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Portland State University Athletics

PORTLAND STATE VIKINGS

2017 Track & Field Roster

Larry Lawson
Christopher Oertell / CJImagesNW.com
Larry Lawson

Ben Richardson

  • Class Senior
  • Highschool Bill Crothers S.S.
  • Hometown Keswick, Ontario
  • Prev School Bill Crothers S.S.
  • Connect HS

Biography

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS:
Cross Country:
Awards:
- Academic All-Big Sky (2016)
All-time PSU rankings:
- Ranks 6th all-time in 6,000-meter races run under all conditions - 19:38.60 - John Frank Oregon State Invitational (9/3/16)
Indoor:
Awards:

- All-Big Sky performer in the 800m - 3rd in 2016
- Academic All-Big Sky (2017)
All-time PSU rankings:
- Part of school record-breaking Distance Medley Relay team - 10:05.11 - UW Invitational (1/30/15)
- Ranks 3rd all-time in the 600m - 1:22.27 - UW Indoor Preview (1/14/17)
- Also part of fourth- and 10th-ranked DMR teams
- Ranks 5th all-time in the 800m - 1:52.73 - Idaho Duals (2/3/17)
- Part of 9th-ranked 4x400m Relay - 3:20.17 - UW Invitational (1/28/17)
Outdoor:
Awards:
- Two-time All-Big Sky performer in the 800m - 3rd in 2016 & 2017
- Academic All-Big Sky (2017)
All-time PSU rankings:
- Ranks 5th all-time in the 800m - 1:51.14 - Triton Invitational (4/22/17)
- Part of 8th-ranked 4x400m relay team - 3:16.98 - OSU High Performance Meet (4/29/17)

PERSONAL BESTS:
Cross Country:
6,000m - 19:38.6 - John Frank Oregon State Invitational (9/3/16)
4 Miles - 21:32.5 - Westmoreland Quintet (9/1/15)
8,000m - 25:45.2 - Bronco Invitational (10/15/16)
10,000m - 34:48.0 - NCAA West Regional (11/13/15)
Indoor:
600m - 1:22.27 - UW Indoor Preview (1/14/17)
800m - 1:52.73 - Idaho Duals (2/3/17)
Mile - 4:18.72 - Portland Indoor Invitational (2/4/16)
Outdoor:
400m - 50.90 - John Knight Twilight (4/8/16)
800m - 1:51.14 - Triton Invitational (4/22/17)
1,500m - 3:53.22 - Portland Track Festival (6/14/15)

2017 OUTDOOR:
Earned All-Big Sky honors with a third-place finish in the 800 meters at the Big Sky Outdoor Championships (5/10-13), finishing the finals in 1:51.15...Also scored for the Vikings while placing seventh as part of team’s 4x400-meter relay that finished in 3:18.85...Part of the Vikings’ 4x400-meter relay team that moved up to eighth all-time with a finish in 3:16.98 at the OSU High Performance Meet (4/28-29)...Moved up to fifth all-time in the 800 meters at Portland State with a new personal best of 1:51.14 at the Triton Invitational (4/22)...Shaved five seconds off his seasonal best in the 800 with a time of 1:53.56 at the Texas Invitational (4/14-15)...Ran his first 800 meter race of the outdoor season at the John Knight Twilight (4/7), finishing in 1:58.87...Part of the Vikings’ winning 4x400-meter relay team at the John Knight Twilight (4/7)...Won in his season debut, as he placed first in the ‘C’ section of the 1,500 meters in 4:01.59 at the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival (3/31).

2017 INDOOR:
Scored for the Vikings with a fifth-place finish in the 800 meters at the Big Sky Championships (2/23-25)...Ran his first mile of the season at the Cougar Indoor Invitational (2/4), and finished in 4:26.32...Won the 800 meters in an indoor personal-best 1:52.73 at the Idaho Duals (2/3)...Ran his first 800-meter race of the season at the UW Invitational (1/27-28), finishing in 1:55.17...Part of the Vikings’ 4x400-meter relay team that moved up to ninth all-time at PSU with its time of 3:20.17 at the UW Invite...Opened his season at the UW Indoor Preview (1/14) while winning his section of the 600 meters...Moved up to third all-time at Portland State with his time of 1:22.27 in the 600 meters at the UW Indoor Preview...Also competed in the 4x400-meter relay at the UW Indoor Preview.

2016 CROSS COUNTRY:
Competed at the first five meets of the season for the Vikings...Finished second in the Vikings' lineup at the John Frank Oregon State Invitational (9/3), his highest finish in the team's lineup during the season...Set a new 6k personal best with his finish in 25:45.2 at the Bronco Invitational (10/15).

Date Meet (Distance) PSU Finish Overall Finish Time
9/3 John Frank Oregon State Invitational (6k) 2nd 23rd 19:38.6
9/17 Sundodger Invitational (8k) 4th 43rd 26:07.40
10/1 Charles Bowles Invitational (8k) 7th 72nd 26:37.0
10/15 Bronco Invitational (8k) 5th 120th 25:45.2
10/28 Big Sky Championships (8k) 7th 79th 27:34


2016 OUTDOOR:
Earned All-Big Sky honors with a third-place finish in the 800 meters at the Big Sky Championships (5/11-14), crossing the line in 1:52.87...Cracked 1:52 at two straight meets at the Triton Invitational (4/23) and OSU High Performance Meet (4/30), setting a personal best of 1:51.95 at the Triton Invite before topping it a week later with a finish of 1:51.90 at the OSU meet...Competed in the 800 and 1,500 meters at the Oregon Relays (4/15-16), finishing in 1:53.62 and 4:02.13, respectively...Shaved over two seconds off his personal best in the 400 meters with his time of 50.90 seconds at the John Knight Twilight (4/8)...Opened the outdoor season with a new personal best in the 800 metes, finishing in 1:52.29 at the Lewis & Clark Spring Break Open (3/19)...Met the Big Sky qualifying standard with his time at the Lewis & Clark meet, and moved up to sixth all-time in the event at Portland State...Ran the 1,500 meters at the San Francisco State Distance Carnival (4/1), finishing in 3:54.63.

