NCAA NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS: Six Bruins Heading to Ohio for 2009 NCAA Nationals

2009 NCAA Division III Track & Field National Championships Official Website

NEWBERG, Ore. – Half a dozen George Fox University track and field athletes took off early Monday morning to join the lineup of entries in the 2009 NCAA Division III Track and Field National Championships that will be held this Thursday-Saturday, May 21-23, at Marietta College in Marietta, Ohio.

Bruins carrying national title hopes to the banks of the Ohio River and right across from West Virginia include three women - Irene Johnson in the 100 meter hurdles, Beth Stam in the javelin, and Melissa Leighty in the heptathlon - and three men - Joel Krebs in the javelin, Dakarai Kongela in the 100 meter dash, and Ryan Forbes in the decathlon.

Johnson, a sophomore from Portland, Ore., enters the weekend with a school-record time of 14.47 in the 100 hurdles, a mark that stands 11th nationally.  Preliminaries for the 100 hurdles are set for 3:20 p.m. Eastern (12:20 p.m. Pacific) on Friday, with the finals Saturday at 1:55 p.m. EDT (10:55 a.m. PDT).  She ran for the Bruins’ 4x400 meter relay team in the nationals last year, but the group did not qualify for the finals.   

Stam, a freshman from Siletz, Ore., has a mark of 142-0 / 43.28m in the javelin, ranking 7th nationally.  Javelin preliminaries are Thursday at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific), following by the finals later that afternoon.  She also had a provisional mark this year in the heptathlon with 4,139 points, ranking 29th nationally.

Leighty, a sophomore from Canby, Ore., stands 19th nationally in the heptathlon with 4,364 points.  The first four events of the heptathlon will take place on Thursday starting at 1:00 p.m. Eastern (10:00 a.m. Pacific), with the final three events on Friday starting at 12:00 noon EDT (9:00 a.m. PDT).  She also had a provisional mark in the 100 hurdles of 14.73, ranking 20th nationally.  She competed in the NCAA nationals in the 100 hurdles last year but did not qualify for the finals. 

Krebs, a senior from Salem, Ore., won the 2007 national championship and All-America status in the javelin with a throw of 198-8 / 60.57m, but was injured most of last year.  He participated in the first-round heats at the nationals but did not qualify for the finals.  He will try to regain the crown after posting a season’s best mark of 203-7 / 62.6m, ranking 7th nationally.  Preliminaries for the javelin are set for 3:30 p.m. Eastern (12:30 p.m. Pacific) on Thursday, with the finals on the same day.

Kongela, a junior from Suquamish, Wash., has the second-best time in Bruin history in the 100 with a time of 10.60, which ranks 8th nationally.  The 100 preliminaries are scheduled for Friday at 4:10 p.m. Eastern (1:10 p.m. Pacific), with the finals on Saturday at 2:30 p.m. EDT (11:30 a.m. PDT).

Forbes, a senior from Jackson, Wyo., stands 16th nationally with 6,365 points in the decathlon.  Five events are scheduled for Thursday starting at 12:00 noon Eastern (9:00 a.m. Pacific), with Friday’s five events starting at 11:00 a.m. EDT (8:00 a.m. PDT).  He is making his fourth appearance at the nationals, having earned All-America honors in 2006 by finishing eighth with 6,317 points, then placing 10th in 2007 with 6,450 points and 14th in 2008 with 5,680 points despite taking no score in the 400 meter dash.

Four other Bruins had provisional marks this spring but did not make the cut for the Nationals: David Dillow (6,237 points, 23rd nationally) and Nate Dillow (6,161 points, 29th nationally) in the men’s decathlon, Lizzy Alaimo in the women’s 100 meter hurdles (14.91, 26th nationally), and Cindy Walsh in the women’s long jump (18-1.75 / 5.53m, 35th nationally).

George Fox 2009 NCAA Division III Qualifiers

Men

Joel Krebs - Javelin (7th, 203-7 / 62.6m) *

Dakari Kongela - 100 (8th, 10.60) *

Ryan Forbes - Decathlon (16th, 6,365 pts) *

David Dillow - Decathlon (23rd, 6,237 pts)

Nate Dillow - Decathlon (29th, 6,161 pts)

Women

Beth Stam - Javelin (7th, 142-0 / 43.28m) *, Heptathlon (29th, 4,139 pts)

Irene Johnson - 100 Hurdles (11th, 14.47 - new school record) *

Melissa Leighty - Heptathlon (19th, 4,364 pts) *, 100 Hurdles (20th, 14.73)

Lizzy Alaimo - 100 Hurdles (26th, 14.91)

Cindy Walsh - Long Jump (35th T, 18-1.75 /5.53m)

* - Bruins entered in NCAA National Championships, May 22-24, Marietta, Ohio