TACOMA, Wash.—Freshman Malia Heien won the final event of the heptathlon to earn All-Conference honors and both Lewis & Clark College men's and women's track & field finished with seven team points at the conclusion of the 2023 Northwest Conference Multis Events Championships. 
 
THE BASICS
 
Heptathlon 
Malia Heien – 3^rd out of 9 competitors – 4,051 Points 
Olivia Farrar – 8^th out of 9 competitors – 3,201 Points
 
Decathlon 
Jonathan Fritz – 5^th out of 11 competitors – 5,777 Points
Nick Stade – 6^th out of 11 competitors – 5,769 Points 
 
HEPTATHLON 
 
Heien and sophomore Olivia Farrar combined to set six PRs on Tuesday as part of a big Day 2 for the Pioneers. 
 
The Pioneers duo opened the day with the long jump. Heien posted the first of her four PRs of the day with a leap of 5.10m (16-08.75 feet) to finish in a tie for second. Farrar placed seventh with a jump of 4.55m (14-11.25 feet). 
 
Heien tacked on a second PR in the javelin. Her throw of 22.55m (73-11 feet) ranked eighth. Farrar came in just behind Heien, when she launched the javelin 18.98m (62-03 feet). 
 
Heien made up a ton of ground in the seventh and final event of the competition. She crushed the field in the 800m by over 15.5 seconds to moved up from fifth to third. Her time of 2:17.27, a new PR mark, earned her 861 points. Farrar added a PR of her own in the 800m, as she crossed the line in fifth place with a time of 2:39.49. 
 
Both competitors posted a new career-high in points. Heien finished with 4,051 points – just six shy of George Fox University's Elisabeth Jensen-who came in to the day with a 290-points lead over Heien. Farrar finished with 3,201 points to finish 700 hundred points ahead of the 9^th-place finisher. With their finishes, Heien took home six points for the Pioneers and Farrar grabbed one. Heien earns All-Conference accolades in the event after finishing in the top-three. 
 
DECATHLON 
 
Freshmen Jonathan Fritz and Nick Stade each posted PRs by over 200 points in the decathlon to combine for seven team points in the event. The pair combined for seven PRs on the day with Stade logging five as part of a strong day two. 
 
The decathlon resumed with the 110m hurdles. Both athletes got off to a good start to the day. Fritz posted a time of 16.05 to finish third and Stade came in just behind him in fourth with a PR time of 16.13. 
 
Fritz added his second-straight top-three finish and fifth in the first seven events in the discus. His heave of 34.65m (113-08 feet) was good for third place. Stade came in seventh, when he launched the discus 29.19m (95-09 feet). 
 
Stade took fourth place in the pole vault, when he cleared 3.97m (13-00.25 feet). Fritz dealt with his worst result of the two days, when he placed 12^th with a jump of 2.87m (9-05.00 feet). 
 
Fritz bounced back in a huge way in the javelin throw. The freshman took second place with a heave of 47.54m (155-11 feet). Stade ended the event in ninth with his best throw traveling 34.80m (114-02 feet). 
 
In the final event of the day, Stade finished third overall with a time of 4:50.85 in the 1,500m. Fritz placed 10^thwith a mark of 5:16.40. 
 
Despite drastically different results to end the day, the pair finished within eight points of each other. Fritz who had been sitting second or third through the first seven events, bounced back from the pole vault (when he fell to seventh) to finish in fifth place and earn four points (5,777 points). Stade who fell to as low as ninth on day one and was seventh heading into the final event, moved up to sixth after the final event (5,769 points) to take home three points. 
 
BY THE NUMBERS

• Heien's time of 2:17.27 was a 0.60 second improvement from her PR time she set on Friday night at the John Knight Twilight Meet. The time earned her 861 points – which was the most points any athlete (male or female) scored in a single event at the NWC Multis Events.
• Stade (289 points) and Fritz (269 points) each posted huge PRs in the decathlon. Fritz is now eighth in program history in the event and Stade sits ninth. 
• Heien became the fifth woman to post over 4,000 points in the heptathlon in program history. She now sits fourth overall in program history after improving her PR score by 83 points. Farrar posted a PR score by 32 points and sits 17^th in program history. 
• Stade posted PRs in four of the five events (110m hurdles, discus, javelin and 1,500m) on Tuesday. 
• With her mark in the long jump, Heien moved into a tie for 11^th in program history in the event (5.10m). 
• Stade now sits 26^th in program history in the 110m hurdles (16.13).  

WHAT'S NEXT 
 
Lewis & Clark track & field will host the Larry Byerly Invite on Friday (Clackamas C.C.) and Saturday (Eldon Fix Track) in their final meet before the 2023 Northwest Conference Championship Meet.