2016 INDOOR:
Earned All-Big Sky honors with a third-place finish in the finals of the 800 meters at the Big Sky Championships (2/25-27)...Ran a personal best of 1:53.95 in the finals of the 800 at the Big Sky meet, moving him up to seventh all-time in the event at Portland State...Outperformed the form chart by several places at the Big Sky meet, as he entered the meet ranked 14th in the 800 within the Big Sky before finishing third...Set a new personal best in the mile at the Portland Indoor Invitational (2/4), finishing in 4:18.72...Came close to matching his mark at the Portland Indoor Invite with his time of 4:18.96 at the UW Open (2/14)...Broke his personal best in the 800 meters for a second time in the season at the TrackTown USA High Performance Meet #4 (2/5), finishing in 1:54.69...Set his first personal best of the season in the 800 meters at the UW Indoor Preview (1/16), finishing in 1:54.73...Moved up to ninth all-time in the 800 meters at Portland State with his time at the UW Indoor Preview...Set a new personal best in the mile at the Bronco Invitational (1/23), finishing the distance in 4:20.13.

2015 CROSS COUNTRY:
Competed at all six meets during the season...Moved up in the Vikings' ranks throughout the season, starting with two sixth-place finishes with the Vikings' full contingent running at the Bill Dellinger Invitational (9/11) and Sundodger Invitational (9/19), before finishing fourth at the Emerald City Open (10/17) and third at the Big Sky Championships (10/31) and NCAA West Regional (11/13)...Set personal bests for four miles, 8K and 10K with his times of 21:32.5, 26:17.68 and 34:48.0, respectively, at the Westmoreland Quintet (9/1), Sundodger Invitational and NCAA West Regional.

Date Meet (Distance) PSU Finish Overall Finish Time
9/1 Westmoreland Quintet (4 Miles) 2nd 10th 21:32.5
9/11 Bill Dellinger Invitational (8K) 6th 31st 27:53.14
9/19 Sundodger Invitational (8K) 6th 46th 26:17.68
10/17 Emerald City Open (8K) 4th 28th 27:27.9
10/31 Big Sky Championships (8K) 3rd 56th 27:56.5
11/13 NCAA West Regional (10K) 3rd 167th 34:48.0


2015 OUTDOOR:
Competed in the 800 and 1,500 meters for the Vikings at the Big Sky Outdoor Championships (5/13-16)...Set a new personal best with his time of 1:53.01 in the prelims of the 800 meters at the Big Sky meet...Competed in the 800 and 1,500 meters throughout the season for the Vikings...Set a new personal best in the 1,500 meters with his time of 3:53.22 at the Portland Track Festival (6/14).

2015 INDOOR:
Part of the distance medley relay team that broke a near-10-year school record with its time of 10:05.11 at the UW Invitational (1/30)...Competed for the Vikings in the 800 meters, 4x400-meter relay and distance medley relay at the Big Sky Championships (2/27-28)...Moved up to 10th all-time in the 800 meters with a personal best of 1:55.11 at the UW Invitational (1/31).

2014 CROSS COUNTRY:
Ran at each of the Vikings' home meets...Set a personal best for a cross country 8K at the Viking XC Classic (10/4), crossing the line in 27:19.77.

Date Meet (Distance) PSU Finish Overall Finish Time
9/20 Big Sky XC Triangular (8K) 7th 23rd 27:31
10/4 Viking XC Classic (8K) 9th 34th 27:19.77

2014 OUTDOOR:
Competed in the 800 meters at the Big Sky Championships (5/16), and ran a seasonal-best 1:56.57 in the prelims of the event…Ran a seasonal-best 4:10.16 in the 1,500 meters at the Oregon Relays (4/18)…Ran the 400 meters at the Mondo Mid-Major Challenge (4/12), finishing in 53.03 seconds.

2014 INDOOR:
Part of the Vikings’ distance medley relay team that placed 10th in 10:40.35 at the Big Sky Championships (2/28/14), and moved to ninth all-time in the event at Portland State…Also part of the Vikings’ distance medley relay team that moved to third all-time in the event with a time of 10:16.83 at the UW Invitational (1/31/14)…Moved to sixth all-time in the 600 meters at Portland State with a time of 1:28.41 at the UW Indoor Preview (1/18/14)…Also ran a personal-best 4:23.42 in the mile at the UW Indoor Preview…Ran a personal-best 1:55.74 in the 800 meters at the Husky Classic (2/15/14).

2013 CROSS COUNTRY:
Did not compete

BILL CROTHERS SECONDARY SCHOOL:
Part of four straight regional team champions in track and field (2010-13)…Played ice hockey one year…Part of a 4x400 relay that won an open regionional championship in 2012…Won the International Achievement Scholarship in 2013.
 
CLUB:
Member of the Newmarket Huskies Track Club…Part of the team that finished second among junior men’s teams at the 2011 Canadian Cross Country Championships.
 
PERSONAL/MISCELLANEOUS:
Son of Bob Richardson and Margot Wallace…Has two brothers, Kyle Richardson and Cameron Richardson… Played ice hockey for 10 years…Lists reading and golfing as hobbies…Plans to major in health studies, with the goal of becoming a physiotherapist.


Historical Player Information

  • 2014Freshman

    Distances
  • 2015Sophomore

    Distances
  • 2016Junior

    Distances
  • 2017Senior

    Distances
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