ELLENSBURG, Wash. – The Great Northwest Athletic Conference track & field programs converge on Central Washington University’s Recreation Sports Complex this week, for the 2024 GNAC Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
The two-day event kicks off on Friday morning and runs through Saturday, as the conference’s student-athletes have goals of bringing home medals and earning qualifying marks for the 2024 NCAA Championships later this month.
Live results for the championship meet will be available online here, and tickets are available for purchase online here.
Western Washington enters the GNAC Championships with the rare opportunity to become the first school in GNAC history to sweep the men’s and women’s cross country, indoor track and outdoor track team titles during the same academic year. The Viking women and men claimed both of the cross country titles in Anchorage, Alaska in the fall, before sweeping both indoor track team titles at The Podium in Spokane, Wash., in February. WWU is the reigning team outdoor champion in both genders, as the Vikings will look to become just the second team in conference history to repeat in both genders after Western Oregon achieved that feat in 2003-04.
Women’s Running Events
E’lexis Hollis of Central Washington and Marie-Eloise Leclair of Simon Fraser put on a record-breaking show at the 2024 GNAC Indoor Championships, winning the 60 meters and 200 meters, respectively. That duo each has provisional qualifying marks in both the 100 meters and 200 meters this spring, with Hollis running a season-best 100 meters of 11.45 seconds to rank 12th nationally and Leclair checking in at 11.50 to rank 17th nationally. Leclair, the two-time reigning champion in both events, has a GNAC-leading 200 meters time of 24.10 while Hollis ranks second at 24.16. Leclair is looking to join Jamie Ashcroft of UAA as the only other women’s runner to win three consecutive titles in both the 100 meters and 200 meters – a feat Ashcroft achieved in her stretch of dominance from 2014-16.
The Red Leafs’ Claire Bosma is the reigning outdoor champion in the 400 meters, and enters the meet ranked second in the conference with a time of 56.57 seconds. Only Elise Hopper of CWU, who won the indoor title in the event, has run faster this spring with a time of 56.16 seconds.
SFU’s Megan Roxby has experienced a breakout campaign this spring, posting conference-leading provisional qualifying times of 2:08.48 in the 800 meters and 4:20.02 in the 1,500 meters. WWU’s Marian Ledesma, who earned indoor All-American with an eighth-place finish in the 800 meters in March, will make this a can’t-miss race as she ranks second in the GNAC this spring with a top time of 2:08.94. WWU’s Sophie Wright is coming off a GNAC-third best time of 2:11.56 at last week’s Portland Twilight, giving the conference a trio of provisional qualifiers ahead of the championship meet.
Roxby’s 1,500 meters time is sixth-best in Division II this spring and fourth-fastest in GNAC history, and her top challenger for that title could be Cassidy Walchak-Sloan of Saint Martin’s who ranks second in the conference with a mark of 4:28.48. Walchak-Sloan is the reigning champion in the outdoor 1,500 meters, and is coming off a runner-up finish in the mile at the GNAC Indoor Championships.
Walchak-Sloan also figures to be a top contender in the 5,000 meters, where she ranks second in the conference at 16:40.76. That trails only Annika Esvelt of Seattle Pacific, whose time of 16:18.94 on March 29 stands as 12th-fastest in Division II this spring. Western Washington’s Ashley Reeck also holds a provisional time in the 5,000 meters at 17:02.41, and two-time reigning champion Ila Davis of WWU ranks fourth in the conference at 17:12.12.
Esvelt, the 2022 outdoor champion in the 10,000 meters, has her sights set on reclaiming the gold medal as she leads the conference and ranks fourth nationally with a time of 33:41.59. The Falcon junior ran that time on April 11 at the Bryan Clay Invitational, and it stands as fourth-fastest in GNAC history. Caitlin Heldt of Western Oregon is the next closest in the conference at 35:54.51 while Meaera Nystrom of WWU is third at 36:18.94, but if Esvelt is healthy she will be the overwhelming favorite to run away with this crown.
Davis meanwhile appears the odds-on favorite to win her third-straight GNAC steeple chase title, a feat that only Seattle University’s Kelly Fullerton has achieved in 2003-05 in the history of the conference. Davis ran the second-fastest time in GNAC history at the Stanford Invitational on March 29, clocking in at 10:11.97 which stands at No. 6 on the national performance list. WWU’s Reeck is the next closest to her teammate at 10:34.38, a figure that ranks her 17th in Division II.
