May 24, 2007

FRESNO, Calif. -- Karley Kalinich gave it the perfect start.

Fresno Pacific University, host of the 56th Annual NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, could not have asked for a better opening moment than the one offered by its own Kalinich. The senior from Victorville, Calif., won the women's hammer, the first competition of the three-day championship meet, with a heave of 189' 8" and in the process became only the second Sunbird female ever to win an NAIA individual crown.

"This has been one of my dreams for a long time," said Kalinich who took the lead on her first throw and never relinquished it through the remaining competition. "It means the world (to me)."

Kalanich has had a long time to think about this moment. Last year, in the opening event of Fresno Pacific's first-ever hosting of the NAIA Track & Field Championships, a large crowd of supporters came to cheer on Kalanich, who fouled out on her first three throws and failed to advance to the finals.

"Last year I just fell apart," said Kalanich. "I let my nerves get the best of me. I was so angry. I was better mentally prepared today. I was confident coming in because I trained and mentally prepared. I'm normally a four-turner, but my coach and I worked on three turns to make sure it was consistent, that it would go down the middle, and that there weren't any ring fouls."

Indeed, this time there were no meet-ending fouls for Kalanich who record four throws over 187'. She becomes the first Sunbird to win an NAIA championship individual title since Nicole Munroe won the shot put in 1988.

Lynnae Fox of Black Hills State University (S.D.) was second at 176' 4", while Tawna Trial of Hastings College (Neb.) was third at 175' 1".

In the men's hammer, freshman Eric Flores of Black Hills State ran away from the competition, winning the event with a stadium record effort of 215' 0" to become the first Yellow Jacket ever to garner an NAIA throwing title. His winning performance, which came on his fourth of six throws, was the best mark in the NAIA hammer championship competition in ten years. Sophomore Greg Schultz of Concordia University (Ore.) was second, tying his own school record with a throw of 198' 5".

For the second consecutive year, a freshman won the women's javelin with rookie Liz Gleadle of the University of British Columbia taking the title this year on a throw that sailed 161' 8", a stadium record that broke Lauren Sexton's standard set last year when she won the event. Gleadle snagged the crown on her sixth and final throw, taking it away from Vanessa Warzecha of Morningside College (Iowa), who had led the competition since her opening throw but had to eventually settle for second at 148' 10". Kelly Stoltz of Oregon Tech was third at 146' 3", and Sexton of Concordia finished fourth with a throw of 145' 0".

"I am really excited that I was able to pull something out at the end," said Gleadle. "I think it is really great to start my university career by winning NAIAs. It is the goal of every athlete to come to NAIA and reach the top. It was really quite exciting."

Concordia's Jessie Gallaher was expected to defend her crown in the women's pole vault, but she was unable to do so after suffering a deep cut that required stitches on her hand when a pole broke during practice earlier this week. As a result of the injury, the door opened for a new champion, and freshman Kelsey Aide of Dickinson State University (N.D.) walked through with a season-best vault of 12' 9 ½", a 14-inch personal-record. Michelle Anderson of Concordia University (Neb.) was second with a leap of 12' 3 ½", edging four other vaulters who cleared the same height but had tallied more misses.

Junior Ruky Abdulai of Simon Fraser University (B.C.) won her third consecutive NAIA long jump championship with a jump of 21' 11 ¾". Abulai, who won last year's outdoor crown and then backed it up by winning the indoor version this past March, was in control of the competition throughout her six jumps. For the third straight meet, sophomore Anna Kay Campbell of Lindenwood University (Mo.) finished second to Abulai, though she did take the lead for a moment following her second jump which covered 20' 4 ½". However, Abdulai rallied on her third jump to re-take the lead, which she continually increased over her next three jumps before settling on her best mark on her final attempt.

Jeff Buller of Bethel College (Kan.) won the men's javelin competition with a throw of 216' 3", beating Oregon Tech's Steve Carter, who finished second at 209' 2".

In the 10,000 meters, Petrana Petkova, a senior out of Goshen College (Ind.) won the women's title with a thrilling finish. Petkova clocked a 36:27.01 and used a late sprint over the final 150 meters to hold off Grace Jepngetich of Vanguard University (Calif.), who ran a 36:27.81, and Samantha Modderman of Cedarville University (Ohio), who finished with a 36:27.81

Azusa Pacific's Aron Rono won the men's 10,000 to become the first person to win back-to-back 10K titles since James Bungei of Lubbock Christian University (Texas) accomplished a similar feat in 1991 and 1992. Rono ran a 30:47.25 to beat Noah Too of MidAmerica Nazarene (Kan.), who finished with a 30:49.37

"I had planned to run with Noah for the first five miles and then pull away," said Rono, "but he ran very well and stayed with me. Still, I wasn't too concerned because I really felt strong. It was important for me to win this because I have a goal of winning four 10Ks in four years."

In other opening-day competition, freshman Reid Gustavson of the British Columbia has grabbed the early lead in the decathlon with 3,809 points. He owns a 264-point advantage over second-place Brad Camble of Hastings (3,545). In the women's heptathon, Doane senior Katie Kosmos, last year's runner-up, holds a narrow lead over 2 other athletes after tallying 3,054 points. Kate Alderson of Point Loma Nazarene University (Calif.) is second with 2,963 points, while Zora Golcevska of Azusa Pacific University (Calif.) is third at 2,952 points.

After the first day of the three-day meet, host Fresno Pacific leads the women's competition with 15 points. Concordia (Neb.), Cedarville and Azusa Pacific are all tied for second with 11 points. Azusa Pacific paces the men's competition with 14 points while Bethel is second with 13 points followed by Black Hills State and Oregon Tech with 10 points, apiece.

For complete up-to-the-minute results of the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships go to CFPI Timing & Data. For more detailed information on the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, go to the NAIA website. For audio and video highlights of the meet, visit Fresno.edu/naia2007.