MOSCOW, Idaho -- The Eastern Oregon University track and field team found more qualifying marks in Idaho at the Idaho Vandal Collegiate Meet Friday.
Competing against many NCAA Div. 1 opponents, the Mountaineers had success in the Kibbie Dome. Mitch Wheelhouse and Jeff Roy each hit NAIA Indoor Automatic Qualifying marks in their respective events for EOU. Wheelhouse, a senior, had a throw of 52 feet and 10 inches in the weight throw. Fellow Mountaineers, Chris Dilley and Andy Munsey, each had finishes in the top seven along with Wheelhouse.
Roy finished seventh in the 800 meters, but met the national auto qualifying mark. The junior finished with a time of 1:15.18. Carlos Quintana had a 12th place finish in the same event.
After last week's record 800-meter run, Ryan Booth dropped down in distance and succeeded. Booth ran a 50.80 in the 400-meters, which was an open personal record.
Booth, Quintana, Roy and Tyler June all joined up to run the 4X400-meter relay, and finished seventh with a time of 3:25.61. Roy ran an indoor best for a relay split (50.9)and Quintana ran a life time relay PR (51.7).
On the women's side, cross country All-American Karlee Coffey ran the first track race of her life and came close to the win with a second place run of 10:32.25, in the 3,000 meters. Coffey's mark was about five seconds out of the win behind Ashlee Wall's 10:27.09, and less than six seconds from a National qualifying time.
The other main highlight of the day was a well run 800 meters by Alma Garcilazo. She won by over two seconds, over a runner from the U of I with a time of 2:16.02. She then came back in the very next event, the 200 meters, and ran a very solid 26.69.
Orie Gamez an Talissa Baldovino both raced a very solid double in the 400 and 200.
McKenzie Anderson jumped well in the High Jump especially considering the bar opened an inch or so above her previous PR at 4'8 1/4. She cleared the next height as well.
The Mountaineers have the next week off, before traveling to Nationals in Johnson City, Tenn., March 4-6.