Track to take big bite out of Apple Meet

From 1972-2002, the UW men’s track and field team has lost to its WSU counterpart 28 times, track coach Greg Metcalf said. The trend, however, has since been reversed. UW heads to Pullman, Wash., tomorrow in hopes of bringing back an unprecedented fourth-straight win in the Apple Meet.

For the women’s team, it’s been back and forth for the last few decades, although WSU has won the meet the last three times. The women’s chance for winning would take “several minor miracles” due to lack of depth within the women’s team, Metcalf said.

“It’s a good old-fashioned track and field meet,” Metcalf said about the WSU dual meet. “[It’s] us versus them, and you kind of throw the marks out the window. It’s solely about competition, and it’s a lot of fun.”

Unfortunately for the Huskies, Pullman is a “notoriously tough place for [UW] to compete,” he said. “It’s going to rain, it’s going to be 55 [degrees], and it’s at a little bit of elevation.”

Such difficult climate conditions are not conducive for records or regional qualifying marks, but several Huskies could still achieve them anyway.

“We have a handful of guys that maybe haven’t been competing at the standard of their events the whole time,” Metcalf said.

The men who could achieve additional regional qualifiers at WSU include the 4-by-400 meter relay members Jordan Boase, James Fredrickson, Ryan Hamilton, and Joe Turner. Middle distance runners Brian Govier, Charlie Williams and Austin Abbott, sprinter Jeff Gudaitis, 400-meter hurdlers Miles Timpe and Kyle Still and pole vaulter Ryan Vu also have shots to achieve regional qualifiers.

All-American distance runner Amanda Miller and triple jumper Daria Amiad-Pavlov could also claim a spot in the regional championships.

“Hopefully, we’ll win an event this weekend, and in the process, get a regional mark as well,” Metcalf said.