Whits’ Rasmussen Wins

Sun., March 9, 1997

John Rasmussen won the 200-yard breaststroke Saturday, giving Whitworth its third national champion as the NAIA swimming and diving championships concluded in Federal Way, Wash.

Rasmussen, second a year ago, just missed the NAIA record. He finished in 2 minutes, 4.17 seconds. Defending champion Neil Ichiki of Puget Sound placed seventh.

Whitworth twins Jerry and Jeff Rice won titles earlier in the meet. All three Whitworth champions are seniors.

“We’ve never had that many champions,” said Whitworth coach Tom Dodd. “Unfortunately all are seniors. They’ve meant a lot to our program.”

Whitworth’s men finished third behind Puget Sound and Simon Fraser.

Whitworth picked up a number of medals Saturday, including a third-place finish by Ben Swinehart in the 1,650-yard freestyle.

The Whitworth women’s team placed fifth behind champion Simon Fraser. Shannon Braun and Jan Okada led the way with third-place finishes.

Indoor track

The Washington State men’s distance medley relay team captured second place and Bernard Lagat finished fourth in the mile final at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships at the RCA Dome in Indianapolis.

Arkansas won the men’s team title with 59 points.

The WSU distance medley relay squad of junior Eric Kamau (Nairobi, Kenya), freshman Guillermo Macias (LaPuente, Calif.), junior Rasto Kiplangat (Nairobi, Kenya) and the sophomore Lagat (Nairobi, Kenya) ran a time of 9:32.27. Lagat clocked 4:02.21 in the open mile, just off his lifetime-best of 4:02.18. Julius Achon of George Mason won in 3:59.85.

College baseball

Whitworth fell behind 8-0 before their bats came alive in a 15-7 season-opening loss to host Albertson at Caldwell, Idaho. Tim Bishop and Eric Brown drove in two runs each for Whitworth.

Playfair

After winning her last four starts at Emerald Downs, Pretty Peggy Slew won the Lilac Lady Handicap at a mile. Leading Emerald Downs jockey Petro Alvarado rode the 6-year-old mare to victory.

Pretty Peggy Slew had a time of 1:41 4/5. The handle at Playfair reached a season-best $73,477 locally and $370,134 statewide.

, DataTimes

Local journalism is essential.

Give directly to The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages community forums series -- which helps to offset the costs of several reporter and editor positions at the newspaper -- by using the easy options below. Gifts processed in this system are tax deductible.

Meet Our Journalists

Jesse Tinsley

Meet Jesse Tinsley. As a certified drone pilot, this veteran Spokesman-Review photographer often can be seen capturing beautiful aerial photographs of our region. Sometimes though, the job requires getting down with the dogs.
Jim Meehan

Jim Meehan is no stranger to Zag Nation. As the lead writer covering the Gonzaga men’s basketball team, he tells the stories behind the game and gets fans a bit closer to their favorite players.
Molly Quinn

There is no artist in Spokane like Molly Quinn. Her whimsical style is instantly recognizable to readers of The Spokesman-Review. She has painted gorgeous illustrations that instantly elevate the journalism accompanying it. She brings to life the stories that defy photography. She makes our pages better.
Rob Curley

Spokesman-Review editor Rob Curley loves to talk with people and learn about their lives, whether it's a best-selling author or a stranger he meets downtown on his walk to lunch. It's that inquisitive nature combined with a playful sense of storytelling that helps make our newspaper different than most.

Whits’ Rasmussen Wins

Jesse Tinsley

Jim Meehan

Molly Quinn

Rob Curley

Updated: UCLA clobbers South Carolina for first NCAA national title in program history

Updated: First look at UConn vs. Michigan in men’s basketball national championship game

A Grip on Sports: A Hall of Fame weekend has unfolded in Spokane, though neither NCAA men's semifinal games reached that level