The gang’s all going there. Seattle Pacific University and eight other men’s and women’s track and field teams will converge on Ellensburg Saturday (May 7) with the expressed purpose of winning team and individual titles at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships. The Falcons are seeking their fourth women’s crown and their first since 2002. The last chance to qualify for the NCAA Division II Championships will be the May 14 Ken Foreman Invitational hosted by SPU at Husky Stadium.

Nuts and bolts. In addition to being a top contender for the women’s overall prize, Seattle Pacific also boasts the top qualifiers in nine events, and the men have No. 1 marks in three. SPU is seeking to wrest the GNAC women’s trophy from Western Oregon which has won it the past two years, by margins of three and 16 points. The Falcons are the reigning indoor champions. The men aim to improve on sixth-place finishes the past couple years. Also joining the fray are Alaska Anchorage, host Central Washington, Humboldt State, Northwest Nazarene, Saint Martin’s, Seattle University and Western Washington. The meet begins at 10 a.m. in Tomlinson Stadium.

Multiple threats. Coach Jack Hoyt has several people capable of scoring more points than entire teams. Danielle Ayers-Stamper (Jr., LaCrosse, Wa.), owner of the top heptathlon score in the nation, totaled 43 points while competing in five events at the conference meet during her freshman season. This time around she’s entered in six. It was the absence of Ayers-Stamper last year and Laura Widman in ‘03 (both due to injuries) which left the Falcons short of the championship. When they last won it, another heptathlon All-American, Stephanie Huffman, scored 50 points by herself. Joining Ayers-Stamper as individuals with at least three individual entries are Kelsey Cooley (Fr., Missoula, Mt./Hellgate) and Linda Blake (Jr., Richland, Wa.), who finished second and fourth in the GNAC heptathlon.

Chart toppers. Hoyt’s not relying only upon quantity; he’s got plenty of quality as well. Ayers-Stamper possesses the top qualifying mark in three events: 100-meter hurdles, high jump and long jump. She’s also among the top six in the shot put, javelin and 200, and a likely runner in each relay. Another solid title favorite is Karen Dickson (So., El Dorado Hills, Ca./Oak Ridge), who owns the league’s top times in the 5000 and 10,000. Dickson will double in the 1500 and 5k. Other top seeds for the women are Amy Harris (Jr., Corvallis, Or./Crescent Valley) in the pole vault, Lauren VerMulm (Fr., Mount Vernon, Wa.) in the javelin, Jennifer Marsh (So., Kirkland, Wa./Juanita) in the 800 and Kinyatta Leonhardt (So. Petaluma, Ca./St. Vincent) in the 400.

Small but strong. Similarly, the SPU men, although relatively few in number, figure to make a splash. If everyone is healthy, the Falcons could score close to 100 points, which would put them in contention for fourth place. They have top seeds in Paul Mach (Sr., Seattle, Wa./King’s), Ryan Jewell (Fr., Olympia, Wa./Olympia), in the 800 and 200, respectively, and they also own the No. 1 mark in the 1600 relay. Jewell will double in the 100 where he’s No. 3. For workhorses, NCAA decathlon qualifiers Chris Randolph (Jr., Lone Tree, Co./Denver Christian) and Jason Childress (Fr., Arlington, Wa.) are due to be deployed in four and three events. Randolph is ranked among the top five in the conference in the 400, 110 hurdles (not entered), high jump, long jump and discus. Childress was the runner-up in the GNAC decathlon last week.

Mach speed. Mach is on the march and going after his fifth career conference title. He won three consecutive 400 hurdles finals from 2001-03 and was the indoor 800 winner in ‘04. He’s also coming off a personal-best 800 and his fourth win at last week’s Western Washington Twilight. His time of 1:51.56 (an improvement of 1.27 seconds) pushed him up to 10th on the provisional qualifier list and ranks him No. 3 all-time at Seatte Pacific.

Bellingham rundown. Also at that meet, Ayers-Stamper threw for season-best marks in winning the javelin and shot put, and just missed qualifying for her fifth NCAA event. She came within 3 inches of the provisional standard in the javelin at 133-9. Her shot flew 38-10 1/4. She has already qualified in the heptathlon, long jump, high jump and 100 hurdles. Leonhardt coasted to victory in the 400 (58.49) and Marsh took the 800 (2:18.59). They then teamed with Jean Kolb (Jr., Eugene, Or./South Eugene) and Ayers-Stamper to win the 1600 relay (4:02.38). Running in her hometown, Karin Rohde (Fr., Bellingham, Wa./Mount Baker) was clocked in a career-best 10:31.53 in taking first in the 3000. Harris won the tiebreaker in the pole vault with a best clearance of 11-3 3/4. The other men’s win came from Randolph, who hit a season-best 50.47 in handily taking the 400.

Key matchups. In each of the past two seasons the women’s title has been decided in the last few events. If that’s the case this time around, eyes will be riveted on the outcome of the pole vault and 1600 relay, two late events. In the latter, Western Oregon and SPU own the top times, separated by less than 2 seconds. Elsewhere, the Falcons hold overall advantages in the races beyond 400 meters, high jump, pole vault and javelin (four of the top six marks in each of those field events). The Wolves are strong in the sprints and weight throws. WOU has won five straight men’s titles.

When you’ve got your health. Some key performers are expected to make their return from injuries this weekend. Sara Johnson (Sr., Kennewick, Wa.) is the defending champ and an All-American in the javelin, but has missed the last six meets with a muscle strain. VerMulm and Molly Hornbuckle (So., Burien, Wa./Highline), the No. 2 qualifier in the javelin, have not competed since mid-April. The men would be bolstered by the return of steeplechaser Doug Gibson (So., Yakima, Wa./Riverside Christian), ranked No. 2 in the GNAC. Gibson’s last race was April 8.

Medal detectors. In addition to Johnson, two others are defending titles Saturday. Tim LeCount (Sr., Battle Ground, Wa.) won the 5000 last season and Marsh prevailed in the 800, and led her team with 18 points a year ago by taking second in the 1500. Past winners also include Ally Studer (Sr., Redmond, Wa./Redmond) in the ‘03 pole vault and Ayers-Stamper, who claimed hurdles and long jump titles that season. Studer is No. 2 to Harris in this year’s field. Among those who are rated third or higher among the qualifiers are Kurt Engelson (Sr., Stanwood, Wa./Marysville-Pilchuck) in the 200, Victoria Perkins (So., Kent, Wa./Kentwood) in the steeplechase, Blake in the hurdles and high jump, Sharon Bjella (So., Everett, Wa./Everett) in the high jump and Monica Anderson (Fr., Bremerton, Wa./Bremerton) in the pole vault.

SPU Coaches. Jack Hoyt is now in his sixth season as head coach after succeeding the legendary Ken Foreman. His teams have won two outdoor conference titles and this year’s GNAC indoor crown. Hoyt is a former All-America decathlete at SPU and served as an assistant to Foreman for seven years. Heritage, the coach of cross country and track runners from 800 meters up, is a member of eight halls of fame for both athletes and coaches. Algerian Hart, former Long Beach State star, is in his third year as hurdles/sprints coach. Among the other assistants are Kelly LaBounty, a two-time Olympian in the heptathlon, and Laura Widman, a two-time All-America in the heptathlon.