RESULTS

FOREST GROVE, Ore. — True to a March in Oregon, the Portland State track & field team has seen the lot this month, weather-wise, while kicking off its 2024 outdoor season.
 
At the Erik Anderson Memorial Icebreaker on March 2, it was 40 degrees and snowing.
 
At the Electric Forest Collegiate Open on March 16, it was 70 degrees and sunny.
 
At the Oregon Preview last weekend, it was back in the 50s and raining.
 
Saturday, the sun came out again as the Vikings competed at the Pacific Open at Hanson Stadium amid 60-degree weather.
 
Go figure.
 
The first month of the outdoor track season is for laying the groundwork anyways. Athletes try things out, fluctuate between events, and experiment, so why shouldn't the weather do the same?
 
To that end, the Vikings saw 14 athletes advance their own experiments Saturday, setting either a personal or seasonal best in their respective events. Among the most successful of those was Ashley Peterson, who won her third straight 400-meter race while setting a new personal best each time. Peterson won her latest race in 1:00.12, nine-hundredths of a second faster than her time last week at the Oregon Preview, and more than a half second ahead of her nearest competitor.
 
Twins Elle and Liv Frazier set their own 400-meter personal bests alongside Peterson, finishing in 1:04.40 and 1:04.98, respectively. Their soccer teammate Mari Mendoza also ran the 400 meters, making her debut for the PSU track team with a finish in 1:07.32.
 
All four of those runners came back for the 200 meters later in the day, alongside Finley Crabtree. Peterson again led the group with a time of 26.95 seconds, shaving more than half a second off her prep personal best at the distance. Mendoza followed in 28.67 seconds, while Liv Frazier and Elle Frazier bettered their indoor bests in the 200 with times of 28.89 and 29.16 seconds, respectively. Crabtree rounded out the group in 31.27 seconds, three-tenths of a second faster than her time two weeks ago at the Electric Forest Collegiate Open, which was her first-ever outdoor 200.
 
Peterson also anchored the Vikings' 4x400-meter relay team that set a seasonal best with its finish in 4:07.75. Peterson took the baton from Ania Kapustka for the anchor leg, while Wendy Hare and Ahmeah Brown ran the first two legs for the Vikings.
 
On the men's side of the sprints, Eman Kargbo and Aleks Braich led a group of five Vikings in the men's 200 meters with a pair of personal bests. Kargbo finished n 22.86 seconds, setting a seasonal best by a tenth of a second and a personal best by eight-hundredths of a second. Braich, meanwhile, shaved 14-hundredths of a second off his personal best while finishing in 23.54 seconds.
 
The mid-distances treated the Vikings well on both sides, too. For the women, Dyllan Newville and Campbell Faust set personal bests in the 800 and 1,500 meters, respectively. Faust's personal best of 5:00.71 in the 1,500 meters saw her shave more than six seconds off her seasonal best from two weeks ago, as well as a second and a half off her personal best from last season's Larry Byerly L&C Invite. Newville's previous best in the 800 meters came from that same L&C Invite, but she bettered that by more than five seconds Saturday with her finish in 2:39.41.
 
For the men, Amir Ahmed bettered his prep personal best in the 800 meters by close to a second while finishing in 1:57.68.
 
The 400-meter hurdles doesn't count as a mid-distance event – though the energy expense is certainly similar if not greater – but Wendy Hare added another seasonal best for the Vikings there. Hare finished second in the 400 hurdles Saturday while shaving more than a second off her previous best this season with her time of 1:05.86.
 
Noah Meucci added four and a half feet to his seasonal best in the men's hammer, an event in which he ranks eighth all-time at Portland State. Meucci did not move up from his No. 8 ranking Saturday but pushed his best in a Viking uniform to 148-08 (45.31) on his fourth attempt of the day. Meucci has improved his mark in the hammer at every meet at which he's competed in the event so far this season.
 
The spirit of experimentation that fuels outdoor track in March extended to some event debuts for the Vikings, as well.
 
