SPOKANE, Wash.—Senior
Malia Heien won the first two Northwest Conference Titles of her career to lead Lewis & Clark College women's track & field on Day Two of the Northwest Conference Championship Meet.
THE BASICS
Women's Track & Field – 8
th out of 9 Teams – 52 Points
HOW IT HAPPENED
The River Otters posted four All-Conference performances on Saturday and set a pair of records on Sunday to close out the NWC Championship Meet.
Heien claimed her first career Northwest Conference Title in the 1,500M. The senior, who came into the weekend seeded second, ran a season-best time of 4:39.45 to defeat a field of 14 runners. Heien sat second going into the final lap but ran a 1:08.61 over the final 400M to pass the leader and win by 3.55 seconds. Her time moved her into 79
th in NCAA DIII this season.
She added her second collegiate conference championship 75 minutes later. After placing in the top-three of the 800M her first three seasons, Heien beat George Fox's Hope Bridge to the line by 0.24 seconds to earn the title. She posted a final time of 2:17.77. Fellow senior
Miriam Reside placed seventh overall with a time of 2:25.40 in the 800M.
Senior
Elsie Chin recorded the first program record of the day for the River Otters. Chin placed third overall in the 400M Hurdles with a time of 1:03.41. Her time moved her into 30
th in NCAA DIII this season.
The River Otters posted their second program record of the meet and final All-Conference performance in the 4x400M Relay. The quartet of Chin, Reside, junior
Callow Soto and Heien crossed the line in 3:57.41 to place third overall. Their time pushed them up to 48
th in NCAA DIII this year.
Chin and Soto each scored points in the 400M. The duo both posted top-10 times in program history to finish in the top-five. Chin (58.36) and Soto (58.93) placed fourth and fifth overall to score nine points for Lewis & Clark.
The River Otters 4x100M Relay Team placed seventh overall. The team of junior
Rose Dinh, junior
Carolyn Mayberry, Soto and first year
Sofia Figueroa combined for a season-best time of 51.53 to open the day.
Senior
Anli Davis was the lone field athlete to compete for women's track & field on Sunday. The senior placed 24
th in the triple jump with a mark of 9.71M (31-10.25 Feet).
BY THE NUMBERS
- Heien is the third Lewis & Clark women's runner to win the 1,500M at the NWC Championship Meet and first to win the title since 2013. She is only the second Lewis & Clark women's runner to win the 800M and first since 2006.
- Chin (1:03.41) broke Emily Thompson's record of 1:03.91 in the 400M Hurdles. Thompson had held the program record since 2013. Chin beat her own PR in the event by 2.18 seconds.
- Heien joins Lewis & Clark Hall of Famer Carla McHattie ('06) as the only runners in program history to win the 800M and 1,500M at the same NWC Championship Meet. Both runners accomplished the meet during their senior seasons.
- The 4x400M Relay Team (3:57.41) broke the 2024 Relay Team's program record time (3:58.07). Heien, Chin and Soto all earned All-Conference honors in the 4x400M Relay for a third-straight season.
- The 4x100M Relay Team cracked the top-50 on Sunday. Their time of 51.53 moved them up to 41st in school history.
- Heien finishes up her career with 15 All-Conference honors between cross country and outdoor track & field.
WHAT'S NEXT
Lewis & Clark will be off next weekend, before competing in the Oregon Twilight Meet (May 8) and Portland Twilight Meet (May 9) in two weeks.
