CWU Track and Field competed in the outdoor Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) championships in Monmouth, OR. from May 12 to 13. Hurdler Lauryn Chandler brought home CWU’s lone first-place finish, becoming GNAC champion 100-meter hurdles champion with a time of 13.97 seconds. 

Chandler finished as a top-qualifier the day before her competition, finishing with a time of 13.90 in the qualifiers which is 21st in the nation.

Head Track and Field Coach Kevin Adkisson spoke on how the team had been preparing for the tournament all year. 

“They have been working for this moment since school started in September, and [in] the end this is what they have been building towards the whole time,” Head Track Coach Kevin Adkisson said. “The biggest hope is their health and that they are positively mentally prepared to display themselves.” 

Adkisson hoped to see some of his athletes atop the podium when it was all said and done. Specifically, he wanted to see if his players could overcome each of their individual challenges throughout the season. 

“It is going to be exciting to see if they can get on top of the podium, they have all had their own challenges [and] they worked through all season,” Adkisson said. “Each person has worked their tail off to get to this point, I am simply happy to be a part of the process.” 

Coming into the tournament, Austin Albertin led the conference in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 53.54 seconds. Johan Correa was looking for a title in the 800-meter dash, and his season-best time of 1:50.78 put him fourth in the conference.

Albertin came in second in the 400-meter hurdle, running a time of 53.05 seconds, a new Personal Record (PR). Albertin’s time is 42nd in the nation. Correa finished third in the 800-meter dash, clocking in at 1:51.44. 

Albertin spoke before the meet about his position on the team as a leader, and how he steps up to make sure his teammates believe in themselves. 

“We have all been working for this since July of last year, everyone has put their all into the process and worked their butts off,” Albertin said. “Me being a leader on the team, I just try and encourage my teammates to believe in themselves because they already put in the work.” 

Albertin said the team’s work ethic and grittiness helped the team work through the year, citing specifically a harsh winter. 

“I feel like nobody works harder than us, we were always battling through adversity, even through the tough winter where it was too cold to practice,” Albertin said. “We never complained, we just came together and worked through it.”