To that end, Travis West – a dual-sport athlete who will join the Portland State football team for spring practices starting Tuesday – competed in his first triple jump as a Viking. West equated himself well, jumping 45-02.25 (13.77m), which put him just 10 inches from entering the all-time top 10 at Portland State. Teammate Dieumerci Migani finished one spot ahead of West in the competition at fourth with a best mark of 45-07.75 (13.91m). However, that wasn't an improvement on Migani's seasonal best of 48-00.75 (14.65m) from two weeks ago.
 
Additionally, Abdinajib Abade and Tom Thake ran their first outdoor 5k's as Vikings Saturday, finishing in 16:15.89 and 16:35.69, respectively.
 
Experimentation lessens a bit for all track & field programs as the calendar turns to April. The Vikings will focus more on trying to lower times and qualifying for the NCAA West Prelims, starting with the Jenn Boyman Memorial Invitational on April 6.
 
That's not to say anyone at Portland State can promise more consistent weather, however. That may just continue to fluctuate. It's spring in Oregon, after all.
 
Pacific Open
Hanson Stadium
Forest Grove, Ore.
March 30, 2024
 
Women's Results:
200m: 18. Ashley Peterson, 26.95; 30. Mari Mendoza, 28.67; 31. Liv Frazier, 28.89; 32. Elle Frazier, 29.16; 37. Finley Crabtree, 31.27. 400m: 1. Ashley Peterson, 1:00.12; 9. Elle Frazier, 1:04.40; 10. Liv Frazier, 1:04.98; 15. Mari Mendoza, 1:07.32. 800m: 6. Ahmeah Brown, 2:20.51; 7. Ania Kapustka, 2:22.59; 18. Campbell Faust, 2:34.23; 23. Dyllan Newville, 2:39.41; Laura Beghin, DNF. 1,500m: 3. Laura Beghin, 4:54.67; 5. Campbell Faust, 5:00.71; 10. Taylor Nichols, 5:07.24. 400H: 2. Wendy Hare, 1:05.86. 4x400m Relay: 4. Portland State 'A' (Hare, Brown, Kapustka, Peterson), 4:07.75; 5. Portland State 'B' (Frazier, L., Frazier, E., Beghin, Faust), 4:28.65. Pole Vault: Carley Strand, NH. Long Jump: 13. Alison Calvin-Stupfel, 13-00.00 (3.96m).
 
Men's Results:
100m: 4. Dieumerci Migani, 11.11; 11. GG Nitunga, 11.37; 15. Eman Kargbo, 11.50; 20. Travis West, 11.61; 26. Tre Taylor, 11.66; 32. Hunter Leeder, 11.77; Aleks Braich, FS. 200m: 13. Eman Kargbo, 22.86; 20. GG Nitunga, 23.13; 26. Aleks Braich, 23.54; 36. Tre Taylor, 23.83; 53. Hunter Leeder, 24.71. 800m: 7. Amir Ahmed, 1:57.68; 19. Abdinajib Abade, 2:01.48; 42. Lyness Ota, 2:17.14. 1,500m: 13. Amir Ahmed, 4:09.68; 25. Ian Parks, 4:17.72; 36. Lyness Ota, 4:38.18; Abdinajib Abade, DNF. 5,000m: 12. Abdinajib Abade, 16:15.89; 14. Tom Thake, 16:35.69. Long Jump: 24. GG Nitunga, 17-09.50 (5.42m). Triple Jump: 4. Dieumerci Migani, 45-07.75 (13.91m); 5. Travis West, 45-02.25 (13.77m). Shot Put: 14. Karch Kipp, 39-00.25 (11.89m); 15. Noah Meucci, 38-08.25 (11.79m); 35. Mikey LaGris, 26-03.50 (8.01m). Discus: 11. Noah Meucci, 121-06 (37.05m); 26. Mikey LaGris, 91-01 (27.78m). Hammer: 5. Noah Meucci, 148-08 (45.31m).