Complete men's and women's results (PDF)
 
ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Geneva Lehnert took her own advice.
 
The Seattle Pacific sophomore had been struggling this spring with the high jump – her favorite event in any track and field meet. So as she prepared for Saturday's Spike Arlt Invitational, she said that the best thing to do was not overthink how to jump.
 
Just …
 
… jump.
 
Lehnert did, clearing a season-best 5 feet, 5½ inches to win that event in Tomlinson Stadium at Central Washington University.

 

"There are things you need to do at every step," Lehnert (Eugene, Ore.) said of her run-up to the high jump bar. "But there's so much to think about that it ends up being a sort of madness in your brain. You're not actually thinking about anything, so your jumps are all over the place."
 
Until now, Lehnert's best outdoor jump in 2017 had been 5-3, which she did twice, most recently last week at the Beach Invitational in Long Beach, Calif.
 
As the bar moved up on Saturday, so did Lehnert. When she got over 5-3¼, that represented a season best – and left her as the only remaining competitor.
 
"Just focusing more on the speed of my approach rather than every individual step is helpful," Lehnert said. "I think just getting off to a good start and feeling good over the bar just carries on to the next height and on to the next height (after that)."
 
That next height was 5-5 ½. Lehnert missed on her first attempt, but cleared with room to spare on her second.

"That felt so good – I haven't felt like that for a really long time," said Lehnert, who made it a double-win day by going 16-10 1/4 to take the long jump. "I knew it was inside of me, but I just wasn't setting myself up well enough to jump it. It felt easy and natural and fluid – like I wasn't even trying.
 
"I was just doing it because I knew how to do it."
 
Then, it rose to 5-7 ¼, or 1.71 centimeters – the first time this season she has had the opportunity to attack a bar in the one-seventy neighborhood. Her first two attempts weren't close, but she did get a good look on the third try, even though she wasn't successful in getting over it.
 
Lehnert has no doubt she can handle that higher bar very soon.
 
"This is a really great time of the season to get a few good looks at 171, but maybe not clear it because it leaves you a little hungry for a few much more important meets," Lehnert said.
 
BIG MARKS FOR MARKHAM – AND A 'W', TOO
A career best and a win – all on the same throw.

Quite a performance for Sammi Markham.
  The Falcon senior came up with shot put mark of 42 feet, 5¼ inches on Saturday. That easily exceeded her outdoor career best of 41-4½ by more than a full foot. It was enough to win the event by 6½ inches and move into the top 5 within the GNAC.
 
Markham (Gig Harbor, Wash. / Gig Harbor HS) also finished fourth in the discus (123-5 ½) and fourth in the javelin (135-4). Her discus distance was way beyond her only other attempt this season (99-3), and her javelin mark was her second-farthest, exceeded only by the 139-0 that currently is tied for 19th nationally in NCAA Division II.

 
AND THAT'S NOT ALL
-- The all-freshman team of Lani Taylor, Brooke Benner, Olivia Gabriel, and Scout Cai led from start to finish to win the meet-ending 4x400 relay in 3 minutes, 53.86 seconds.
-- Taylor (Seattle / West Seattle HS) set a collegiate best of 25.29 to take second place. The only one faster was winner Tianna Banfro of Central Washington at 25.02. Taylor's previous best at SPU was 25.35.
-- Gabriel (Portland, Ore.) clocked a career-best 58.85 in the women's 400 for third place. Her previous best was 59.26.
-- Yet another Falcons freshman, Lazarus Scarbrough (Bothell, Wash. / Bothell HS), ran to a big PR in the men's 400. His time of 50.80 seconds was a drop of two full seconds from his previous best of 52.81 – meaning he skipped right past the 51s and straight into the 50s. Scarbrough took sixth place. He also PR'd in the 200 at 23.59, beating his old mark of 23.68.
--Freshman David Choi (Bellevue, Wash. / Newport HS) set one career best (24.19 in the 200-meter dash) and tied another 11.81 in the 100 meters).
-- Seattle Pacific returns to action next Saturday in the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational at Bellingham's Civic Stadium. Events both on the track and in the field begin at 9:00 a.m.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S TRACk & FIELD
Spike Arlt Invitational
Saturday, April 22, 2017
Tomlinson Stadium / Ellensburg, Wash.
 
Team scores – Not kept.
 
