he hopes to make the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds. Cisneros became the first Viking to crack 30 minutes in the 10,000 meters since 1984 when he finished in 29:54.96 at the SF State Distance Carnival on March 30. The final qualifying time in the men's 10,000 meters last season was 29:39.95, just under 15 seconds faster than Cisneros' time in San Francisco.
 
Robinson is not chasing a mark for the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, as the decathletes skip the regional stage and move straight onto nationals. Robinson will instead have to finish in the top 24 nationally if he hopes to make the national meet in the decathlon. The 24th-best mark in the decathlon last season was 7,471 points, which is just over 600 points more than the personal best Robinson set at 6,868 points at the Boxer Combined Event earlier this season.
 
The benefit Robinson and all the Vikings will have this weekend is an elite field of athletes to compete against. The Bryan Clay Invitational and the Mt. SAC Relays count as two of the better regular-season meets during the collegiate outdoor season, and the Vikings' elite competitors should help inspire them to potential personal bests.
 
Robinson will open the Bryan Clay Invitational with the first day of the decathlon Wednesday, while Gibson and Medved compete in the women's 5,000 meters and 3,000-meter steeplechase Thursday. Cisneros will also compete in the men's 10,000 meters Thursday at the Mt. SAC Relays.
 
MEET INFO:
April 18-19 – Bryan Clay Invitational – Azusa, Calif. (Cougar Athletic Stadium)
April 19 – Mt. SAC Relays – Torrance, Calif. (Murdock Stadium)
 
BRYAN CLAY INVITATIONAL SCHEDULE:
Wednesday, April 18
Decathlon – Day 1
Start (PT)              Events (PSU entries)
12:30 p.m.            100 Meters (Robinson)
1:15 p.m.              Long Jump (Robinson)
3 p.m.                   Shot Put (Robinson)
4:30 p.m.              High Jump (Robinson)
6:30 p.m.              400 Meters (Robinson)
 
Thursday, April 19
Decathlon – Day 2
Start (PT)              Events (PSU entries)
11:30 a.m.            110-Meter Hurdles (Robinson)
                              Discus (Robinson)
                              Pole Vault (Robinson)
                              Javelin (Robinson)
                              1,500 Meters (Robinson)
 
Running Events
Start (PT)              Events (PSU entries)
4:40 p.m.              Women's 3,000-Meter Steeplechase (Medved)
TBD                       Women's 5,000 Meters (Gibson)
 
MT. SAC RELAYS SCHEDULE:
Thursday, April 19
Running Events
Start (PT)              Events (PSU entries)
9:45 p.m.              Men's 10,000 Meters – Invitational Elite (Section 2 – Cisneros)
 
UPCOMING:
The Vikings conclude the regular season at the OSU High Performance Meet next week, April 27-28, in Corvallis, Ore.
 
BIG SKY INDOOR CHAMPIONSHIPS:
The Big Sky Conference eliminated qualifying standards for the Big Sky Outdoor Championships last season, and will continue in that mold this season. Roster sizes will be capped at 28 athletes (men and women), leaving it up to coaches to determine how to maximize their scoring potential at the meet. The Big Sky Outdoor Championships take place, May 8-11, in Moscow, Idaho.
 
NCAA OUTDOOR CHAMPIONSHIP QUALIFICATION:
Unlike the NCAA Indoor Championships, the path to the NCAA Outdoor Championships runs through a regional stage, giving the Vikings a better chance of qualifying for the national meet. Indoors, the Vikings could only qualify for the national meet if they finished in the top 16 in each individual event, but outdoors, the Vikings only need to finish in the top 48 of the NCAA west region to qualify for the NCAA West Preliminary Rounds, May 24-26, in Sacramento, Calif. The top 12 in each event at the NCAA West and East Preliminary Rounds then advance onto the NCAA Outdoor Championships, June 6-9, in Eugene, Ore. The qualification procedure differs a bit for the relay events, as only the top 24 relay teams qualify for the regional stage. Qualifying for the multi-events also differs, as they skip the regional stage and instead advance the top 24 in the nation in the heptathlon and decathlon directly to the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
 
