Sophomore Jane Larson celebrated an anniversary her own way.

While the Mt. SAC Relays in Long Beach, Calif., held its 50th running on Friday, the SPU sophomore held her own and came out on top in the women's 1,500-meter run.

Fellow sophomore Lisa Anderberg said that Larson had a good kick and moved up on the last lap to duke it out with the top runners.

Larson's final time of 4:28.08 was only 0.24 seconds slower than her season-best time, and she holds the second-best Division II time in the nation.

Anderberg also ran well in the 800-meter run, placing seventh overall in a final time of 2:12.52.

"It was exciting to finally drop my time significantly," Anderberg said. "I went from shaving off tiny increments to taking off one and a half seconds, which is a lot in the 800."

She added that the sunny weather was deceptive; she had a good run but did not realize it until afterwards when she saw the time.

Nearby, freshman Melissa Peaslee placed sixth in the pole vault, jumping 12-1 1/2.

"I was a little disappointed [with the performance], but I've learned to take it as it comes," Peaslee said.

Peaslee also said that the weather, very different from the overcast Seattle atmosphere in which the Falcons train, affected those who went to California.

"The sun really drains your energy. It took a lot of work to stay out of the sun and to remain hydrated," Peaslee said.

Juniors Lauren VerMulm and Jeeni Schantin captured the fourth and fifth spots in the javelin competition, respectively.

Head coach Karl Lerum said that the 50th running of the Mt. SAC was ideal for previewing the site of nationals, and that he was impressed with the athletes who made the trip.

"Our kids came in and did well," he said.

Meanwhile, others on the team made the journey to Bellingham, Wash., on Saturday to take part in the Spike Arlt Invitational, where SPU took fourth as a team with 70 points.

For the men, senior Michael Gavareski and sophomore Chad Meis claimed a one-two finish in the 800, clocking in at 1:59 and 2:00.1, respectively.

In the 1500, senior Brian Cronrath came out victorious, running the distance in nearly four minutes (4:01).

Sophomore Justin Felt took second in the long jump with a mark of 22 1/4 and is now aiming for the personal goal of a seven-meter leap.

"I'm close, but I haven't quite hit it yet," Felt said. "7.05 is the provisional [national qualifying] mark, so I'm going to try for that."

On the women's side, senior Karin Rohde came out victorious in the steeplechase, in a time of 11:08.5, nine seconds better than her previous provisional qualifying time. She capped off the day with a victory in the 800.

Junior Suzie Strickler and sophomore Kayti Krepel took second and third in the 1500, and freshman high jumper Jacquie Mattson leaped into second place with a height of 4-11.

Three Falcon women remained behind in Ellensburg to take part in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) Multi-Events, a heptathlon event.

Freshmen Brittany Aanstad and Jennifer Pike finished third and fourth, respectively.

Aanstad gained 4,083 points overall and a first-place victory in the javelin. Pike grabbed a first-place as well in the 800, clocking in at 2:26.83.

Junior Brittany Bekins also participated in the heptathlon competition, but an injury in the second event forced her to drop out.

Now with seven days of split competition, the Falcons will be splitting up once again to go to two different meets: the Oregon Invitational in Eugene and the Western Washington Twilight meet in Bellingham.

After that, it's back to Ellensburg for the GNAC championships.

In terms of the future of their season, the track team is looking to win conference and place in the top eight teams at nationals, Peaslee said. Personally, she wants to be the conference champion in the pole vault and place in the top eight nationally on an individual level.

Speaking for the men, Felt said, "Brian and Chad, and me, too, have a chance to make provisionals. We're definitely going to try in these last few meets we have left."