Ellie DeGroot of Central Washington is the favorite in the 400-meter hurdles at 1:00.89, while ranking second in the 100-meter hurdles at 14.08 thus far in 2024. An injury prompted her early exit from the heptathlon two weeks ago, and could impact DeGroot’s status as one of the favorites in the hurdles. Teammate Lauryn Chandler has the top 100-meter hurdles time this spring, with her mark of 13.95 seconds making her one of just 29 runners nationally to break the 14-second mark in 2024. Chandler is looking to become the third woman in GNA history to go back-to-back in the event, and the first since the Wildcats’ Mariyah Vongsaveng claimed three-straight titles from 2017-19.
The Wildcat women are also the favorites in the 4x100-meter relay, where the quartet of Donna Marie Harris, Hollis, Zoe Gonzales and Juliette Williams ran the GNAC’s fourth-fastest time ever of 46.23 seconds on April 20 in Ellensburg. Western Washington leads the 4x400-meter relay list, clocking in with a conference-best 3:48.67 on April 11. Simon Fraser, the reigning champion in both relays, ranks second in the 4x100 at 46.77 seconds and third in the 4x400 at 3:55.62.
Men’s Running Events
For the Seawolves, GNAC Indoor Freshman of the Year Joshua Caleb has picked up right where he left off during his record-breaking winter. Caleb broke the GNAC outdoor record in the 400 meters, with his time of 46.73 seconds leading the conference and ranking 13th nationally. Caleb also leads the GNAC in the 100 meters with a time of 10.34 seconds (tied for 19th nationally), and the 200 meters with a time of 21.23 seconds. Caleb will look to give the Seawolves back-to-back 100-meter titles, after Enrique Campbell won the crown in 2023. He will also strive to become the first Seawolf since David Registe in 2011 to win the 200 meters at the GNAC Outdoor Championships. Close behind Caleb in the 400 meters is reigning GNAC 400 meters champion Kevin Angarita, who clocked a season-best time of 47.81 seconds at the Aztec Invitational on March 22.
Simon Fraser’s Jesaiah Penson-McCoy, last year’s Outdoor Athlete of the Meet and reigning 200 meters champion, enters the meet ranked fifth in the 200 meters with a time of 21.85 seconds this spring. Among Central Washington’s sprinters, Josh Green has led the way as his 100 meters time of 10.63 seconds ranks fourth on the GNAC performance list and his 200 meters time of 21.38 seconds ranks second behind only UAA’s Caleb. The Wildcat freshman also ranks fifth in the conference in the 400 meters at 48.38 seconds.
The men’s 800 meters should be thrilling to watch, with three GNAC student-athletes holding provisional qualifying marks. Two of those came just last week, as Western Oregon’s Isaiah Rodriguez (1:49.66) and Western Washington’s Drew Weber (1:49.88) ran the 10th-fastest and 14th-fastest times in Division II this spring, respectively. Sandwiched between those two with a time of 1:49.71 is CWU cross country All-American Johan Correa, who also figures to contend for the title.
The conference also has three provisional qualifiers in the men’s 1,500 meters, led by WWU’s Kevin McDermott at 3:46.54 at last week’s Portland Twilight meet. Western Oregon’s Keeton Sanchez is the reigning GNAC outdoor champion in the event, and enters the meet just one second behind McDermott at 3:47.55 as his season best. SFU’s Andrew Thomson is the other GNAC runner with a provisional mark, as he hit 3:48.71 at last week’s Portland Twilight meet as well.
The conference’s last two 5,000 meters winners are set to duke it out once again, as UAA’s Coleman Nash (13:55.71) and Western Washington’s McDermott (13:57.89) figure to go head-to-head for the second time this spring. Nash edged McDermott with the aforementioned times at the Stanford Invitational on March 29, and the UAA junior claimed the 2022 GNAC outdoor title in the event. McDermott, who won the mile, 3,000 and 5,000 titles during the indoor season, is the reigning outdoor champion in this event.
WWU’s Ryan Clough makes it three GNAC athletes with provisional marks in the event, as he holds a time of 14:19.62. Clough is also the favorite in the 10,000 meters, as his time of 29:35.91 on April 11 at the Bryan Clay Invitational was fifth fastest in GNAC history. In one of the most stacked events of the weekend, the 2022 champion in UAA’s Nash (29:43.20), the reigning champion in WWU’s Andrew Oslin (29:57.88), Northwest Nazarene’s Brody Kemble (30:15.60) and Western Oregon’s Bailey Smith (30:16.03) all figure to be in the mix.
