PALO ALTO, Calif. --- The University of Portland track team raced at the Stanford Invitational over the weekend, with several Pilots posting strong times in the team’s second major outdoor meet of the season.
Complete results can be seen by following the above link.
For the women, a trio of freshman led the way, notching the top times for the team in three different events. In the 5000 meters, Dana Morgan won her section with a time of 16:38.11. Junior Amie Dahnke set a personal record in the 5000, finishing sixth in her section with a time of 17:02.56. Senior Kristen Rohde also ran in the 5000, winning her section with a time of 17:15.55.
Morgan's time qualified her for the NCAA Regional meet in May and was the fifth fastest in school history. But Morgan was not the only one to crack into UP's all-time charts: Dahnke's time was the seventh fastest and Rohde's the eleventh fastest.
"As a group, those were perhaps the best big-meet performances we’ve ever had," women's head coach Ian Solof said. "Not only did every single person run well, but to win two distance races and have three 5k times crack the top 11 in school history is amazing.”
Freshman Cori Moore (pictured) placed 15th in her section of the 800 meters with a time of 2:12.44, topping her previous top outdoor time of the season by over one and a half seconds.
Natalie Hemphill was the team’s top finisher in the 1500, crossing the line with a time of 4:39.57. Sophomore Adrienne Nova (4:42.07) also ran in the 1500.
On the men’s side, senior Steven Ault finished eighth in his section of the 3000 meter steeplechase with a time of 9:01.
Senior Matt Sheeks placed second in his section of the 5000 meters with a time of 14:04.78. Senior Chuck McKenzie (14:16.49) and sophomore Justin Houck (14:32.84) also ran in the 5000.
Three Pilots ran in the 10,000 meters, with sophomore David Kinsella posting the team’s top time, placing sixth in his section with a time of 28:57.97. Junior Michael Kilburg (29:19.75) and sophomore Colin Longmuir (30:11.67) followed.
The next meet for the track team is the Willamette Invitational in Salem, Ore., scheduled for April 6-7.
