California Invitational heptathlon results (PDF)
        Mt. SAC Relays heptathlon results (PDF)

AZUSA, Calif. – In less than a month, Crystal Sims and Ali Worthen went from DNF to NCAA.

The two Seattle Pacific multi-event track stars both surged into the national heptathlon picture on Thursday with provisional qualifying performances in California. Worthen finishing sixth at the California Invitational, and Sims placed 12th in the Mt. SAC Relays, both at Azusa Pacific University.

Falcons junior Worthen (Coos Bay, Ore.) racked up a career-best 4,922 points, putting her way up in the pack of 34 Cal Invite finishers, 24 of whom were from Division I schools. It also put her way up on the national qualifying list as the third-highest total in all of NCAA Division II – way beyond the 4,400-point minimum needed to get onto the provisional qualifying list and just 178 points shy of the automatic qual mark of 5,100.

Jonesha Vinson of Portland State was the overall winner with 5,227 points.

Among the two people ahead of Worthen on that list is senior teammate Sims (Portland, Ore.) with her total of 4,933 points. Way out in front is Lindsay Lettow of Central Missouri at 5,610 points.

Worthen, who is enjoying her first healthy season of outdoor track at SPU after battling injuries the past two years, easily eclipsed her previous career best of 4,225, set last spring when she won the hep at the Ralph Vernacchia Invitational in Bellingham.

Likewise, Sims, beat her career-best total of 4,769 points with which she won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference championship last spring.

Ruky Abdulai of the Valley Royals club team won with 6,105 points. Sims was the only D-2 competitor in the Mt. SAC meet.

“It's just a peek at what these two are capable of,” SPU head coach Karl Lerum said of the two-day efforts by Worthen and Sims. “They went out and had fairly solid marks across the board. They had some nice ones, but they also had a couple that I thought they could do better on.

“I think we can tune them up in time (for GNACs and nationals.”

Worthen and Sims might have taken care of their national-qualifying business three weeks ago at the California Multis in Berkeley. Both were well within reach of 4,400 points after the first day of the two-day meet. But they never got to complete the final three events on March 24, the second day. Their afternoon session of competition was canceled because rain and high winds.

No such problem this time.

Worthen performed near her lifetime bests all day on Thursday. She finished eighth in the long jump at 17 feet, 11 ¾ inches / 5.48 meters, nearly matching her PR of 18-0 ½ / 5.50 meters which Worthen set just last Saturday at the War IV meet in Spokane.

Then, she came within two inches of her best in the javelin, winding up at 99-2 / 30.24 meters to tie for 23rd, and finished the day with a run of 2 minutes, 26.43 seconds in the 800 meters, close to her PR of 2:24.75.

On Wednesday, Worthen tied her personal best of 5-7 / 1.70 meters to place second in the high jump, and set a new PR of 14.75 seconds on the way to an 11th-place finish in the 100-meter hurdles.

“For Ali to high jump 5-7 in the hep three days after doing it in an open (at War IV in Spokane last Saturday) is really great,” Lerum said.

Sims approached her PR's in two of Thursday's three events. One of those was the long jump, in which she tied for ninth at 17-7 ¾ / 5.38 meters, just off of the 17-10 ¼ / 5.44 meters she went last Saturday in Spokane.

Crystal scratched her first one, had a fairly decent second one (16-2 ½ / 4.94 meters), then had a nice third one, so that shows some maturity,” Lerum said.

In the 800 meters, Sims came across the line in eighth place in 2:22.92. That was nearly 10 seconds better than her season-opening time of 2:32.44 on March 5, and nearly matched her personal best of 2:22.01 set last season.

Sims also took 12th in the javelin with a toss of 88-0 / 26.82 meters.


NCAA WOMEN'S TRACK AND FIELD
California Invitational heptathlon
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Azusa Pacific University/Azusa, Calif.

Final standings – 1, Jonesha Vinson (Portland State) 5,227. SPU placer – 6, Ali Worthen 4,922.

DAY 1
100 hurdles – 1, Vinson (Portland State) 13.83 (1,003 points). SPU placer – 11, Worthen 14.75 (875).
High jump – 1, Sam Balentine (Hawaii) 5-8 / 1.73m (891 points). SPU placer – 2, Worthen 5-7 / 1.70m (855).
Shot put – 1, April Pate (Nevada) 39-10 ¾ / 12.16m (672 points). SPU placer – 23, Worthen 32-5 ½ / 9.89m (522).
200 – 1, Breanna Leslie (Azusa Pacific) 24.49 (934 points). SPU placer – 19, Worthen 26.47 (757).

DAY 2
Long jump – 1, Deanna Lathan 19-2 ¼ / 5.85 meters (804 points). SPU placer – 8, Worthen 17-11 ¾ / 5.48 meters (694).
Javelin – 1, Sarah Nichols (Nevada) 133-4 / 40.63 meters (679 points). SPU placer – T23, Worthen 99-2 / 30.24 meters (481).
800 – 1, Leslie (Azusa Pacific) 2:15.23 (890 points). SPU placer – 11, Worthen 2:26.43 (738).


Mt. SAC Relays heptathlon
Thursday, April 14, 2011
Azusa Pacific University/Azusa, Calif.

Final standings – 1, Ruky Abdulai (Valley Royals) 6,105. SPU placer – 12, Crystal Sims 4,933.

DAY 1
100 hurdles – 1, Chante McMillian (Nebraska) 13.87 (997 points). SPU placer – 11, Sims 14.85 (862).
High jump – 1, (tie) Natasha Miller (Biola) and Barbara Nwaba (Unattached) 5-11 ½ / 1.82m (1,003 points). SPU placer – 12, Sims 5-2 ¼ / 1.58m (712).
Shot put – 1, McMillian (Nebraska) 44-8 / 13.61m (768 points). SPU placer – 10, Sims 37-5 / 11.40m (621).
200 – 1, Ruky Abdulai (Valley Royals) 24.13 (886 points). SPU placer – 5, Sims 25.16 (872).

DAY 2
Long jump – 1, McMillian (Nebraska) 20-8 / 6.30 meters (943 points). SPU placer – T9, Sims 17-7 ¾ / 5.38 meters (665).
Javelin – 1, Annett Fleming (Unattached) 153-6 / 46.80 meters (798 points). SPU placer – 12, Sims 88-0 / 26.82 meters (417).
800 – 1, Abdulai (Valley Royals) 2:15.88 (880 points). SPU placer – 8, Sims 2:22.92 (784).