RESULTS

PORTLAND, Ore. — It didn't take long into its 2024-25 indoor season for the Portland State track & field program to start breaking records. One race in fact. The first race of the first meet of the season saw Wendy Hare break a 17-year-old school record in the women's indoor 600 meters while winning the event in 1:36.98.
 
Hare's time bettered the previous record of 1:37.22 that Melissa Owens set in 2007. In doing so, Hare shaved more than two seconds off her previous best time, which came nearly two years ago at the UW Indoor Preview.
 
So, not bad for a start as the Vikings opened their indoor season with a dual meet against cross-town rival University of Portland Monday night at the Chiles Center. Both teams were racing to 21 points. First place in each of the individual running events was awarded five points, while second and third got three and one, respectively. Relay events were scored as five points to the winner and nothing to anyone else.
 
The Viking women took home eight points in the 600, as besides Hare's record and event win, freshman Irina López placed second in 1:37.52. That wasn't a personal best for López, who ran 1:37.07 at the Spanish U16 Indoor Championships in 2020, but it still moved her up to No. 2 in the freshman record book and No. 3 all-time at Portland State. Fellow freshman Aida Coté didn't score for the Vikings in the 600, as she placed fifth, but her time of 1:56.06 still moved her up to No. 6 in the freshman record book.
 
The Vikings also got three points from the women's 200 meters thanks to a second-place finish from newcomer Tori Frost. Frost finished in 26.03 seconds, just behind overall winner Aria Cain in 25.37.
 
Ashley Peterson didn't score for the Vikings, placing sixth in the 200 meters, but posted the biggest improvement in the event as she shaved close to a second and a half off her previous best while finishing in 27.01 seconds. Peterson's previous best came on the same track at the Portland Indoor Two last January.
 
The Viking women also got four points from the women's 1,000 meters between a second-place finish from Ania Kapustka and a third-place finish from Taylor Nichols. Kapustka led for the first several laps of the race before finishing second in 2:59.09. Her time marked a 23-second improvement over her previous collegiate best in the 1,000 while also moving her up to No. 4 all-time in the PSU record book. Nichols also moved into the top 10 at No. 8 while finishing third in 3:04.18.
 
Hare doubled back in the 1,000 and finished fourth in 3:10.67. Campbell Faust added another personal best to the mix while finishing sixth in 3:16.78, nearly seven seconds faster than her previous best.
 
However, the Pilots won the women's race, 26-15, going over the required 21 points after Brionna Holso beat Kapustka to the line in the women's 1,000 meters.
 
The Pilots added five points with a final victory in the women's 4x400-meter relay. Forst ran a strong second leg for the Vikings as she took the lead, but the Pilots caught up over the final two legs to beat the Vikings 4:10.26 to 4:12.87. Even still, the Vikings' time – which Sienna Rosario, Coté and Peterson joined Forst in recording – was nearly as fast as the Vikings' best indoor 4x400 relay last year. Their best last year was 4:12.64, but that came on the second-to-last week of the indoor season at the Portland Indoor Three, while this year's Vikings made their debut Monday.
 
The men's race was also in hand for the Pilots by the time of the relay – it finished 28-13 to the Pilots – but that didn't stop the Vikings from putting down a pair of strong times. The Vikings had two teams in the race, with the foursome of Tommie Olubisi, Eman Kargbo, Caiden Isaacson and Deghlan Johnson finishing second in 3:35.51, while the foursome of Victor Ramirez, Aidan Brown, Simon Walsh and Amir Ahmed finished third in 3:47.46. Both times were faster than the Viking men's best indoor race last season, which was 3:48.95 at the Portland Indoor Three.
 
Some of those in the relay also had the strongest individual performances for the Viking men.
 
Johnson led the Vikings to a sweep of the men's 200 meters while finishing in 23.21 seconds. His time was two-tenths of a second faster than his outdoor best in the 200, which came at the GFU Rich Allen Classic in 2023 when he was competing for Mt. Hood Community College. Kargbo followed Johnson in 23.76 seconds, shaving seven-hundredths of a second off his indoor best from the Portland Indoor Three last year. Olubisi rounded out the all-Viking podium with a third-place finish in 23.77 seconds.
 
Amir Ahmed added three points to the Vikings' score with a second-place finish in the men's 600 meters. Ahmed crossed the line in 1:22.93, moving him up to seventh all-time in the event as he dropped more than a second off his previous best. Aidan Brown and Victor Ramirez followed in 1:29.65 and 1:29.97, moving them up to No. 5 and 6, respectively, in the freshman record book. Simon Walsh joined them in the freshman record book at No. 7 with his finish in 1:34.49.
 
Tom Thake, meanwhile, set the first of two personal bests with his finish in 1:32.70 in the men's 600 meters. That was five seconds faster than his previous best in the event, which came on the same track at last season's Portland Indoor One.
 
Thake's second personal best came in the 3,000 meters, which he finished in 9:33.17. Freshman Nick Moore led the Vikings in the 3k while cracking nine minutes with his finish in 8:59.74.
 
