Complete results (PDF)
 
SEATTLE – Dania Holmberg already knows the feeling of making it to nationals in two events.
 
Now, the Seattle Pacific junior is in prime position to do it again.
 
Holmberg went from below the cutoff line to top 12 in the country in the 3000 meters on Saturday night, winning that race with a blistering time of 9 minutes, 38.98 seconds at the Seattle Pacific Final Qualifier indoor track and field meet.
 
 

Her time for nine-plus laps around the 307-meter purple oval at Dempsey Indoor puts her at No. 11 on the NCAA Division II provisional qualifying list as of late in the evening.
 
Heading into the meet, Holmberg was sitting at No. 23 on the list. Only the top 16 are guaranteed a spot, although as many as four others can be added by meet officials for a maximum field of 20 athletes.
 
Either way, she was on the outside.
 
Not anymore.
 
"I haven't really processed it yet, but I'm happy with it, for sure," Holmberg said. "The first 1K, the first 1500, I just really wanted to hit even splits and just feel really good and really strong. I wanted to go out with the pack and let the rabbits do their job.
 
"Once they stepped off, I just wanted to take advantage of the opportunity and run really fast. And I ended up getting a time that I'm happy with, so I'm excited."
 
Holmberg is now above the top-16 line in two races. She is No. 9 in the 5000 meters with the 16:49.07 that she ran at the UW Invitational inside the Dempsey on Jan. 31.

There are a few meets around the country that finish up on Sunday. But presuming she stays in the top 16, she'll have an opportunity to do both distances at nationals two weeks from now in Birmingham, Ala. The 5K will be on Friday, March 13 near the end of the schedule. The 3K is almost exactly 24 hours later.
 
Asked if she had a favorite among those two races, Holmberg – who ran the 1500 and the 5000 at the outdoor NCAAs last spring – replied, "I can't wait to see which one it is."
 
Holmberg was hoping to have teammate Kate Lilly coming along to Alabama. Lilly, who won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference 3K last Saturday in Nampa, Idaho by seven-hundredths of a second ahead of Holmberg, was just outside the national top 20 at the start of Saturday. Though she hadn't been feeling well the past two days, Lilly still wanted to give the race a go – and she did, but was not able to finish.
 
LET'S MOVE IT
Holmberg had been splitting about 60 seconds for each lap on Saturday. In fact, when she came through the bell, she had moved into first place, but was still at 8:45. Since the No. 16 time at the start of the night was 9:43, she would need to go 57 or better on that last lap to get above the line.
 
She went 53.
 
"What we talked about with both Dania and Kate was it's going to be fast, but ultimately, the one who prevails is the one who remembers it's a race and not a time trial," SPU associate head coach Chris Reed said. "This is not a practice, it's a competition – and they played it like a race. Dania set up her race in an effort to win it, and when it came time to make the move, she did."
 
AND THAT'S NOT ALL
-- Renick Meyer won the long jump, going 18 feet, 10 inches.
-- As of Saturday evening, Meyer is tied for 16^th nationally with the 19-1¼ mark that she posted to take third place at GNACs last week. Sophomore Peace Igbonagwam, who won the conference crown at 19-5½, is No. 10 on the list.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
SPU Final Qualifier
Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020
Dempsey Indoor / Seattle, Wash.
 
Team scores – Not kept.
 
60-meter dash – 1, Tamia Price (Concordia Irvine) 7.68. No SPU.
200 – 1, Jaylah Walker (APU) 24.54#. No SPU.
400 – 1, Sidney Trinidad (CWU) 57.15. No SPU.
800 – 1, Mairin Shields-Brown (Simon) 2:13.52. No SPU.
Mile – 1, Cynthia Mejia (Stanislaus) 4:55.39. SPU – 4, Sedona McNerney 5:09.46.
3000 – 1, Dania Holmberg (SPU) 9:38.98#. Other SPU – 17, Kelsey Washenberger 10:25.19; Kate Lilly DNF.
60 hurdles – 1, Tamia Prince (Concordia Irvine) 8.79. SPU – 11, Kellie May 10.05.
4000 distance medley relay – 1, Alaska Anchorage 11:42.19. No SPU.
4x400 relay – 1, Azusa Pacific 3:46.62. No SPU.
High jump – 1, Trinity Hansma (UBC) 5-6 / 1.68m. No SPU.
Pole vault – 1, Halle Irvine (CWU) 12-3 ½ / 3.75m. SPU – 4, Madison Licari 11-3 ¾ / 3.45m.
Long jump – 1, Renick Meyer (SPU) 18-10 / 5.74m#. No other SPU.
Triple jump – 1, Karlie Hurley (Concordia-Portland) 39-4 ½ / 12.00m. No SPU.
Shot put – 1, Samantha La Rue (CWU) 48-0 / 14.63m. No SPU.
Weight throw – 1, Angel Nkwonta (UW) 64-9 ¼ / 19.74m. No SPU.
 
 
NCAA MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
SPU Final Qualifier
Saturday, Feb. 29, 2020
Dempsey Indoor / Seattle, Wash.
 
Team scores – Not kept.
 
60-meter dash – 1, Nolan Mickenham (Linfield) 6.98. No SPU.
200 – 1, Jeremiah Lauzon (Simon) 22.10. SPU – 4, Julius Shepherd 23.72.
400 – 1, Daniel Bessolo (APU) 47.83. No SPU.
800 – 1, Max Carmona (WOU) 1:55.85. SPU – 9, Brayden Schultz 2:00.00; 13, Reed Adjibly 2:02.57; 14, Ben Hansen 2:02.74.
Mile – 1, Thomas Broatch (UBC) 4:14.83. SPU – 13, Colin Boutin 4:31.96; 19, Felix Coffin 4:34.10; 21, Jon Owen 4:37.96; 23, Kyle Morrison 4:38.22; 24, J.R. Hentges 4:43.04.
3000 – 1, Edward Kiolbasa (WWU) 8:16.73. No SPU.
60 hurdles – 1, Nick Johnson (WSU) 7.79. No SPU.
4000 distance medley relay – 1, Western Oregon 9:52.67. No SPU.
4x400 relay – 1, Azusa Pacific 3:17.65. No SPU.
High jump – 1, Tupre Wickliff (WWU) 6-7 / 2.01m. No SPU.
Pole vault – 1, Tysen Campbell (CWU) 14-8 ¼ / 4.48m. SPU – Brad Bowman no height.
Long jump – 1, Ethan Sterkel (WWU) 23-9 ½ / 7.75m. No SPU.
Triple jump – 1, Chris Brake (UAA) 48-1 ¼ / 14.66m. SPU – 3, David Njeri 45-4 ¼ / 13.82m.
Shot put – 1, Nate Esparza (UCLA) 58-6 ¾ / 17.85m. No SPU.
Weight throw – 1, Aidan Cain (CWU) 61-2 / 18.64m. No SPU.