DELAWARE, Ohio - Irene Johnson
became the third George Fox University Bruin to earn an NCAA
Division III individual title by running a 14.51 to win the women's
100 meter hurdles as the 2011 Track and Field National
Championships came to a conclusion Saturday afternoon here at Ohio
Wesleyan University's Selby Field/Gauthier Track.
Johnson's winning time was actually half a second slower
than the day before, when she had qualified for the finals with a
school-record time of 14.21 that was the fourth-best mark in the
preliminaries. Everyone ran a slower time on Saturday due to
some strong headwinds measured at 3.5 at the time of the
race. Second place went to Portia Jones of the Massachusetts
Institute of Technology, whose 14.13 in the Friday heats had been
the best time.
Johnson earned All-America status and joined men's javelin
throwers Matt Gassaway in 2004 and Joel Krebs in 2007 as Bruins who
have won NCAA track and field national events. Her win earned
10 points, which were all the points for George Fox's team
total this season, putting them in a tie for 19th overall.
Prior to becoming eligible for NCAA events in the 1999-2000
year, previous George Fox women's national track and field
winners included Janet (Johnson) McClurg in the 1964 USTFF 100 and
220-yard dashes; Jill (Jamison) Beals in the NAIA 10,000 meter run
in 1989, 1991, and 1992; Nancy Rissmiller in the NAIA high jump in
1996; and Becci Harper in the NAIA javelin in 1996 and 1997.
Bruin men with national titles were Steve Blikstad in the NAIA
steeplechase in 1979; Mike Watts in the NCCAA discus in 1987; and
Aaron Young in the NAIA triple jump in 1996.
Two other Bruins who had been slated to compete on Saturday,
Beth Stam in the women's javelin and Jon Udlock in the
men's javelin, wound up unable to throw.
The Bruin men tied for 57th in the team standings with three
points, all from David Dillow's sixth-place finish in the
decathlon on Thursday and Friday.
The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh won the women's
national championship easily over Wartburg College 80 points to 59,
while North Central College (Ill.) edged the University of
Wisconsin-La Crosse 58 to 56 for the men's championship.
Complete results of the NCAA Division III National Track and
Field Championships may be found on line at http://bishops.owu.edu/ncaatf/index.html.
