Complete results (PDF)

SEATTLE – With the Great Northwest Athletic Conference indoor track and field championships approaching, time is of the essence for getting into a fast groove.

Nate Seely's groove in the 800 meters on Saturday was faster than ever.

The Seattle Pacific sophomore, who will head to conference next week as the defending men's 800 champion, posted a personal-best time in that race at the Husky Classic.

Seely (Lynden, Wash./Lynden HS) finished his race at Dempsey Indoor on the University of Washington campus in 1 minute, 54.35 seconds. That was half a second faster than his 2010 GNAC-winning time of 1:54.86.

It also put Seely within striking distance of the NCAA Division II provisional of 1:53.60. So far this winter, the only GNAC runner with a better mark in the 800 is Simon Fraser freshman Travis Vugteveen (1:53.08).

 “I'm excited for Nate,” Seattle Pacific head coach Karl Lerum said. “I think he's definitely ready to go out there and defend his conference title.”

Seely wasn't the only fleet-footed Falcon on Saturday.

Think Kishia Mitchell is fast at 60 meters?

Try catching the APU freshman flyer at 400.

In her first collegiate race at that distance, Mitchell zipped a lap and a little bit more around the track at Dempsey Indoor on Saturday, hitting the finish line in 57.28 seconds to earn a spot on the provisional qualifying list for the NCAA championships.

Mitchell (Puyallup, Wash./Rogers HS), won the Class 4A (large school) Washington state high school outdoor 400 title last spring in 56.21 seconds. Saturday's performance was good for 13th place overall in the field of 49, with 41 of those from NCAA Division I schools.

The only D-2 runner faster than Mitchell was Western Washington veteran star Eleanor Siler, who placed sixth overall in 56.22.

In addition to her status as an NCAA provisional qualifier, Mitchell's time made her an automatic qualifier for next weekend's Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships in Nampa, Idaho. And, it was the fourth-fastest women's indoor 400 time in GNAC history.

“She got into a good, hot (preliminary) heat, and she took advantage of the opportunity,” Falcons head coach Karl Lerum said. “She's clearly capable of running that well. Her last race in (in the 400) was at state, and she clearly ran her best time there. But it's a whole different kind of race indoors.”

A larger group of Seattle Pacific athletes will be back at Dempsey on Sunday for the UW Indoor Open. Running events start at 8 a.m., with field events beginning at 9.

Mitchell had been entered in the 400 for the Husky Invitational two weeks ago on the day she made her college debut. She ultimately scratched out of the event that day, focusing instead on the 60-meter dash, the 200 and the 4x100 relay.

Mitchell ran the 60 again on Saturday, finishing in 7.95 seconds -- .03 faster than her 7.98 on Jan. 29. Saturday's time tentatively puts her into ninth on the all-time GNAC list, pending results from other meets.

“She has set herself up to be as good of an athletes as she is,” Lerum said.

And, Mitchell has some Falcon company on the NCAA provisional qualifying list -- albeit in a different event. Senior pole vaulter Melissa Peaslee (Fox Island, Wash./Gig Harbor HS) cleared 11 feet, 10 inches -- 3.61 meters -- to tie for 19th place overall. It was a season best by nearly six inches for Peaslee.

She is the defending GNAC indoor and outdoor pole vault champion. Junior teammate Terra Schumacher (Sublimity, Ore.) came within 1 1/2 inches of the NCAA provisional mark on Saturday at 11-4 14 (3.46m).

SPU sophomore Emily Quatier (Portland, Ore.) also made her GNAC automatic time in the 400, taking 27th place in a personal-best 58.57 seconds. Her previous best mark was 59.13, set on Jan. 15 at the UW Indoor Preview. Quatier later set another PR, this time in the 200 when she was clocked in 26.32 seconds. That was 19 hundredths better than her 26.51 from Jan. 15. She already was on the GNAC provisional list for that race. The automatic time is 25.75.

Freshman BryAnne Wochnick (Portland, Ore.) moved onto the GNAC provisional qual list with a 59.83.

Three other Falcon women also gained guaranteed tickets to Nampa for next weekend's conference championships.

Freshman BryAnne Wochnick (Portland, Ore.) was one of those, earning a berth in the 60 meters with a personal-best 7.98, well below the 8.15 she posted on Jan. 15. Wochnick also made a provisional time of 59.83 in the 400, more than two seconds faster than her previous best of 1:01.87.

Schumacher grabbed a spot in the 60-meter hurdles with a season-best 9.32.

And freshman McKayla Fricker (Canby, Ore.) moved from the provisional to automatic in the 800 with a 2:16.96 – easily beating her first-time effort of 2:18.94 from the Husky Invitational on Jan. 29.


NCAA WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Husky Classic
Friday-Saturday, February 11-12, 2011
Dempsey Indoor/Seattle, Wash.

Team scores -- Not kept.

60-meter dash -- 1, Dominique Lauderdale (UW) 7.48. SPU placers -- 24, Kishia Mitchell 7.95!; 29, BryAnne Wochnick 7.98!.
200 -- 1, Alexandria Davidson (Oregon) 24.37. SPU placer -- 41, Emily Quatier 26.32*.
400 -- 1, Camilla Dencer (Oregon) 55.70. SPU placers -- 13, Kishia Mitchell 57.28#!; 27, Emily Quatier 58.57!; 42, BryAnne Wochnick 59.83*.
800 -- 1, Geena Gall (OTC) 2:04.36. SPU placer -- 54, McKayla Fricker 2:13.90!.
60 hurdles -- 1, Angela Whyte (Unattached) 8.14. SPU placer -- 32, Terra Schumacher 9.32!.
High jump -- 1, Becky Christensen (Riedha) 6-1 1/4 (1.86m). SPU placers -- 21, (tie) Brittany Aanstad and Katy Gross 5-2 1/4 (1.58m)*.
Pole vault -- 1, (tie) Tori Pena (Unattached) and Katerina Stefanidi (Stanford) 13-11 3/4 (4.26m). SPU placers -- 19, (tie) Melissa Peaslee 11-10 (3.61m)#!; 28, (tie) Terra Schumacher 11-4 1/4 (3.46m)!.
Long jump -- 1, Angela White (Unattached0 20-3 (6.17m). SPU placer -- 19, Brittany Aanstad 16-11 1/2 (5.17m)!.
        # NCAA provisional qualifying mark
        !  GNAC automatic qualifying mark
        *  GNAC provisional qualifying mark


NCAA MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Husky Classic
Friday-Saturday, February 11-12, 2011
Dempsey Indoor/Seattle, Wash.

Team scores -- Not kept.

800 -- 1, Elijah Greer (Oregon) 1:47.02. SPU placer -- 44, Nate Seely 1:54.35!.
Mile -- 1, Chris Solinski (Nike) 3:54.52. SPU placer -- 83, Chad Meis 4:16.23!.
        !  GNAC automatic qualifying mark

        Only events with SPU athletes are listed here. Complete results are available by clicking on the link at the top of this story.