Portland State Vikings broke records at the Big Sky indoor track and field championship in Pocatello, Idaho this past weekend. The women’s team ended the weekend in sixth with 57 points, and the men’s team took eighth place with 39 points—the highest they’ve scored since 2005.
Junior Jazmin Ratcliff broke previous school records in the 60-meter hurdles this past Friday, finishing at 8.35 seconds. The previous record was held by Joenisha Vinson, coming in at 8.46 seconds. Ratcliff’s time was so impressive that it actually beat the previous Big Sky record of 8.40 seconds set by Shaye Springall of Southern Utah. However, Springall was attending the event for a second year and broke her own previous record, setting an impressive new one of 8.19 seconds.
Freshman Whitney Diggs also broke school records and earned All-Big Sky honors, taking a third place finish in the women’s 400 meter events. She crossed the line with a time of 54.89 seconds in the finals, setting a new PSU record. She was a part of a 4×400-meter relay team that took fourth overall in the event. Aside from Diggs breaking the individual school record, the team now ranks third all-time in the indoor relay for PSU.
Sophomore Sheldon Prince earned the honor of becoming the first PSU men’s teammate to win multiple Big Sky Conference titles during the same season. He took first place in the 400-meter event and crossed the line at 47.86 seconds. This destroyed the previous school record of 48.64 seconds and earned him a Big Sky championship title. Prince also scored points for the Vikings with a fifth-place finish in the men’s 200 meters, as he finished in 22.09 seconds.
Meanwhile, Sophomore Gifton Okoronkwo won a Big Sky title in the triple jump. He set a new personal best of 48-05.25 (14.76m). Okoronkwo was just two feet away from breaking the previous school record, and has solidified himself in the number two spot. He also ended his first indoor season having cleared 14.50 meters in three of his five triple jumps.
Crossing the line with a personal best of 6.88 seconds, Sophomore Michael Kubisiak took home All-Big Sky honor for the Vikings, finishing third place in the men’s 60-meter event.
On the women’s side, three All-Big Sky titles were earned for outstanding performances. Freshman Baileh Simms finished at second place in the long jump on Friday. As previously mentioned, Ratcliff placed second in the 60-meter hurdles in 8.44 seconds. And finally, freshman CeCelia Jackson supported the Vikings with a fifth place finish in the 60-meter hurdles, crossing the line in 8.72 seconds.
Senior Camelia Mayfield, meanwhile, scored in the 3,000 and 5,000 meters for the Vikings, placing sixth and fourth, respectively, in times of 10:20.51 and 17:53.48. Junior Montaisha Moore also scored with a fourth place finish in the triple jump Saturday, as she jumped a seasonal-best at 39-02.25 (11.94m).
While the team didn’t sweep the event, it was a strong showing for PSU none the less. A number of school records were broken, personal bests were beat and the players set a new standard for future PSU athletes.
