McMinnville, OR - The Clark College track and field team opened the outdoor season with several standout performances at the Linfield Erik Anderson Memorial Icebreaker Invitational, hosted at Maxwell Field in McMinnville.

Competing against a field that included NCAA programs and regional community colleges, the Penguins delivered strong early-season marks across the sprints, hurdles, jumps, throws, relays, and distance events.

In all, Clark saw nine athletes earn NWAC auto qualifying marks, which guarantees each athlete a spot at the NWAC Track and Field Championships in May.  

Clark Sweeps the Men's Hurdle Events

The Penguins' strongest performances came in the hurdles, where Max Ensinger and Koynn Williamdyke led the charge.

Ensinger captured the 110-meter hurdles title, crossing the line in 15.28 to give Clark its first event win of the meet. Freshman Niel Valerio finished fourth overall with a time of 16.11 in his first ever high hurdle race. 

Williamdyke followed with another victory for the Penguins in the 400-meter hurdles, clocking 55.43 to take first place and establish one of the top early-season marks in the region. Ensinger finished second in the race to earn his second auto qualifying mark. For the women, Ilia Field finished third overall for one of the top finishes of the meet. 

Both Jumps Groups Shine

For the women, Nora Herinckx won the high jump by reaching 5'1.75" in the freshman's collegiate debut. The men saw their best performances come in the triple jump. Both Drayden Starke-Shaffer and Taeven Hill surpassed 44' to hit the NWAC auto qualifying standard. Hill added a qualifying mark in the long jump to his exceptional day as well. 

Mendoza Leads Sprints

Abigail Mendoza joined Ensinger and HIll on the men's as a double auto qualifier. The freshman ran 12.87 in the 100 and 26.47 in the 200 in spite of negative wind conditions. Chris Garnett was the top men's sprinter. The sophomore from Portland was top eight in both short sprinting events. 

Relay Team Closes Meet with Victory

Clark capped the meet with a strong performance in the 4×400-meter relay, where the Penguins' squad powered to first place in 3:25.79.

The relay team featured contributions from Koynn Williamdyke, Max Ensinger, Ian Ebinger, and Brandon Marin-Hardy, sealing a strong finish to the meet for the Penguins.

The Penguins will return to action next weekend at the Lane Open in Eugene, Oregon. 

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