PELLUER INVITATIONAL RECAP:
Saraia Collmer broke the school record in the women's pole vault with a clearance of 11-03.00 (3.43m) as the Viking jumpers led the team at the Pelluer Invitational, April 13-14, at Roos Field in Cheney, Wash. Collmer broke the record Lynae Newby set with a clearance of 10-11.75 (3.35m) in 2004, and now holds both the indoor and outdoor school records in the women's pole vault. Ta'mara Richey placed second in the women's long jump with a mark of 19-03.50 (5.88m), beating her previous seasonal best of 18-11.25 (5.77m) by more than four inches. Richey's mark put her right on her progression in the long jump last season, as she jumped 19-04.25 (5.90m) at the Texas Invitational on the same weekend last year. Freshman Taylor Elliott moved into a tie for eighth all time in the women's high jump at the meet, matching her classmate Ceil Dunleavy. Elliott cleared 5-05.00 (1.65m) Saturday, tying her with Dunleavy, Damaris Tucker (2006) and Erin Kinney (2007) in the all-time ranks. Junior Jaron Barrow nearly moved into the top 10 all time in the men's long jump, as he placed fourth in the competition with a best jump of 22-11.75 (7.00m) – a centimeter behind the current 10th-best mark of 23-00.00 (7.01m). Jean-Luc Toku placed second in the men's triple jump, ahead of Barrow, with a seasonal-best mark of 46-08.75 (14.24m). The Vikings also set seasonal bests in both the men's and women's 4x100-meter relays, while Kamal-Craig Golaube set seasonal or personal bests in the 110- and 400-meter hurdles. Golaube narrowly missed the top 10 all time in the 400-meter hurdles, as he finished in 56.89 seconds – less than four-tenths of a second behind the current No. 10 time of 56.89 seconds.
 
JOHN KNIGHT TWILIGHT RECAP:
Maya Jackson shaved seven-tenths of a second off her seasonal best in the 400 meters while finishing in 57.86 seconds at the John Knight Twilight, April 6, at McArthur Field in Monmouth, Ore. Meggie Karp and McKenna Martin provided two more seasonal bests in the women's 1,500 meters, as they finished in 4:52.35 and 4:58.97, respectively. Erik Solano beat his prep personal best in the 5,000 meters while leading a group of three Vikings in the event with his finish in 16:04.87.
 
PACIFIC OPEN RECAP:
Alana Baldwin-Joiner shaved close to 25 seconds off her personal best in the 5,000 meters while leading a small group of Vikings at the Pacific Open, March 31, at Hanson Stadium in Forest Grove, Ore. Cody Jones, meanwhile, set a new personal best in the men's 5,000 meters, as he finished in 16:15.69 to beat the PR he came into Portland State with of 16:18. 
 
AL MANUEL NORTHWEST DUAL INVITATIONAL RECAP:
Nia Powdrell swept the women's 100 and 200 meters at the Al Manuel Northwest Dual Invitational, March 30-31, at Dornblaser Field in Missoula, Mont., extending her unbeaten streak in the sprint events to open the season. Powdrell improved to 5-0 in the 100 or 200 meters while winning both events by three-tenths and nine-tenths of a second, respectively. Powdrell also ran a leg on the Vikings' 4x100-meter relay, which finished in a seasonal-best 47.71 seconds. Powdrell would have added a fourth win to her meet resume in the women's long jump if not for her teammate, Ta'mara Richey. Richey and Powdrell finished 1-2 in the long jump, while the Vikings went 1-2-3-4 in the men's triple jump. Chance Whitehurst beat out teammates Jaron Barrow, Kevin Luyamba and Jean-Luc Toku for the event win while moving up to third all time at Portland State with a mark of 47-08.00 (14.53m). Whitehurst was also the Vikings' top finisher in the men's long jump, as he placed third with a personal-best jump of 22-05.75 (6.85m). Katie Baxter and Ceil Dunleavy won the women's 400-meter hurdles and high jump, respectively, with Dunleavy moving into a tie for eighth all time in the event with her clearance of 5-05.00 (1.65m). Megan Cornett also moved into the top 10 all time in the women's javelin, as she finished with a best throw of 132-08 (40.43m) to move up to eighth all time in the event.
 
