SALEM, Ore. – While the Corban University men's and women's track & field teams began their 2019 campaigns on Saturday with seven event wins at the Willamette Opener, Michael Schmidt broke the school record in the Pole Vault, setting the bar high for what should be an exciting season ahead.

RESULTS

Click the 'Play Button' on the photo above to watch video of Schmidt's school record, or watch here:

"We had great weather for our first track meet of the year," said Corban head coach Norm Berney. "We qualified in 23 events for the conference championships in May, and we had seven individual champions. For a season-opener against D1, D2, and D3 opponents, we had a very strong showing. Unfortunately, we had several members out with illness and we should be able to add to our team strength next weekend in Gresham at Mt. Hood CC."

Schmidt, competing for the first time since the 2018 NAIA National Championships, cleared three heights on Saturday in the Pole Vault, including the school record height of 14' 5.25". Reagan Shira also performed well in the event, taking second with a clearing height of 13' 5.25".

In the High Jump, Forest Zubaly shined with a winning height of 5' 11.25", while he also won the Triple Jump, recording a distance of 39' 5". Also in the Triple Jump, but on the women's side, Shelby Ferry uncorked a distance of 32' 9.75" to win the event.

In the women's Javelin, Sarah Falardeau impressed with a fantastic early-season throw, just missing out on the NAIA 'A' standard with a toss of 128' 4", taking first overall with an NAIA 'B' standard mark.

On the track in the 400 Meters, Mackenzie Wilson won in a photo finish, crossing the finish line in a time of 59.55 seconds, edging out her competitor by 0.01 seconds for the victory.

In the men's 400m Hurdles, Stephen Anderson clocked a winning time of 59.44 seconds, just finishing in front of his two other competitors in the race by less than 0.20 seconds.

Corban is back in action next weekend on Saturday, March 9, when it competes at the Saints Invitational. Competition will begin at 10 a.m. at Mt. Hood Community College.