SPOKANE, Wash. – The Linfield women scored 20 points and sit in fifth place after Day 1 Saturday of the Northwest Conference Track and Field Championships, hosted by Whitworth University at Boppel Track and the venerable Whitworth Pine Bowl. Linfield's men are ninth among nine teams after the first day, which saw six men's events and six women's events declared final, in addition to the heptathlon and decathlon, which were contested last week.
 
WOMEN
In the 3,000-meter steeplechase finals, Jayden Taylor ran a season-best time fo 12:13.93 to place seventh overall, trimming more than six seconds off her previous top time.
 
The Wildcats had two placers among the top five in the pole vault. Freshman Sage Cramp and sophomore Analissa Paresa each soared 11 feet, 1 inch, with Cramp taking third place in consideration of fewer misses. Paresa's season-best effort shared fifth place with George Fox's Anna Wilson.
 
Freshman Baylie Thompson earned a top-five result in the long jump, sailing 17-6¾ to place fifth.
 
In the shot put, three Wildcats finished with two feet of one another. Savannah Filios was 10th with a mark of 38-1¼, Mallorie Weaver threw 37-11¼ to place 11th, and Islee Siliga was 12th with a mark of 36-9¾.
 
Linfield's team point total was bolstered by Isabella Grutsch's fourth-place showing in the women's heptathlon last week.
 
MEN
Hudson Holzhauer secured sixth place in the hammer, tossing the ball and chain 163-4 while teammate Kiyan Vrell threw 150-7, good for 10th place.
 
Kris Jakstas leapt 6-1¼ to earn seventh place while Andrew Troeh went 5-9¼ in his final championship meet, finishing 10th.
 
NEXT
Action resumes Sunday in Spokane starting at 10 a.m.