Zach Wilson/The Falcon Senior Karin Rohde competes in the 3,000-meter steeplechase in the Ken Foreman/Ken Shannon Invitational Saturday at Husky Stadium. She ran her season-best time, 10:54.73.

Fighting a chilly breeze that could have come straight out of March, senior Karin Rohde established herself as one of the top 10 steeplechase competitors in the nation.

The women's 3,000-meter steeplechase on Saturday at Husky Stadium, part of the combined Ken Foreman and Ken Shannon Invitationals, began with Rohde in the middle of the pack.

Her leggy stride carried her across the brick-red track, over the thick hurdles, and through the water obstacle as she paced herself to pull ahead later in the race.

With about 1,200 meters to go, she eased into third place and held the spot until the end.

Her fellow senior (and twin sister) Kaitlin Rohde and sophomore Joshua Jorgensen stood on the sidelines with recently retired head coach Doris Heritage, cheering her on as she splashed through the shallow waters of the obstacle.

The race was led all the way by 2,000-meter steeplechase record-holder Kelly Strong, a graduate of Arizona State University and a current University of Washington assistant distance coach, who was running for the Asics Company. Right behind her was Club Northwest's Sarna Becker, winner of the Sound to Narrows, a 12-kilometer cross country race, in 2006.

Both Strong and Becker ran faster than the course record time of 10:50.52, clocking in at 10:04.08 and 10:34.89, respectively.

Rohde crossed the line in 10:54.73, eight seconds better than her previous provisional national qualifying mark and enough to earn her a spot at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division II Championships in two weeks.

photo by Andy Towell Sophomore Justin Felt leaps forward during the long jump competition Saturday at the Ken Foreman/Ken Shannon Invitational in Husky Stadium.

The Great Northwest Athletic Conference (GNAC) took notice of Rohde's performance, naming her track athlete of the week.

Head coach Karl Lerum said that he was not surprised by Rohde's success.

"She has been getting better every week," he said, despite the class load that comes with being in the nursing program. "Her performance was inspirational."

For senior Brian Cronrath, along with the majority of the men's team, this was the last track and field meet of their season. And for Cronrath, it was the last of his collegiate career.

He finished third in the second heat of the men's 800-meter run, between SPU alumnus Eddie Strickler and sophomore Chad Meis. Cronrath's final time was 1:54.56, about half a second slower than Strickler and a second faster than Meis. His run also gave him the fourth-best GNAC time this season.

"I knew Eddie was racing, and I just wanted to stick with him," Cronrath said of his strategy.

Both Meis and Cronrath's times were season-bests. Senior Michael Gavareski, who ran in a different heat of the 800, came close to his own season-best time as well at 1:56.81 (8th in his section).

Gavareski said that the 800 was a crowded race and not conducive to getting good times.

Sophomore Justin Felt continued to dominate the long jump, winning with a mark of 22-3 1/2, his season-best distance.

Breaking her own GNAC season-best mark by a foot in the javelin was junior Jeeni Schantin, hurling it a distance of 151-5.

Lerum pointed out Schantin's performance as outstanding, saying that her peak performance is coming at just the right time.

Looking back on the season and the year as a whole, Lerum described it as exciting.

"We've had some serious ups and some disappointing downs, mostly due to injuries," he said.

One such injury is sophomore Jessica Pixler's stress fracture in her leg, which prevented her from competing this season and qualifying for any national events.

Last year, Pixler won the 1,500-meter in the NCAA Championships.

The Falcons take a weekend of rest before sending their best to Walnut, Calif., for the NCAA Championships.

"I don't expect anything but good races for all of them," Cronrath said.

According to Lerum the 3,000-meter steeplechase will feature two SPU athletes, Rohde and junior Suzie Strickler. Sophomore Lisa Anderberg will be competing in the 800, and Larson will run in the 3,000.

On the field side, Schantin, freshman Brittany Aanstad, and junior Lauren VerMulm compete for the javelin title.

Lerum explained that the national meet provides a clean slate for the competitors.

"It's all about who comes and competes on that day," he said. "No more PRs [personal records], no more season-bests. It's about stellar marks in the competition they get thrown into."