ASHLAND, Ore. - The Corban University track & field teams experienced a historic day on Friday at the Cascade Collegiate Conference (CCC) Championships, winning two conference titles while setting numerous meet and school records in the process. With nearly everyone who competed for the Warriors registering career-best marks, or close to it, Corban saw 11 Warriors collect CCC All-Conference honors thanks to top-three finishes.
Day One Results
Photo GalleryÂ
To put everything in perspective, the Warrior men had only ever claimed one conference title in an event in CCC history, and that was back in 2010. On Friday, the Corban men's track & field squad set a new meet record and school-record time in the 4x100 Relay, and the Warriors finished in both first and second place in the 400 Meters.
In the 4x100 Relay, the foursome of senior Brett Johnson (Bellingham, Wash.), senior Jacob Ybarra (Boise, Idaho), freshman Nathan Martin (Turner, Ore.), and sophomore Michael Trofimchik (Salem, Ore.) combined to set the new CCC Championships' meet record and school-record time of 41.43 seconds. For the Warriors, it is the first time Corban has ever won the event, and in the process of doing so, shattered the 16-year-old record that was set by Western Oregon back in 1999. The time also qualifies the Warriors for the NAIA National Championships with an NAIA 'A' standard time.
Watch Corban's Championship 4x100 Relay video here:
"It was just a great overall day for the Warriors, and it was really exciting to see our men's 4x100 Relay team set a new meet record and hit the NAIA 'A' standard time," said Corban head coach Norm Berney.
In the 400 Meters, Corban shined once again with senior Nathan Swanson (Newberg, Ore.) just edging out sophomore teammate Trofimchik and claiming the title with a career-best time of 48.34 seconds, finishing .01 seconds ahead of Trofimchik (48.35 seconds) in a photo finish. Both Warriors earned CCC All-Conference honors due to their performances, and both times were NAIA 'B' standard marks. For the Navy and Gold, Swanson's championship was Corban's second-ever title in the event's history.
Staying with the success on the track, two Warrior distance runners came through clutch, as sophomore Craig Boekenoogen (Poulsbo, Wash.) shocked the field and took third place in the 3000 Meter Steeplechase with a career-best time of 9:35.02, the third-fastest time in program history. With the effort, he earned All-CCC plaudits.
The other Warrior who performed valiantly in the distance events was sophomore Zach Steele (Oregon City, Ore.) who scored a point for Corban in the 10,000 Meters as he finished in eighth place with a career-best time of 33:57.25.
In the field events, it was Ybarra who had a day to remember, taking second in both the Long Jump and the High Jump. In the Long Jump, Ybarra posted an NAIA 'A' standard mark of 23' 10.25", resetting his own school record in the process. Then in the High Jump, he cleared a career-best mark of 6' 6.75", resetting his own school record in the event as well. For his efforts, he earned All-Conference accolades in both events.
Finally, junior Dane Walker (Anchorage, Alaska) scored a point for Corban with an eighth-place finish in the Discus, registering a mark of 138' 11".
On the women's side, junior Sarah Taylor (Bend, Ore.) placed second overall in the High Jump with a clearing height of 5' 2", earning All-Conference honors in the process.
Sophomore Emma Berg shined for Corban in the Long Jump, taking second place with a career-best distance of 17' 6". Additionally, in the 400 Meters, clocking a career-best time of 58.40 seconds for fifth place at the meet. The time was also the third-best time in program history.
In the 100 Hurdles, junior Chelsea Reifschneider (Sisters, Ore.) ran well and set a new school record with a time of 15.26 seconds, taking sixth overall amongst the competitive field.
Another school record fell in the Hammer Throw, as junior Kelsey Wright (Beaverton, Ore.) registered a distance of 130' 5", taking seventh place overall at the meet with her career-best mark.
Finally, the Warrior women's 4x100 Relay foursome of freshman Adrianna Curteman (Albany, Ore.), freshman Renee Inscore (Dayville, Ore.), Reifschneider, and junior Cecilee Russell (Hillsboro, Ore.) uncorked a season-best time of 50.89 seconds for fifth place, scoring more points for Corban.
"We were really excited with how everyone performed today, and we can't wait to get back out there on Saturday," said Berney. "Great day to be a Warrior!"
Following the day-one results, the Warrior men sit in fourth place with 65 points, while the Corban women have totaled 33 points for seventh place. Be sure to follow along via live stats throughout all of tomorrow's final events.
