Stanford Track and Field: Cardinal Takes Home 6 Pac-12 Titles

First up for Stanford in their spring postseason route came the Pac-12 Championships up north in Seattle at the University of Washington.

The Cardinal took home six respective titles, including its first men's 4*400m relay championship since 1954.

That winning squad of Harrison Williams, Frank Kurtz, Isaiah Brandt-Sims, and Jackson Shumway, consisting of not a single competitor in the individual 400m, combined to run a time of 3:08.13s. Chris Miltenberg, Stanford's Franklin P. Johnson Director of Track and Field, told the team afterward, take encouragement from winning the events that Stanford is not "supposed" to win.

The women's 4*400m team of Gaby Gayles, Michaela Crunkleton Wilson, Claudia Saunders, and Olivia Baker placed second with a time of 3:36.19s.

Darian Brooks, won his third consecutive men's triple jump title with a 51' 11 ¾", being the first in conference history to ever do so, and doing so in his hometown as well. Valarie Allman won her second consecutive women's discus title, throwing a 188' 11". Both of her titles stand as the university's only crowns in that event. Allman also contributed a few points in the hammer throw, finishing second with a 194' 5".

Elise Cranny won the 1500m in 4:17.72s, with fellow sophomore Rebecca Mehra finishing right behind in 4:18.38. Olivia Baker, the NCAA leader in the 800m, took the 400m gold in 53.2s—the school's first since 2006. She went out a bit slow, and managed to out-kick USC's Kendall Ellis in the final 20 meters.

Mackenzie Little earned Stanford its fifth consecutive conference title in the women's javelin, tossing a 176' 2".

The men finished 6th as a team with a score of 74, while the women had a better showing with a 90-point 3rd place finish. These six titles serve as the most the team has taken home since their six in 2005.

Besides the title winners, there were numerous other recognizable performances. In the 1500m, senior and Pac-12 Scholar-Athlete award winner Justin Brinkley took fourth in 3:40.31s and Sean McGorty finished right behind in 3:40.74s. Steven Fahy finished sixth in the 3K steeple with an 8:46.69s. Stanford took fourth and fifth in the 10K, Jack Keelan (29:13.92s) and Garrett Sweatt (29.15.67s) respectively. Dylan Duvio tied for second in the pole vault with a 17' 4 ½".

On the women's side, Danielle Katz finished sixth in the 3K steeple in 10:11.11s and Vanessa Fraser took fourth in the 10K at 33:55.99s.

The Cardinal will now have some time to recover, in preparation for NCAA Western Regionals hosted by Kansas University on Thursday May 26th through Saturday the 28th.