SF STATE DISTANCE CARNIVAL RECAP:
Alex Cisneros became the first Viking to crack 30 minutes in the 10,000 meters since 1984 at the SF State Distance Carnival, March 30-31, at the Chabot College Track in Hayward, Calif. Cisneros finished in 29:54.96, moving him up to third all time in the event behind Dave Henderson and Seppo Matela, who stand 1-2 with times of 29:30.04 and 29:34.60, respectively. Sarah Medved, meanwhile, won her section of the women's 5,000 meters while finishing in 17:21.25. Alana Chaplin shaved 16 seconds off her personal best in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and moved up to ninth all time with her finish in 11:31.34. Justin Wikler also set a personal best in the fourth section of the men's 10,000 meters, as he finished in 33:10.20. Austen Hvidsten shaved close to three seconds off his personal best in the men's 800 meters while finishing in 1:55.67 on the second day of the meet.
 
BOXER COMBINED EVENT RECAP:
Donté Robinson improved to 3-for-3 in multi-event competitions this season while winning the decathlon at the Boxer Combined Event, March 27-28, in Forest Grove, Ore. Robinson won by close to 500 points while setting a new personal-best score of 6,868 points. Robinson didn't finish lower than third in any individual event, and set overall or decathlon personal bests in three of the five events on the second day of the competition. Robinson cleared 14-03.25 (4.35m) in the pole vault, moving him up to seventh all time in the event at Portland State. Katie Baxter placed third in the heptathlon with 4,354 points at the Boxer Combined Event, while freshman Kristen O'Handley – the first-day leader – placed fourth with 4,226 points. Baxter's best event came in the javelin, where she placed second overall with a best throw of 110-09 (33.76m). O'Handley dropped from the top spot because of a poor mark in the javelin, but had won the 200 meters and long jump earlier in the competition, and placed second in the 100-meter hurdles. Freshman Savanna Milroy also competed in the heptathlon for the Vikings, placing tied for 11th with 2,976 points.
 
WILLAMETTE INVITATIONAL RECAP:
Sophomores Angela Mumford and Nia Powdrell led the Vikings in their sophomore outdoor meet of the 2018 season, the Willamette Invitational, March 24, in Salem Ore. Mumford competed in the shot put, discus and hammer for the Vikings, but her best mark came in the hammer, where she set a new personal best of 141-03.50 (43.06m) while moving up to seventh all time at Portland State. Mumford became the first Viking to enter the top 10 all time in the hammer since 2009. Powdrell, meanwhile, swept the 100 and 200 meters, and improved to 3-0 in individual sprint races during the outdoor season. Freshmen Megan Cornett and Taylor Matsuzaki made their Portland State debuts at the meet while competing in the javelin. Cornett, who is also a player for the Portland State women's soccer team, nearly entered the top 10 all time in the javelin while uncorking a throw of 126-07.50 (38.59m) on her second attempt of the day. Matsuzaki set her best mark on her third attempt of the day, as she finished with a top throw of 107-04 (32.71m). Junior Jaron Barrow highlighted the day for the Viking men, as he entered the top 10 all time in the triple jump with a best mark of 45-10.50 (13.98m). Barrow set the mark on his first attempt of the day, moving him up to seventh all time in the event at Portland State.
 
