Brooks-Johnson
Tallies a PR Day at Pac-12 Combined Events Championships
May 5, 2018
/ Track & Field
From WSU
Sports Info
STANFORD,
Calif. -- Washington State's Alissa Brooks-Johnson is the women's heptathlon
leader after the first day of the Pac-12 Combined Events Championships Saturday
at Cobb Track and Angell Field in Stanford.
Brooks-Johnson,
a redshirt senior from Doty, Wash., reached a lifetime-best first day
heptathlon total of 3,568 points, 168 points above her previous PR and five
points ahead of the next competitor, Kendall Gustafson of UCLA.
A two-time
Pac-12 heptathlon champion (2015 and 2017) and 2017 All-American,
Brooks-Johnson opened the 2018 conference meet by running the 100m hurdles in a
PR time of 13.68 seconds which is sixth-best in WSU all-time records. She high
jumped a PR height of 5-feet 8 1/2 inches (1.74m), threw the shot put a PR
distance of 41-2 1/4 (12.55m), and ran the 200m in a wind-aided PR time of
24.40. Brooks-Johnson's previous first day PR total was 3,400 points, set last
month in Azusa.
Lindsey
Schauble, a junior from Kennewick, Wash., scored a first day lifetime-best of
2,989 points for 10th place among the 15 competitors. Schauble opened the
heptathlon with a season-best 100m hurdles time of 15.01, high jumped 5-5
(1.65m), threw the shot put a PR distance of 35-4 3/4 (10.79m), and finished
the day with a 200m dash time of 26.28.
Freshman
Martin Moldau (Rakvere, Estonia) ran the 100m in a time of 11.27, long jumped
21-1 1/4 (6.43m), and threw the shot put 39-3 (11.96) but withdrew from the
competition when he became ill and could not continue in the high jump or 400m
dash.
Heptathlon
competition continues at Stanford Sunday beginning at 11:45 a.m.
::::::::::::::::::::
Cougars Drop
Series-Opener to No. 3 Oregon State
From WSU
Sports Info
PULLMAN,
Wash. – Washington State dropped the series-opener to No. 3 Oregon State 17-3
in front of a season-high 1,484 fans at Bailey-Brayton Field Friday evening.
Washington
State (14-24, 6-13 Pac-12) received two hits from James Rudkin who recorded a
two-run double in the second inning and Robert Teel homered in the ninth.
Oregon State improved to 34-7 overall and 13-6 in league play after recording
20 hits and received 11 strikeouts from starter Luke Heimlich.
In the
second inning, both teams traded runs as OSU scored twice on an RBI-single and
another run came across on a double play groundout. The Cougars answered with a
two-out two-run double from Rudkin down the left field line that landed just
fair and off the glove of a diving Oregon State left fielder. Ryan Ramsower and
JJ Hancock both scored on the play after recording singles earlier in the
inning.
In the
fifth, OSU pushed three runs across on wild pitch and two-run single for a 5-2
advantage. The Beavers added two more in the sixth on a two-run homer before
putting the game away with seven runs on eight hits in the seventh inning.
In the
ninth, Teel launched a solo shot to left for his second home run of the season.
COMING UP
The series
continues Saturday at 5 p.m.
(Update from
News for CougGroup Central, WSU lost game on Friday by 9-1 score.)
::::::::::::::::::::::::
WSU FOOTBALL
From worst
to first, ranking the 12 teams on Washington State’s 2018 schedule
UPDATED:
Thu., May 3, 2018, 8:27 p.m.
By Theo
Lawson Spokane S-R
Washington
State could see a College Football Playoff finalist this fall. It could also
see a Mountain West Conference bottom-feeder. And the Cougars will probably see
everything in between. On the toughness scale, it shouldn’t get any harder than
the Washington Huskies or any easier than the San Jose State Spartans. We take
a brief look at each of their 2018 opponents and rank them by degree of
difficulty, starting with the Spartans and concluding with the Huskies.
San Jose
State (last season: 2-11) – Even though the Spartans snagged a win from the
other Mountain West team on this list, their 11 losses came by an average of 32
points. Furthermore, both of the quarterbacks that split time for SJSU – Montel
Aaron and Josh Love – threw more interceptions (17) than they did touchdowns
(13). Frank Ginda, the only Spartan to earn first-team All-MWC honors last
year, has graduated. Grade: F
Oregon State
(last season: 1-11) – Jonathan Smith has kept a perfect record against the
Cougars the past four years, but that could change as the former Washington
offensive coordinator enters his first season as Oregon State’s coach. Smith
was the right hire, or so it seems, but the Beavers will be just six games into
their rebuild when they host the Cougars at Reser Stadium. Presumed starting QB
Jake Luton hasn’t taken a snap since the horrific injury in Pullman last season
and the Beavers need to replace hard-nosed running back Ryan Nall. Grade: D
Eastern
Washington (last season: 7-4) – Gage Gubrud returns as one of the most polished
and accomplished FCS signal-callers in the country and his first career start
isn’t lost on WSU fans. Gubrud completed 34 of 40 passes for 474 yards and five
touchdowns, also rushing for 77 yards and another TD in a win over the Cougars.