Central Washington’s men have had a firm grip both on the hurdles and 4x100 meter relay thus far on the GNAC performance lists. In the 110-meter hurdles, CWU’s Aiden Wise holds the conference’s top mark at 14.54 while Drew Klein is second at 14.91. That duo is also in the top-three in the 400-meter hurdles, with their teammate Josh Boast leading the conference with a time of 53.71. The CWU quartet of Boast, Isaiah Webster, Green and Trevion Walker broke the GNAC record in the 4x100 meters on April 20, running 41.01 seconds on the championship track.
Western Washington’s men meanwhile are the favorites on paper in the 4x400-meter relay, with the quartet of Brian Le, Ryan Greenwalt, Lucas Brenek and Denzel Pinto clocking a time of 3:18.53. WWU also ran a season-best time of 41.11 seconds – just 0.10 off CWU’s GNAC record – at the Wildcat Invitational. The third-best time in GNAC history figures to make the Vikings a challenger to win both relays, as they did at last year’s outdoor championships.
WWU’s Jeret Gillingham made a splash at the Oregon Preview on March 22, running the third-fastest steeple chase time in GNAC history at 8:52.33. That mark, which leads the conference by nearly 15 full seconds, slots Gillingham seventh nationally and as a heavy favorite to defend last year’s title in the event. John Peckham of UAA, who also holds a provisional qualifying time of 9:07.84, is the closest any GNAC runner has come to Gillingham’s time this spring.
Women’s Field Events
GNAC Indoor Freshman of the Year Emy Ntekpere has continued her stellar debut collegiate campaign, and enters the week as the leader in both the high jump at 5-7.75 (1.72 meters) and the triple jump at 39-10.75 (12.16 meters). The GNAC indoor champion in both events, Ntekpere is tied for 18th nationally in the high jump and is 27th nationally in the triple jump. No woman in GNAC history has ever won both the high jump and triple jump titles in both the indoor and outdoor seasons in the same year.
Hannah Cooper of Montana State Billings has been one of the conference’s top performers consistently this spring, and owns a provisional qualifying mark in the high jump at 5-6 (1.68 meters). Cooper is tied for 39th nationally and could be a top contender to give Ntekpere a run for her money for the gold medal. NNU’s Miya Koch ranks third in the conference with a high jump of 5-5.75 (1.67 meters).
Ujunwa Nwokoma of Western Oregon continued her reign at the top of the long jump world, winning the 2024 GNAC Indoor Championships title. That came after she won last year’s outdoor title in the event, as she will look to become just the second woman in GNAC history to win consecutive outdoor long jump titles after Alaska Anchorage’s Kim Brady did so in 2007-08. Nwokoma’s GNAC-leading mark of 19-4.75 (5.91 meters) is nearly a full foot ahead of second-place Vivien Liessfeld of Alaska Anchorage (18-6). Nwokoma also ranks third in the GNAC in the triple jump at 37-6.75 (11.45 meters).
Central Washington freshman Lauryn McGough appears in good position to build off her 2024 GNAC Indoor title in the pole vault, as she leads the conference at 13-1.75 (4.01 meters) which was the fourth-best jump in GNAC history. Lizzy Daugherty of Seattle Pacific recorded the ninth-best mark in GNAC history earlier this spring, and enters the meet second in the conference at 12-6.25 (3.82 meters). The duo ranks 12th and 35th, respectively, on the NCAA performance list.
The conference could see repeat winners in a few of the women’s throws events, with 2023 shot put champion Destany Herbert of NNU and 2023 discus champion Katie Potts of WWU both in excellent form this spring. Herbert’s GNAC-leading shot put of 47-0.75 (14.34 meters) ranks 28th nationally, while Potts’ conference-leading discus throw of 152-5 (46.47 meters) ranks 26th nationally. Potts also ranks second in the conference in the shot put at 45-6.5 (13.88 meters) while Herbert is third in the discus at 134-10 (41.11 meters). Herbert looks to become the second Nighthawk to go back-to-back in the shot put (Vessie Umu, 2013-14), while Potts would become the fourth Viking to do so in the discus (Jessica Telleria, 2003-06; Erica Rance, 2007-08; Megan Mortensen, 2015-16).