100 – 1, Madison Garcia (CWU) 12.54. SPU – 2, Becca Houk 13.01.
200 – 1, Tiana Banfro (CWU) 25.02. SPU – 2, Lani Taylor 25.29; 7, Becca Houk 26.26.
400 – 1, Grace Hamre (Saint Martin's) 57.00. SPU – 3, Olivia Gabriel 58.85; 7, Keana Fine 1:01.91.
800 – 1, Waverly Shreffler (WWU) 2:20.68. No SPU.
1500 – 1, Aundrea Koger (WWU) 4:56.13. SPU – 6, Gillian Edgar 5:14.98
3000 – 1, Alexa Shindruk (CWU) 10:09.56. SPU – 6, Katherine Walter 10:50.29; 10, Sedona McNerney 11:39.67.
10,000 – 1, Erika Hettick (Olympic CC) 48:47.43. No SPU.
4x100 – 1, Central Washington 46.83. No SPU.
4x400 – 1, Seattle Pacific (Lani Taylor, Brooke Benner, Olivia Gabriel, Scout Cai) 3:53.86. No other SPU.
100 hurdles – 1, Lexi Tubbs (NNU) 14.55. SPU – 11, Scout Cai 16.09; 14, Brooke Benner 16.39; 17, Geneva Lehnert 17.44.
400 hurdles – 1, Elizabeth Gummer (Com. Cougars) 1:00.97. No SPU.
3000 steeplechase – 1, Lindsey Dorney (Saint Martin's) 12:27.71. No SPU.
High jump – 1, Geneva Lehnert (SPU) 5-5 ¼ / 1.66m. Other SPU – T6, Scout Cai 4-11 ½ / 1.51m; 8, Brooke Benner 4-11 ½ / 1.51m (tiebreaker).
Pole vault – 1, McKenna Emmert (CWU) 11-11 ¾ / 3.65m. SPU – 4, Emma Lambert 10-6 / 3.20m.
Long jump – 1, Geneva Lehnert (SPU) 16-10 1/4 / 5.14m. Other SPU -- 8, Brooke Benner16-1 ¼ / 4.91m; 9, Scout Cai 15-8 ¼ / 4.78m.
Triple jump – 1, Brooke Williams (CWU) 37-3 / 11.35m. No SPU.
Shot put – 1, Sammi Markham 42-5 ¼ / 12.93m. No other SPU.
Discus – 1, Megan Mortensen (WWU) 143-7 ½ / 43.77m. SPU – 4, Sammi Markham 123-5 ½ / 37.63m.
Hammer – 1, Kirby Neale (Saint Martin's) 181-8 / 55.38m.
Javelin – 1, Angelique Whistocken (CWU) 149-8 /45.62m. SPU – 6, Sammi Markham 130-10 ½ / 39.89m; 13, Scout Cai 116-9 / 35.60m; Brooke Benner 97-0 / 29.56m; Geneva Lehnert 86-11 ½ / 26.51m.
 
 
NCAA MEN'S TRACk & FIELD
Spike Arlt Invitational
Saturday, April 22, 2017
Tomlinson Stadium / Ellensburg, Wash.
 
Team scores – Not kept.
 
100 – 1, Kyler Ooley (CWU) 10.90. SPU – 10, Shayne Carpenter 11.65; T14, David Choi 11.81; 18, Christian Wong 12.03; 22, Zach Telfer 12.47.
200 – 1, Ebu Camara (NNU) 21.69. SPU – 13, Lazarus Scarbrough 23.59; 16, Jesse Phan 23.90; 19, David Choi 24.19; 21, David McLeod 24.38; 25, Zach Telfer 25.49.
400 – 1, Ebu Camara (NNU) 48.38. SPU – 6, Lazarus Scarbrough 50.80; 7, Jesse Phan 50.92; 13, David McLeod 53.50.
800 – 1, Ron Leaf (CWU) 1:56.91. No SPU.
1500 – 1, Kaleb Javier (CWU) 4:02.81. SPU – 16, Josiah Zering 4:35.39.
3000 – 1, Josh Boston (CWU) 8:56.35. SPU – 7, Lloyd Byram 9:18.57; 9, Joseph Walker 9:27.89
10,000 – 1, Nick Hamilton (NNU) 32:51.56. No SPU.
4x100 – 1, Northwest Nazarene 41.45. No SPU.
4x400 – 1, Central Washington 3:19.59. SPU – 4, Seattle Pacific (Lazarus Scarbrough, Jesse Phan, Peyton Harris, Justin Ramsey) 3:26.28.
110 hurdles – 1, TJ Randle (Northwest U) 15.22. SPU – 4, Peyton Harris 15.51; T11, Shayne Carpenter 16.35.
400 hurdles – 1, TJ Randle (Northwest U) 52.92. SPU – 9, Justin Ramsey 1:01.15.
3000 steeplechase – 1, Levi Schilter (Saint Martin's) 10:26.96. No SPU.
High jump – 1, Mikel Smith (Saint Martin's) 6-8 ¾ / 2.05m. No SPU.
Pole vault – 1, Phillip Gwin (NNU) 14-9 / 4.50m. No SPU.
Long jump – 1, Luke Plummer (Unattached)) 22-10 ½ / 6.97m. SPU – 2, Peyton Harris 22-3 ¾ / 6.80m; 17, Chris Bench 17-6 ½ / 5.35m.
Triple jump – 1, Luke Plummer (Unattached) 46-2 / 14.07m. No SPU.
Shot put – 1, Armando Tafoya (CWU) 51-9 / 15.77m. No SPU.
Discus – 1, Armando Tafoya (CWU) 134-1 ½ / 40.89m. No SPU.
Hammer – 1, Armando Tafoya (CWU) 185-4 / 56.49m. No SPU.
Javelin – 1, Alex Barry (WWU) 60.69m. No SPU.