WALNUT, Calif. -- Washington State javelin thrower Brad Stevens broke the 25-year-old freshman school record Friday at the 57th Annual Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, Calif.
Stevens, a redshirt freshman from Snoqualmie, Wash., threw a lifetime-best and freshman school record distance of 233-feet 2 inches (71.07m) for third place. The previous freshman record of 221-10 (67.66m) was set by Chad McKinney in 1990. Brad Stevens’ mark is also the 10th-best in WSU all-time records, just four inches behind his older brother Kyle’s PR mark of 223-6 (71.07m) at ninth all-time. At Mt. SAC today, Kyle Stevens threw a season-best mark of 223-7 (68.15m) for seventh place, and Sam Ferenchak threw 203-1 (61.89m) for 12th.
“I barely made it into the finals today, coming in ninth, the last guy,” Brad Stevens said. “I have been chasing the freshman record all year throwing short of it by a couple of feet multiple times. On my second-to-last throw, I threw around 223 but stepped over the line by a couple of inches. So I tried to calm myself down and replicate the last throw and ended up breaking the record by 12 feet! Technically, all I did differently was look where I was throwing and that made a big difference.”
Liz Harper (sophomore, Missoula, Mont.) lowered her 400m hurdles PR time to 59.14 seconds with her runner-up finish. Harper’s time is fifth-best in WSU all-time records. Erin Allen ran a time of 1 minute 1.73 seconds (24th) and Alissa Brooks-Johnson, who was leading her heat but tripped on the last hurdle and fell, finished the race in a time of 1:06.80 (38th). Candice McFarland ran a season-best 100m hurdles time of 13.83 for 14th place.
Bria’una Watley (redshirt senior, Granada Hills, Calif.) ran a 200m PR time of 23.99 which was 25th overall and is the 10th-best in WSU all-time records. Dominique Keel ran a wind-aided 200m time of 24.11 (29th). Keel ran a season-best but wind-aided 100m dash time of 11.86 (30th) and Darden’s 100m time was 11.87 (32nd). In the 400m dash, Bree Winfrey ran a season-best time of 55.52 (27th) and Christiana Ekelem ran a PR time of 55.61 (29th). All doubled back to run in the relays as the 4x100m relay of Watley, Darden, Ekelem and Keel finished fourth with a season-best time of 45.39. The 4x400m relay of Winfrey, Keel, Ekelem and Harper ran a season-best time of 3:39.30 for fourth place.
In the women’s 1500m Invitational B section, Abby Regan’s time of 4:25.88 was 10th.
In men’s racing, Terrance Chambers (junior, Federal Way, Wash.) reached a PR in the men’s 200m dash with his time of 21.21 for 14th place. Abu Kamara ran a PR time of 14.70 in the men’s 110m hurdles for 24th.
In the men’s 1500m, Richard Shroy ran a season-best time of 3:48.95 for 12th. Drew Jordan’s 14:13.21 in the men’s Invitational 5000m run was 21st overall and fourth among collegians. In other 5000m Open sections, WSU freshman had solid outings with Michael Williams running a PR time of 14:08.26 as the runner-up in his section, and Sam Levora ran a time of 14:25.46 for eighth in his section.
In other field events, Celena Ward threw the javelin a season-best distance of 155-1 (47.26m) for eighth place. Kiana Davis high jumped 5-7 (1.70m) for ninth place.
Thane Pierson took seventh in the men’s high jump with a clearance of the bar at 6-8 1/4 (2.04m).
Friday night was memorable for senior Forrest Shaffer (Petaluma, Calif.), as he broke through the nine-minute barrier for the steeplechase. Shaffer ran a PR time of 8:59.85 in the men’s Collegiate/Open 3000m steeplechase for ninth place in his section. Also late Friday night, John Whelan (sophomore, Etna, Calif.) took fourth place in the men’s 10,000m Invitational section B with a PR time of 29:43.41.
WSU sophomore CJ Allen, the 2014 Pac-12 intermediate hurdles champion, will compete Saturday afternoon in the men’s invitational 400m hurdles at the Mt. SAC Relays.