The hammer has been headlined this spring by Simon Fraser’s Zuzanna Liniewski, who owns a conference-best throw of 178-1 (54.27 meters). The top-25 national mark is more than 15 feet clear of GNAC-second ranked Jordan Eldridge of Northwest Nazarene, who sits at 162-6 (49.54 meters). Montana State Billings senior Grace Jones has a good chance to get onto the awards podium, entering the meet ranked third in the event at 160-5 (48.90 meters).
Two-time reigning javelin champion Kaylee Wright of Western Oregon enters the championship meet with a GNAC-leading throw of 144-5 (44.01 meters), but will not go without competition as she strives to become the first woman in GNAC history to claim three straight titles in the event. A pair of Nighthawks figure to be in the mix for this title, with Emily Powers ranking second in the conference at 141-1 (43.03 meters) and 2024 GNAC women’s basketball all-conference selection Madeline Gebers ranking third at 138-7 (42.25 meters).
Men’s Field Events
CWU’s Klein already has a gold medal prior to the main event kicking off Friday, as he racked up 6,709 points at the GNAC Combined Event Championships on April 29-30 to claim the 2024 decathlon title. With a sweep of the indoor heptathlon and outdoor decathlon out of the way, Klein will shift his focus to the pole vault where he holds a GNAC-leading mark of 15-7.25 (4.76 meters). Ryan Doidge of Saint Martin’s is the only other GNAC athlete to clear 15 feet this spring, as he enters the championship meet at 15’ 1.5 (4.61 meters).
CWU’s Webster will have a shot at a pair of jumps medals this weekend, as he leads the conference in the long jump with a provisional mark of 24-1.5 (7.35 meters) and ranks second in the triple jump at 47-10.5 (14.59 meters). Webster shook off a second-place finish in the long jump at the GNAC Indoor Championships, and was all smiles after claiming the gold medal in the triple jump in February. If he is to repeat that feat at this week’s meet, he’ll have to out-perform Seattle Pacific’s David Njeri, who is the reigning outdoor champion in both events. Njeri holds a GNAC-leading triple jump of 48-6 (14.78 meters), and ranks third in the long jump this spring at 23-1.25 (7.04 meters). WWU freshman Troy Roberson is worth keeping an eye on as well, after he shocked the field by winning the GNAC Indoor Championships long jump at The Podium. Roberson enters this week’s meet ranked fourth in the long jump at 23-0.75 (7.03 meters) and third in the triple jump at 47-7 (14.50 meters).
Jonah Groce will look to make it three consecutive years with the high jump champion hailing from Northwest Nazarene, as he looks to follow in Steven Schmidt’s footsteps with a conference-leading mark of 6-7.75 (2.03 meters). Gabe Burchfield of Western Oregon, who won the event during the indoor season, ranks fourth this spring with a top leap of 6-3.25 (1.91 meters).
Central Washington senior Wyatt Franklin enters the championship meet leading the conference in the discus, with a heave of 161-8 (49.27 meters) on March 28. Franklin also ranks fifth in the conference in the shot put at 46-11 (14.30 meters), while his freshman teammate Wes Kriete leads the conference in that event at 52-4.5 (15.96 meters).
Mark Warren of WOU, the indoor champion in the weight throw and runner-up in the shot put, leads the conference with a provisional qualifying hammer throw of 193-11 (59.10 meters). That toss, which stands as the sixth-best all-time in the GNAC, was achieved on the very pit he’ll be throwing from this weekend. Warren will look to become the first Wolf to claim the hammer title since Anthony Marin in 2007, which capped a stretch of four hammer titles in five years for WOU.
After sitting out during the 2022-23 season, NNU’s Laurenz Waldbauer appears back in good form to recapture a javelin title that he won in 2022. The Nighthawk leads the conference and ranks sixth nationally with a heave of 232-0 (70.71 meters), as he was just five feet off his personal best mark of 237-6 (72.38 meters) which is second all-time in the GNAC. Four more throwers who each cleared 199 feet this spring figure to be in the mix for a podium spot, with SFU’s Jarrett Chong (216-11), SMU’s Ethan Guidry (200-2) and WWU’s Jakob Braunstein (203-0) and Andrew Nelson (199-1) all holding provisional marks in the event. Waldbauer looks to become the fifth man in GNAC history to win multiple javelin titles, and the first since Montana State Billings’ Beau Ackerman achieved the feat in 2019 and 2021.
