Locally: Gonzaga’s outdoor track and field schedule features four local meets
Gonzaga men’s and women’s track and field teams released their 2023 outdoor schedule on Monday, featuring four meets in Spokane as well as seven meets in California and Oregon.
The Bulldogs return five athletes who qualified for the NCAA regional preliminaries in 2022.
They are led by James Mwaura, who became the first back-to-back All-American in program history when he finished 15th in the 10,000 meter finals at last year’s NCAA Championships.
Other returning qualifiers for the regional prelims are Kristen Garcia (10,000 meters), Alicia Anderson (1,500m, 5,000m), Evan Bates (5,000m) and Cooper Laird (3,000m, steeplechase). Mwaura also qualified in the 5,000 meters.
The 2023 schedule begins with the women-only West Coast Quad on March 11 in Palo Alto, Calif. There are four meets in Spokane: Sam Adams Classic, March 18; Buc Scoring Invitational, March 23-24; Peace Meet, April 7; and Whitworth Twilight Meet, April 13.
The West Regional Preliminary meet will take place May 24-27 in Sacramento, Calif., and the NCAA Outdoor Championships are set for June 7-10 in Austin, Texas.
GU men’s and women’s track indoor season continues this weekend at the WSU Open at The Podium in Spokane.
• Eastern Washington pole vaulter Zach Klobutcher set the Eagles’ indoor pole vault record at the Lauren McCluskey Memorial Open on Jan. 21 in Moscow, Idaho.
Klobutcher, a junior from Covington, Washington, cleared 5.21 meters (17-feet, 1-inch) to take first place and improve his personal-best, which had been 16-11 ½.
Shooting
Two shooters from Spokane Junior Rifle Club won state championships and qualified for the Junior Olympics when they participated in the Washington State USAS Junior Olympic Rifle Championships in December.
Tanner Krebs, 14, Shadle Park, won the men’s individual state championship with a score of 558 out of a possible 600 points. Also, Anna Pearsall, 19, won the women’s individual championship with a score of 551. As state champions, both athletes qualify for the Junior Olympics in May.
Coed team state championships were scored at the same meet. First place, with a score of 2,175, went to the team of Krebs, Pearsall, Garrett Pearsall 18, Mt. Spokane, and Sean Kegley, 18, home school.
Only individuals, and not teams, qualify for the Junior Olympics.
The course of fire was three-position smallbore (0.22) rifles, which comprises prone, kneeling and standing positions. Each position had 20 shots fired at a distance of 50 feet.