Western Oregon Journal

The Western track and field squads continued their trend of success this season.  Although the men failed to defend their conference title, they still placed second in the ever-competitive GNAC conference.  The loss snapped the Wolves’ conference winning streak at nine years running.

One of the biggest standouts for the Wolves included senior Ethan Barrons, who made his debut at the May 26-28 NCAA Division II National Championships in Abilene, Texas, in the 3,000-meter steeplechase.  He placed ninth with a time of 9:23.73, one spot away from All-American honors.

The women racked up one of their most impressive seasons to date, and perhaps the best since the move to the NCAA Division II level.  The Lady Wolves won their third-straight GNAC championship, overcoming a tough Seattle Pacific squad by a 217.5-209.5 margin.  Head Coach Mike Johnson was named GNAC Coach of the Year for the second season in a row.  The women’s squad capped off the season with a 27th-place finish at the National Championships.  Five women qualified in a total of seven events, and two brought home All-American honors in three events. 

Junior Bridget Johnson ended her season with sixth-place All-American honors in the heptathlon.  She scored 5,073 points to break her own school record of 4,997, which was set in the GNAC Multi-Event Championships in April.  Additionally, senior standout Monica Smith earned All-American honors in both the high jump and the 100-meter hurdles.  She leaped 5-08.5 in the high jump to place sixth, and ended her collegiate career with a fourth place finish in the hurdles at 14.34.  Smith also tied her own school record in the preliminaries of the event with a time of 14.15.

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