SPOKANE, Wash. — The Gonzaga men opened the 3,000-meter steeplechase season by sweeping the top four spots at Whitworth's Pine Bowl Friday.
Kellen Manley had a first place finish of 9:17.56, while Luke Mason was second at 9:28.01. Sammy Truax (9:30.50) and Alex Walde (9:50.40) were third and fourth.
Three Bulldogs finished in the Top-5 of the men's 1,500 meters led by Scott Kopczynski's first place finish. His time of 3:54.88 was just ahead of teammates Graham Wendle (3:57.14) and Andrew Clusserath (3:57.92) in third and fourth.
Brianna Vasquez improved her No. 3 mark in program history with a 27.03 finish in the women's 200 meters. She placed fifth in the event. Morgan Greene ran the eighth-fastest 400-meter time in program history. She came in 10th with a time of 1:01.35. Claire Gillett placed fifth in the 800 meters at 2:22.49.
In the women's 1,500 meters, Aimee Piercy's time of 4:39.43 ranks eighth on the GU all-time list. She placed fourth in the event, followed closely by Jordan McPhee, who crossed the line at 4:44.88.
The Zags' A 4x400-meter relay squad of Vasquez, Emma Flood, Greene and McPhee edged out the B quartet of Gillett, Ally Legard, Marissa Bailey and Samantha Vowles for second place. The A team had a time of 4:13.26, while the B team's time was 4:19.63. Idaho won the event with a time of 4:07.28.
Gonzaga will send a select group of runners to the Bay Area next Thursday and Friday for the San Francisco State Distance Carnival and the Stanford Invitational. Live coverage will be available on GoZags.com.
