Annika Esvelt-Jeff Gordon-David Njeri main hole.

Gordon Leads Speedy Indoor Return

SPU helps inaugurate new Spokane track with school record, two NCAA marks

12/11/2021 8:53:00 PM

SPOKANE, Wash. – First indoor race. First school record for Jeff Gordon.
 
And a second one might be coming soon.
 
Gordon, who competed outdoors in the spring, but didn't get to race indoors last winter because of the pandemic shutdown, finally got his chance under a roof on Saturday morning.
 
The wait turned out to be worth it, because he made the most of that chance.
 
 
Jeff Gordon reaches the finish line of the 60 in SPU record-setting time on Saturday in Spokane.
Jeff Gordon hits the 60-meter dash finish line in
SPU-record time on Saturday morning in Spokane.
Gordon broke the long-standing Seattle Pacific record for the 60-meter dash, clocking 7.12 seconds inside The Podium at the inaugural Spokane Invitational.
 
The old record of 7.15 was set in 2005 by Ryan Jewell.
 
Gordon, a sophomore academically but a freshman in terms of indoor track eligibility, didn't actually know about the record until he was on the bus ride home.
 
"Oooo – is it? Wow!" he said upon being informed of the record. "I hadn't done (a 60) before, so I was just kind of seeing where I was."
 
Gordon said when he initially saw his time, "I was a little discouraged. I didn't get the greatest start. I was hoping for something in the 6 (second) range.
 
"But hearing what it is and the magnitude of that time (as the new record), I'm definitely a little bit more happy about it now – oh, yeah!"
 
Gordon almost wound up with two school records as the Falcons were among the teams helping to inaugurate Spokane's brand-new facility. Later in the day, he won his heat of the 200-meter dash in 22.48 seconds. Jewell also set the standard in that one, 22.46 in 2005, just two-hundredths faster than Gordon.
 
"Jeff has worked hard this fall, so I'm not surprised that he had a good day," Falcons head coach and program director Karl Lerum said.
 
BIG TRIPLE JUMP MARK FOR NJERI
Look out, 50.
 
David Njeri's coming for you.
 
Njeri, who won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference outdoor triple jump championship last May, got his indoor season off to a leaping start on Saturday when he landed a 49-footer inside The Podium at the inaugural Spokane Invitational.
 
Spokane Invitational logo.His final mark was 49-0¾.
 
That was a personal best across all competitions. His GNAC-winning distance on May 15 at Western Oregon University's McArthur Field was 48-7. His indoor PR was 47-8 on Feb. 22, 2020 at the GNAC indoor meet in Nampa, Idaho, which game him third place.
 
Saturday's performance also put him onto the NCAA Division II provisional qualifying list, and ranked No. 6 nationally as of Saturday evening (with other weekend results from around the country still to be reported).

"Oh man, that felt great," said Njeri, who started his day with a personal-best time of 7.18 seconds in the qualifying heat of the 60-meter dash. "I was just being patient on my first, second and third jumps. I just put it together on my last and executed. It felt really good."
 
Spokane has been quite a productive locale for Njeri this year – even if it is just by fractions of an inch. On April 30 in the outdoor Buc Scoring Invitational at Whitworth University, he broke 48 feet for the first time, going 48-0½ to take second place in that meet.
 
So … is a 50-footer on the horizon?
 
"That has been the goal since this year started," Njeri said.
 
QUICK DEBUT FOR  ESVELT
At Seattle Pacific's first indoor competition since Feb. 29, 2020 (after which the coronavirus pandemic shut down athletics and much of everyday life for an extended period of time), Njeri wasn't the only Falcon delivering a national-caliber effort.
 
Annika Esvelt came up with one of her own on the track.
 
After her inaugural outdoor campaign last spring and an outstanding cross country season in the fall that included two race victories, along with All-GNAC and All-West Region awards, Esvelt got her first taste of college indoor competition. She capped her day with a time of 9:57.68 in the 3000 meters.
 
That gave her fourth place and beat the provisional qualifying standard of 9:58.36. It ranked No. 9 nationally as of Saturday evening.
 
Esvelt's first indoor race in an SPU uniform came in the mile, and she clocked 5:06.38 for third place.
 
AND THAT'S NOT ALL
 
Jenna Bouyer 2021 TF mug.
Bouyer
-- Jenna Bouyer twice came very close to her personal-best in the women's 60-meter dash. She clocked 7.73 in the preliminaries to earn a spot in the eight-runner final, then went 7.72 for sixth place. Her best is 7.69, which she achieved as a freshman at the 2019 GNAC Championships. Bouyer wrapped up her day by taking fifth in the 200 in 25.29.
-- Peace Igbonagwam was even faster in the 200, stopping the watch at 25.12 for third place.
 