Granted, Gubrud also had two NFL wideouts by his side then. The Eagles have
weapons, just not the same kind they had the last time they took a bus to
Pullman. The defense has lots to solve after giving up 36 points per game in
2017. Grade: C-
Wyoming
(last season: 8-5) – Craig Bohl has built Wyoming for the long term, so even if
the Cowboys lose a potential franchise NFL quarterback in Josh Allen, there’s
enough returning that would lead you to believe Wyoming could play in its third
straight bowl. Still, quarterback is a pretty sizable question mark at this
point and if there were questions about Allen’s accuracy in 2017, his backup
Nick Smith, was even worse in limited playing time. Grade: C
Colorado
(last season: 5-7) – The Buffaloes are losing plenty of firepower on both sides
of the ball: on offense, one of the nation’s underappreciated running backs,
Phillip Lindsay (1,474 rushing yards in 2017), plus standout receiver Bryce
Bobo; on defense, blazing-fast cornerback Isaiah Oliver, who was CU’s only 2018
NFL Draft pick. Quarterback Steven Montez has proven he can be flashy, but one
of his worst days came last season on a wet night in Pullman. Grade: C
Cal (last
season: 5-7) – The record wouldn’t indicate it, but 2017 was actually pretty
successful for the Golden Bears in year one of the Justin Wilcox era. Cal lost
two games by three points to close the year – winning one would’ve made the
Bears bowl-eligible. Ross Bowers showed moxie in a decisive win over the
Cougars last year and he had two receivers, Vic Wharton III and Kanawai Noa,
emerge as the season progressed, catching 123 passes for 1,659 yards when all
was said and done. And that doesn’t include his top pass-catcher, Demetris
Robertson, who was hurt most of last year. Grade: C+
Utah (last
season: 7-6) – If there’s anything you can bet on in the Pac-12, it’s that Utah
coach Kyle Whittingham will find a way to get the Utes to the postseason – he’s
done it 12 times in 14 years. Utah should shoot a bit higher than that this
year, with electric junior QB Tyler Huntley back under center. Junior running back
Zack Moss marched for 1,200 yards on the ground last year, but the Utes have to
replace the 106 catches, 1,511 receiving yards and 10 touchdowns left by
leading receivers Darren Carrington and Raelon Singleton. Grade: B-
Oregon (last
season: 7-6) – Oregon is a curious case. A new coach, Mario Cristobal, takes
over after the Willie Taggart era ended 363 days after it began. So in one
sense, the Ducks are in a transitional phase, losing Taggart, star running back
Royce Freeman, all-conference offensive tackle Tyrell Crosby and a few others.
On the other hand, there should be enough continuity in Eugene to keep things
rolling. Cristobal was one of Taggart’s top assistants, so not much will change
schematically. More important, UO has one of the country’s rising quarterbacks
in junior Justin Herbert. Grade: B-
Stanford
(last season: 9-5) – The Cardinal may be four or five spots higher on this list
had Heisman finalist running back Bryce Love elected to come out of school
early. Four of Love’s teammates are headed to the NFL, though, and Stanford
still has a conundrum at quarterback, where K.J. Costello and Keller Chryst
split time last year – neither playing the position much better than the other.
Still, the Cardinal always find ways to rebuild on defense and the offensive
line, and if Love can exceed the 2,000-yard barrier again, Stanford should at
least be a silver medalist in the Pac-12 North. Grade: B+
USC (last
season: 11-3) – In the land where future NFL quarterbacks seem to fall off
trees, USC’s top priority this offseason naturally is replacing the third overall
pick of last week’s draft: Sam Darnold. The Trojans’ track record tells us it
won’t take too long, but whoever locks up the job – redshirt sophomore Matt
Fink, redshirt freshman Jack Sears and incoming freshman J.T. Daniels seem to
be the frontrunners – will have to produce without a few of the weapons Darnold
had at his disposal. Still, the Trojans have five All-Pac-12 players returning
to their defense and should find their way back to a good bowl game. Grade: B+
Arizona
(last season: 7-6) – Next to Love, Arizona’s Khalil Tate is the next-best
chance at bringing a Heisman home to the Pac-12 for the second time in five
years. Tate’s first six games (1,207 rushing yards, 11 TDs) were notably better
than his last three (118 yards, one TD) and Arizona went as he went, winning
five of Tate’s first six starts and losing his last three. If first-year coach
Kevin Sumlin can find a way to lessen the load of his high-motored QB and
simultaneously improve a defense that gave up 34 ppg last year despite boasting
individual talent at a number of positions, the Wildcats could find their way
back to the conference title game. Grade: A-
Washington
(last season: 10-3) – Years 1-4 of the Chris Petersen era in Seattle netted 37
wins compared to 17 losses. If the Huskies can get over a big hurdle the first
week of the season, 2018 could be their best season yet. Even though UW shipped
five players off to the NFL last weekend, the Huskies return unarguably the
best backfield in the Pac-12 – perhaps the nation – with quarterback Jake
Browning and running back Myles Gaskin. The Huskies lose the league’s best
defensive player from a year ago, but they bring back six players who collected
all-conference accolades. It’s a long season, but UW might be well on its way
to the College Football Playoff if it can steal a win from Auburn in Atlanta on
Sept. 1. Grade: A+
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