Three Vikings place top 10 at track and field national championships

Western Washington University recapped its historic track and field season by sending seven athletes to compete at the NCAA Division II Track and Field Championships in Pueblo, Colorado, May 22–24.

Kevin McDermott completed his Western career with a 21st-place finish in the 5000-meter run, clocking in a time of 15:28.67. Earlier in the 1500-meter run, McDermott finished 18th in 3:57.09.

Bec Bennett competed in the first round of preliminaries of the 400-meter dash event on Thursday, May 22. Bennet finished 10th in 53.45 seconds, missing the cut of the top nine by 0.13 seconds.

Ila Davis claimed 10th place in the women’s 3000-meter steeplechase after finishing in 10:58.15. Davis snuck through the first round on Thursday after coming in 12th place in 10:58.79. 

Maurice Woodring placed 10th in the country in the 400-meter hurdles in 51.63 seconds. Woodring qualified for the finals after coming in seventh during the prelims at 50.95 seconds.

Katie Potts finished 19th in the discus after throwing 45.21 meters on her third throw.

Jakob Braunstein also came in 19th in the javelin event after throwing 60.41 meters on his first attempt.

Jessica Polkinghorn placed 10th in the shot put after throwing 14.74 meters on her third attempt. 

Nick Zeller-Singh is CDN’s sports reporter; reach him at nickzellersingh@cascadiadaily.com; 360-922-3090 ext. 104.