March 15, 2009
SEATTLE -- On the way to winning two titles at the NCAA Division II indoor track and field championships in Houston this past weekend, it was obvious that Seattle Pacific star Jessica Pixler ran plenty fast.
But the way she figures it, that wasn't the only thing that got her to the finish line first, both in the mile and, a short while later, in the 5,000 meters.
“I think I ran smart,” said Pixler, a junior (Sammamish, Wash./Eastlake HS) who now has half a dozen NCAA crowns to her credit -- four on the track and two on the cross country course. “It was a harder double to pull off. I had to be smart in both races.”
Pixler captured her third straight indoor mile, this one in a time of 4 minutes, 43.69 seconds. And, for the second year in a row, she and speedy teammate Jane Larson (Fall City, Wash./Cedar Park Christian HS) made it a 1-2 finish for the Falcons. Larson, also a junior, hit the wire in 4:48.87.
“That was cool. Jane had an awesome finish to her race,” Pixler said. “That was exciting to watch. She ran a real good race and had a real good kick.”
But neither one of them was done yet. Just two hours later in the 5,000, Pixler got quite a push from Jennifer Harpp of Slippery Rock (Pa.) and Mary Ballinger of Southern Indiana. But with eight laps left, she literally kicked it into the next gear and pulled away convincingly, ultimately beating runner-up Harp to the line by nearly 11 seconds.
Pixler, who lapped at least half a dozen runners near the end of the race, logged a 16:22.64. Harpp had a 16:33.68. And Larson, who was the eighth seed coming in, crossed the line seventh in 17:04.01.
"The Slippery Rock girl ran a real good race,” Pixler said. “She really went for it and was really pushing me for about a mile. That was good. That made the race really exciting. I had to put all my effort into it.”
Added Falcons coach Karl Lerum, “What can you say? She was in a class of her own down there.”
Larson's weekend was every bit as solid as Pixler's, although like virtually every track athlete, she wanted to do even better.
“As far as my own goals and desires, I kind of fell short of those. But I was happy with some aspects of my races,” Larson said. “I felt good about the mile. I was hoping to place a little higher in the 5K.
“Just in my mental approach and in terms of what my goals are, it was good to be in those races and in that competition,” Larson added. “I felt like my body didn't do what I wanted it to do. But I never gave up.”
COACH LIKED WHAT HE SAW
Lerum certainly had no complaints.
“Jane came out and went after it and ran two gutsy races -- and ran solid times in races that were close to each other,” he said. “That combo of Jane and Jessica is pretty special.”
Falcon freshman Ali Worthen (Coos Bay, Ore.) took fourth in the high jump at 5 feet, 7½ inches, just an inch shy of the 5-8½ that earned her the title and a meet record at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championships on Feb. 21.
“She jumped great and had real good looks at the next height, and basically just clipped it off with the heel,” Lerum said. “She continues to show poise beyond her years.”
Sophomore Melissa Peaslee was hoping to try for the 13-foot mark in the pole vault after entering the nationals with a qualifying mark of 12-6. But after being sideline from practice since GNACs because of a hamstring injury, she had to settle for 11-9¾.
“We were hoping for the best,” Lerum said. “She's an experienced type of kid who can pull that off. But it doesn't help if you can't practice.
With just those four competitors, Seattle Pacific wound up sixth in the team standings with 35 points. Lincoln University of Jefferson City, Mo., won with 100.5 points, more than twice as many as runner-up Grand Valley State.
“We performed brilliantly,” Lerum said. “Points-wise, you never know how it's going to pan out. I knew we had a strong group going in there. To have that small a group and do that well is great.”