L&C SPRING BREAK OPEN RECAP:
The Viking distance crew headlined the team's season-opening meet at the L&C Spring Break Open, March 16-17 in Portland, Ore. Sarah Medved broke the school record in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase on the first day of the meet, Friday. Medved set the record in her debut in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, finishing in 10:58.17 to become the first Viking women to crack 11 minutes in the event. Medved beat the old record of 11:11.60 that Mandy Peterson set 15 years ago in 2003. Alex Cisneros followed Medved with the Viking men's first top 10 mark in the 5,000 meters in 13 years Saturday despite running through rainy conditions. Cisneros won the 5,000 meters in 14:28.96, moving him up to sixth all time in the event. No Viking had entered the top 10 in the outdoor men's 5,000 since Blake Flanders in 2005, who Cisneros ironically knocked out of the top 10 with his time Saturday. Medved and Cisneros were also just two of several event winners for the Vikings at the meet. Jaron Barrow and Ta'mara Richey won the men's and women's long jump, respectively, Friday, while the Vikings won seven events Saturday. Nia Powdrell and Kristen O'Handley swept the women's 100 and 200 meters, while both also joined Richey and Natalie Cummings to win the 4x100-meter relay for the Vikings. Josh Pikes won the men's 200 meters, and was part of the Vikings' winning 4x400-meter relay team along with Zack Davis, Justin Desaki and Will Payton. Viktor Moen and Jean-Luc Toku, meanwhile, added event wins in the field for the Viking men, as they swept the pole vault and triple jump, respectively. The Viking women beat out Oregon State for first place in the team competition, finishing with 122 points to the Beavers' 115. The Viking men placed second with 102 team points, 21 points behind Western Oregon, which won the men's competition with 123.
 
TEDDY TWILIGHT RECAP:
Alana Chaplin broke the school record in the 2,000-meter steeplechase at the Teddy Twilight on March 3. Chaplin finished in 7:36 to break Keikoanne Hollins' old record of 7:43.56 that she set in 2012. McKenna Martin also moved up to fourth all time in the 2,000-meter steeplechase with her finish in 7:52. Jacob Emeterio and Jayson Maule also competed in the men's 2,000-meter steeplechase and moved up to third and fifth all time with their finishes in 6:20 and 6:44, respectively.
 
2018 INDOOR SEASON RECAP:
Donté Robinson out-kicked Sacramento State's Max Jette in the final event of the heptathlon – the 1,000 meters – at the Big Sky Indoor Championships, giving the redshirt junior his first Big Sky title. Robinson and Jette were tied through the first six events of the heptathlon, but Robinson passed Jette with a lap to go in the 1,000 meters and didn't look back, finishing in 2:51.65 to beat Jette by three-and-a-half seconds. Robinson became the Vikings' first Big Sky champion in the heptathlon since former NCAA first-team All-American Nick Trubachik won the event in 2010. Robinson won the event with a personal-best score of 5,248 points, and set personal bests in four of the seven events during the competition. Besides Robinson, the Vikings set five school records during the season, including two for Alex Cisneros. Cisneros broke his own school record in the 5,000 meters at the UW Invitational, finishing in 14:19.95 – 23 seconds faster than the time he ran at the same meet last season. Cisneros also broke the school record in the 3,000 meters at the UW Indoor Open, finishing in 8:16.45 to beat the old record of 8:21.04 by more than four seconds. Kaila Gibson joined Cisneros in a sweep of the men's and women's 5,000-meter records at the UW Invite, as she set the women's record with her finish in 16:53.60. Saraia Collmer, meanwhile, broke the school record in the women's pole vault in back-to-back meets during the season. Collmer first broke the record with a clearance of 11-05.25 (3.49m) at the Idaho Duals, and then broke it again a week later with a clearance of 11-07.25 (3.54m) at the UW Indoor Open. Kamal-Craig Golaube also broke the school record in the men's 60-meter hurdles twice, as he broke the record in the prelims and then the finals of the Big Sky Indoor Championships. Golaube finished the prelims of the 60 hurdles in 8.19 seconds, and then finished the finals in 8.14 seconds.