Kainoa Lee 2021 TF mug.
Lee
-- Sophomore Kainoa Lee cleared a 14-foot bar in the men's pole vault for the first time ever, getting over at 14-1¼. The closest he came to that previously was outdoors at the Ed Boitano Invitational last March 27 in Tacoma with a mark of 13-11¼.
-- Coach Karl Lerum was clearly impressed with The Podium now that he has seen it in person. "It's all that it has been hyped up to be," he said. "What a privilege it is to have it in our region now."
-- Lerum also had some good impressions of his athletes. "Obviously, there were some highlights and there were some kids who didn't have the performances they had hoped for. But overall, our team is showing that we have talented people who are working hard."
 
UP NEXT
The Falcons will return to action after the upcoming holidays. Competing in the UW Indoor Preview on Saturday, Jan. 15, at the University of Washington's Dempsey Indoor. Track events begin at 8:45 a.m. and field events at 9:00 a.m.


NCAA MEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Spokane Invitational
Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021
The Podium / Spokane, Wash.
 
Team scores – Not kept.

SPU EVENTS ONLY
60-meter dash – 1, Joe Gautheri (EWU) 6.77. SPUQualifying heats: 7, David Njeri 7.18.  Preliminary heats: 14, Jeff Gordon 7.12 (school record, breaks old record of 7.15 set by Ryan Jewell in 2005).
200 – 1, Anthony Smith (UW) 21.73. SPU – 11, Jeff Gordon 22.48; 28, Evan Carpenter 23.51; 41, Brad Bowman 25.52.
400 – 1, Daniel Gaik (EWU) 48.74. SPU – 17, Evan Carpenter 52.70; 26, Gabe Woodard 54.82.
800 – 1, Cass Elliott (UW) 1:51.98. SPU – 8, Isaish Archer 1:57.63; 19, Jon Owen 2:01.80.
Mile – 1, Tate Scheinbein (Jacuzzi Boys AC) 4:10.35. SPU – 20, Jon Owen 4:30.47; 25, Rory McClelland 4:47.38.
3000 – 1, Justin Roosma (EWU) 8:19.08. SPU – 19, Ben Sheirbon 9:23.38; 24, Brennan LeBlanc 9:40.19.
5000 – 1, Cole Olsen (Lewis-Clark State) 14:33.24. SPU – 20, Gabe Endresen 17:15.67.
Pole vault – 1, Zach Klobutcher (E. Washington) 16-6 ¾ / 5.05m.  SPU – 12, Kainoa Lee 14-1 ¼ / 4.30m.
Triple jump – 1, Bobby Say (E. Washington) 49-5 / 15.06m.  SPU – 2, David Njeri 49-0 ¾ / 14.95m#.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S INDOOR TRACK & FIELD
Spokane Invitational

Saturday, Dec. 11, 2021
The Podium / Spokane, Wash.
 
Team scores – Not kept.
 
SPU EVENTS ONLY
60-meter dash – 1, Aaliyah Wilson (UW) 7.42. SPU – 6, Jenna Bouyer 7.72. Qualifying heats: 17, Aniya Green 8.25.  Preliminary heats: 6, Jenna Bouyer 7.73.
200 – 1, Camryn Crouch (Idaho) 24.70.  SPU – 3, Peace Igbonagwam 25.12; 5, Jenna Bouyer 25.29; 30, Aniya Green 26.76; 34, Johanna Brown 26.97; 36, McKenzie Fletcher 27.06; 52, Charisma Smith 28.11.
400 – 1, Adael Scatena (Oregon St.) 57.52. SPU – 14, McKenzie Fletcher 1:02.32; 20, Johanna Brown 1:03.24; 22, Charisma Smith 1:03.66; Peace Igbonagwam DQ (lane violation).
Mile – 1, Whitney Hessler (San Francisco) 5:03.81.  SPU – 3, Annika Esvelt 5:06.38.
3000 – 1, Alicia Anderson (Gonzaga) 9:41.67.  SPU – 4, Annika Esvelt 9:57.68#; 13, Nicki Yorges 10:42.72.
Pole vault – 1, Makenna Burton (UW) 13-7 ¼ / 4.15m. SPU – T11, Madison Licari 11-3 ¾ / 3.45m; 16, Lizzy Daugherty 10-10 / 3.30m; Emily Northey no height.
 
 
 
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