Thake nearly added a third personal best while finishing the men's 1,000 meters in 2:53.58. That time was just 12-hundredths of a second off his current best of 2:53.46 from last season's UW Indoor Preview.
 
Abdi Ibrahim led the Vikings in the men's 1k while finishing third overall, scoring a point, with his finish in 2:29.69. It was Ibrahim's first indoor 1k as a Viking, and yet he moved up to second all-time in the event as only the fourth Viking to crack 2:30. That gives Ibrahim his sixth different top 10 mark as a Viking, as he also ranks in the top 10 in the cross country 6k (1st), the indoor DMR (3rd), the indoor and outdoor 5k (7th in both), and the indoor 3k (9th).
 
Outside of the dual meet competition, the Vikings also participated in three throwing events as part of the meet. The men's weight throw actually took place in the practice gym at Viking Pavilion on Sunday, while the men's and women's shot put followed the track events at the Chiles Center Monday.
 
Noah Meucci led the Viking men in both throwing events. Meucci won the shot put with a best throw of 43-09.75 (13.35m). That wasn't better than the overall best of 47-03.00 (14.40m) he set last indoor season, but it was still better than his outdoor best in the event. Meucci's true star turn came the day before in the weight throw, as he set a new personal best with a mark of 48-09.50 (14.87m). That moved him up to third all-time in the event at Portland State.
 
Sav Garcia was the lone thrower in the women's shot put, but finished with a best mark of 31-11.50 (9.74m). That was nearly seven feet better than her prep personal best in the event outdoors.
 
The Vikings will not see another dual meet this season after Monday. Instead, they'll turn their attention to the Spokane Invitational on Dec. 14. That'll be their last meet of 2024, before they return to action at the UW Preview on Jan. 17-18 in the new year.
 
Perhaps by then, the Vikings will be ready to break some more records.
 
PSU vs. UP Dual Meet
Chiles Center
Portland, Ore.
Nov. 25, 2024
 
Women's Results:
200m: 2. Tori Forst, 26.03; 5. Aida Wheat, 26.98; 6. Ashley Peterson, 27.01; 7. Sienna Rosario, 27.51; 9. Olivia Jolivette, 27.69; 10. Sav Garcia, 27.77; 13. Maile Yancey, 28.34; 14. Akanesi Latu-Alves, 28.62; 15. Savannah Beasley, 29.20; 17. Alison Calvin-Stupfel, 30.15. 600m: 1. Wendy Hare, 1:36.98; 2. Irina López, 1:37.52; 5. Aida Coté, 1:56.06. 1,000m: 2. Ania Kapustka, 2:59.09; 3. Taylor Nichols, 3:04.18; 4. Wendy Hare, 3:10.67; 6. Campbell Faust, 3:16.78. 4x400m Relay: 2. Portland State 'A' (Rosario, Forst, Coté, Peterson), 4:12.87. Shot Put: 1. Sav Garcia, 31-11.50 (9.74m).
 
Women's Team Scores:
1. Portland 26 points; 2. Portland State 15 points.
 
Men's Results:
200m: 1. Deghlan Johnson, 23.21; 2. Eman Kargbo, 23.76; 3. Tommie Olubisi, 23.77; 4. Jojo Clark Anderson, 24.10; 5. Caiden Isaacson, 24.12; 6. Phoenix Bakkum, 24.52; 7. GG Nitunga, 24.66; 8. James Timmins, 24.74; 9. Aidan Sweeney, 24.78; 10. Braden Latscha, 25.05; 11. Dillon Brost, 25.49. 600m: 2. Amir Ahmed, 1:22.93; 4. Aidan Brown, 1:29.65; 5. Victor Ramirez, 1:29.97; 6. Tom Thake, 1:32.70; 7. Simon Walsh, 1:34.49. 1,000m: 3. Abdi Ibrahim, 2:29.69; 7. Tom Thake, 2:53.58. 3,000m: 5. Nick Moore, 8:59.74; 8. Tom Thake, 9:33.17; 9. Mika Sarver Huber, 9:46.42; 10. Lyness Ota, 10:09.85. 4x400m Relay: 2. Portland State 'A' (Olubisi, Kargbo, Isaacson, Johnson), 3:35.51; 3. Portland State 'B' (Ramirez, Brown, Walsh, Ahmed), 3:47.46. Shot Put: 1. Noah Meucci, 43-09.75 (13.35m); 2. Jackson Wurz, 40-00.50 (12.20m); 4. Carter Green, 29-08.00 (9.04m); 5. Mikey LaGris, 27-03.25 (8.31m). Weight Throw: 1. Noah Meucci, 48-09.50 (14.87m); 2. Jackson Wurz, 36-11.75 (11.27m); 3. Carter Green, 30-06.50 (9.31m); 4. Mikey LaGris, 27-01.75 (8.27m).
 
Men's Team Scores:
1. Portland, 28 points; 2. Portland State 13 points.