Led by Carmella Wright’s school-record run in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, the Fort Lewis College women's and men’s track team wrapped up the regular season at the Don Kirby Tailwind meet.
Wright’s steeplechase came with a first-place finish in 11:55.56, beating the 12:33.01 mark set by Rose Chemeli on April 15, 2019 at the CSM Kit Mayer Invite.
Peyton Burnside crossed fourth in 13:54.61.
Saylor Sargent placed fourth in a pair of races, first in the 400 (59.13) and then in the 800 (2:18.26). Katie Fankhouser came in second in the 800 in 2:21.34.
FLC grabbed the top three spots in the 1,500, led by Esther Beck with a first-place finish at 5:19.92. Celine Nez and Sophia Mena followed in 5:23.77 and 5:24.35, respectively.
The Skyhawks also took three of the top four efforts in the 5,000. Beck finished second in 19:58.74, followed by Taylor Murphy and Madeline Shoemaker.
Krista Benze finished third in the 300-meter hurdles in 1:05.91. Joining Wright in the Steeplechase was Peyton Burnside who was the fourth across the line at 13:54.61.
“This was a great way to end the regular season, and we hope to have some solid representation as the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships next week,” said women’s head coach Shawn Jakubowski.
The FLC men wrapped up their regular season with 10 personal bests.
In the 800, Javier Victorino came in fourth in 2:02.27, knocking two seconds off his best time. Brady Burrough and Aaron Busche also finished in the 800 with personal bests and could make the RMAC championships.
In the 1,500, Steven Nez crossed second in 4:09.33. Ricardo Trejo and Cebastian Marquez followed in 4:14.97 and 4:18.62, respectively. Nez also placed second in the 5,000 in 15:21.24.
“Steven had an exceptional day running personal bests in the 5k and 1500,” said men’s head coach Joshua Coon. “That’s a tough double and will set him up well for his 10k at the conference championships next week.”
Fort Lewis had the top four finishes in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, led by winner Henry Barth (9:57.93). Max Robinson finished in 9:59.8, and Braedon Sittman and Ethan Bartlett rounded out the top four in 10:04.85 and 10:05.98.
“Our steeple crew ran really well. All four of them should be able to advance to the conference championships,” Coon said.
Fort Lewis will travel to Spearfish, South Dakota for the RMAC Championships, which span from Thursday to Monday.
