Logan Mathieu
Eagle River’s Logan Mathieu officially opened his indoor season with a win in the 60 hurdles at the Bison Team Cup.
Mathieu, a junior at North Dakota State, picked up where he left off with notable marks to commence the season, after competing unattached in mid-December.
A four-time state champion while at Chugiak High, Mathieu tied his personal best of 6.93 seconds in the prelims of the 60-meter dash before roaring to the win in finals of the 60 hurdles, clocking 8.03 seconds for his second-quickest mark.
Currently, Mathieu is tied for fifth in program history for the 60 hurdles (8.00) and ranks just outside of the top 10 for the 60 dash. Outdoors, Mathieu ranks seventh in program history as a part of the 4×110 shuttle hurdle relay.
Also competing at the Bison Team Cup was teammate Olyvia Mamae, who competed in identical events.
Mamae, a six-time state champion while at East High, collected a pair of fourth-place showings.
In the 60 hurdles, Mamae lowered her collegiate best twice, running 9.30 seconds in the finals to erase her former mark set in mid-December. For the 60-meter dash, Mamae clocked a time of 7.97 seconds to finish just outside her personal best.
Sporting Lululemon for the first time, Eagle River’s Jordyn Bruce finished runner-up in the pentathlon at the Snake River Open.
Jordyn Bruce
A former state champion for the Wolves and program record holder in the pentathlon while at Illinois State, Bruce returned to form after forging paths into uncharted territory.
Last summer, Bruce placed runner-up in her decathlon debut in France and at the US Decathlon Champs, in addition to soaring to one of Alaska’s all-time marks in the pole vault (10 feet, 6 inches).
At the Snake River Open, Bruce got off to a strong start in the pentathlon, gapping the field in the 60 hurdles, running 8.65 seconds.
She continued her overall lead with a fifth-place showing in the high jump (5 feet, 2.25 inches) before narrowly being overtaken after placing fourth in the shot put (33 feet, 6 inches). Bruce continued to persevere despite only recording one attempt in the long jump (16 feet, 5 inches) and finishing runner-up in the 800 (2:25.91).
Bruce nearly closed the deficit, eventually placing runner-up with 3,543 points — a mere 31 points behind Weber’s State’s Kate Tueller.
The UW Indoor Preview yielded season-opening performances from at least a dozen Alaskans.
Palmer’s Sophie Wright led the charge after contesting the mile/800 double.
In the mile, the Western Washington junior finished fourth in her heat, running 5:00.56 to place 22nd overall, finishing as the second Division II athlete. While the time ranks just outside Wright’s lifetime best, she returned to the track a few hours later to place 11th in the 800, running 2:17.41.
Western Washington’s Sophie Wright leads the field in the mile at the UW Indoor Preview. Photo by John Decker
Also competing in the mile was Palmer’s Sofija Spaić of UAA, clocking 5:41.77 to collect a lifetime best, while Eagle River’s Addison Capozzi of Portland State competed in the 800, running 2:29.81.
Anchorage’s Kaitlyn Backman competed in the 400 (1:02.73), 200 (27.12) and ran a leg on the 4×400 relay for the green and gold.
The Seawolves were well-represented in the men’s sprints, with debuts from Anchorage’s Brian Morris and Eagle River’s Anders Larsen.
Morris, a three-time state champion while at East High, led UAA in the 200 (22.59) while also competing in the 60 (7.22) and running a leg on the 4×400 relay.
Larsen, a state champion while at Chugiak High, had a strong showing in the long jump (21 feet, 3.25 inches) catapulting to No. 7 in program history. The freshman also competed in the 60 hurdles (8.96) and running a leg on the 4×400 relay.
Other competitors for the Seawolves include Anchorage’s Ty Elliott in the mile (4:21.11), Palmer’s Felix Robertson in the 60 hurdles (9.18), Eagle River’s Morgan Grant in the 400 (53.26) and Anchorage’s Eric Bushnell in the shot put (35 feet, 9.5 inches).
Also competing at the UW Indoor Preview were Anchorage’s JR Zamora and Sitka’s Silas Demmert.
Zamora, a state champion while at West High, made his collegiate debut for Seattle University, contesting the long jump (19 feet, 11 inches), triple jump (39 feet, 6.5 inches) and 60 (7.17). All three marks rank just outside the program’s top-10 lists.
Demmert, a former Sitka High standout, made his indoor debut for Seattle Pacific. After competing in cross country in the fall, the freshman contended the 3,000 (9:14.96).
Micah Olsen
Lastly, Fairbanks’ Micah Olsen was one of the top eighth graders at the UCS Spirit National Pole Vault Summit.
Held in Reno, Nev., Olsen competed in just his fifth meet and second pole vault competition outside of Alaska.
After learning to pole vault in Fall 2022, Olsen drastically improved to become one of the nation’s best in his age group. Last summer, the Fairbanks native collected a runner-up finish at the Junior Olympics, soaring to 11 feet, 3.75 inches.
Now an eighth-grader, Olsen was one of the few middle schoolers at the National Pole Vault Summit which included more than 100 teams, placing eighth in his section vaulting 11 feet.
Of those whose grades appeared in the results, only four middle-school competitors vaulted higher than Olsen who competes for the Alaska Pole Vault Club.
Joining Olsen at the summit was Salcha’s Teslin Brannan, also of the Alaska Pole Vault Club.
Brannan, a senior who competes for Eielson High during the regular season, placed 19th in her section clearing 9 feet.
While the result may have been a far cry from her personal best of 10 feet, 6 inches, which ranks as the top mark in Alaska prep history and ties with Jordyn Bruce for the top-known mark in Alaska history, Brannan will likely get a few more chances at bettering the mark before graduation.
Other notable indoor track and field performances from Alaskans:
- Delta Junctions’ Hailey Williams opened her season at the Mondo College Invitational. The Duke senior finished tenth in the 60 (7.68).
- Fairbanks’ Shane Fisher collected a lifetime best at the Arkansas Invitational. The Little Rock freshman competed in the mile (4:21.56), improving by nearly 10 seconds.
- Anchorage’s Sebastian Szweda Mittelstadt ran to a personal best at the BYU Indoor Invitational, held at 4,600 feet elevation. The Westminster (Utah) senior shaved two seconds off in the mile (4:26.10), which converts to 4:20.88 at sea level.
- Eagle River’s Kiki Sherman collected a lifetime best and finished runner-up at the Ripon Alumni Duel Meet. The Ripon junior competed in the 800 (2:32.94), improving by 0.37 seconds.
- Fairbanks’ Caleb Petersen ran to a personal best at the Mondo College Invitational. The Belmont Abbey freshman competed in the 600 (1:29.47), improving by 0.33 seconds.