Season Bests Abound at Mt. Hood Open
March 15, 2014

The Mt. Hood Open proved to be a big meet in terms of participants and competition and the Wildcats responded with big performances. The majority of the crew boarded the bus back to McMinnville with a seasons best in tow and five Linfield distance runners came home with lifetime bests.

Audrey Lichten powers up the homestretch to a commanding victory in the 1500 meters.

On the women's side, Audrey Lichten dominated the 1500 meters in a seasons best 4:51 while Sarah Rasmussen-Rehkopf (2:36) and Madeline Noe (2:30) snagged lifetime bests in the 800 meters. Hannah Greider also snagged a new PR in the 5000 meters (18:12).

Calli Dowdy (r) and Sarah Rasmussen-Rehkopf (l) push the pace in the 800 meters.

For the men, seasons bests abounded in the 800 meters with Manuel Finley (2:04), Chad Linnerooth (2:04) and Art O'Kelly (2:03) all racing well. In the 5000 meters, Joe Gladow ran a controlled and intelligent race which resulted in a third-place finish and a new lifetime best of 15:25. Freshman Mike O'Neil (15:47) also snagged a conference qualifier at the meet.

Adrian Clifford (r) and Jason Hight (l) battle for position during the 5000 meters.

"Each meet this season has been loads of fun," stated distance coach Greg Mitchell. "It's great to see all the hard work paying off for the team. I expect times to continue to drop through the championships meet."