RESULTS

EUGENE, Ore. — Portland State head track & field coach David Hepburn promised his athletes wouldn't be awestruck anymore with the new Hayward Field. The coach need look no further than Josh Snyder and Keynan Abdi to back up his claim, as the duo led the Vikings with a pair of standout performances on the first day of the Oregon Relays Friday.
 
Snyder broke his own school record in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, shaving 11 seconds off the time he set three weeks at the Hayward Premiere. In two races at the new Hayward Field, Snyder has two records.
 
Snyder ran aggressively, taking the lead among the chase pack with two laps to go while powering through the rest of the race to finish third overall in 8:56.64. Snyder's splits improved over each of his last three laps of the race, with his last lap coming in at 1:09.02.
 
Snyder, who broke Ben Plumb's 39-year-old school record in the event at the Hayward Premiere, now stands alone as the only Viking to crack nine minutes in the steeplechase. Snyder's time also moved him up to fourth in the Big Sky rankings, and the junior entered the top 20 within the NCAA West region.
 
Abdi, meanwhile, stuck his nose in amongst the leaders in his section of the 5,000 meters, just as he did three weeks ago at the Hayward Premiere. Abdi stood fourth at the 3k mark of the race, and while he dropped to seventh in the end, his time of 14:14.00 marked a 12-second improvement over his finish at the Hayward Premiere.
 
Abdi, who ran the fastest time by a Viking since 2001 three weeks ago, came within two seconds of passing Rick LaGreide for fourth all-time in the 5k. For context, LaGreide's time goes back to 1978. In fact, only one other Viking who's competed since 1984 ranks ahead of Abdi in the outdoor 5k (Jeremy Park, 14:04.25 in 2001).
 
Abdi had some company in the 5k this time around, as Ian Vickstrom put together his own strong showing in the race. Vickstrom would own the fastest 5k time since 2001 if not for Abdi, as he posted a huge personal best of 14:20.54, a time that slots him in right behind Abdi at sixth all-time at Portland State. Vickstrom's time marked a 41-second improvement over his last official 5k in a PSU singlet, as well as an 18-second improvement over the time he ran while unattached at the John Knight Twilight two weeks ago.
 
Luke Ramirez may have had the best bell lap of any Viking Friday, as he closed his section of the 1,500 meters in 58.10 seconds while finishing in 3:51.17. Ramirez ran the fifth fastest final lap in the field, and passed six runners in the final 400 meters. 
 
Ramirez has run 3:51 at each of his past three meets, with his best time coming at the Texas Relays where he ran 3:51.04. That time marked the fastest time by a Viking in the 1,500 meters since 2004, and moved Ramirez up to sixth all-time at Portland State.
 
Cayla Seligman ran with the lead pack throughout her section of the women's 5,000 meters. Seligman stood in second with two laps to go before eventually finishing fourth in 16:38.83. That time moved Seligman up to third all-time at Portland State, and gave her the second-fastest time by a Viking since Debbie Myra set the record at 16:22.90 in 1987.
 
Kaila Gibson ran in the same section of the 5k as Seligman, and shaved eight seconds off her seasonal best while finishing seventh in 17:01.11.
 
Tom Richardson also completed his second ever steeplechase Friday, finishing in 9:22.19.
 
Jean Rwandika was the final Viking competing Friday, as he finished seventh in the javelin with a best throw of 176-09 (53.89m).
 
Chase Lovercheck and James Bottrill will compete for the Vikings on the second day of the Oregon Relays Saturday, as they run in two different sections of the men's 800 meters. Lovercheck will toe the line at 12:22 p.m. Saturday, while Bottrill runs at 2:53 p.m.
 
Oregon Relays
Hayward Field
Eugene, Ore.
April 23, 2021
 
Women's Results:
5,000m (Section 1): 4. Cayla Seligman, 16:38.83; 7. Kaila Gibson, 17:01.11.
 
Men's Results:
1,500m (Section 1): 8. Luke Ramirez, 3:51.17. 5,000m (Section 1): 7. Keynan Abdi, 14:14.00; 13. Ian Vickstrom, 14:20.54. 3,000m Steeplechase (Section 1): 3. Josh Snyder, 8:56.64; 9. Tom Richardson, 9:22.19. Javelin: 7. Jean Rwandika, 176-09 (53.89m).