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Pac-12 announces outdoor track & field athletes of the week

Apr 3, 2018

The Pac-12 Conference outdoor track and field athlete of the week honors for the week of March 26-April 1:

Men's Track Athlete of the Week
Sean McGorty, STANFORD
Senior
Fairfax, Va.

McGorty, competing in his first individual race indoor or outdoors this year, ran the fourth-fastest 1,500-meter run time by a collegian this year. His time of 3:40.57 was a personal best.

ALSO NOMINATED: Bailey Roth, ARIZONA; Garrett Corcoran, CALIFORNIA; Sam Prakel, OREGON; Robert Brandt, UCLA; Andrew Gardner, WASHINGTON; Chandler Teigen, WASHINGTON STATE.

Women's Track Athlete of the Week
Grayson Murphy, UTAH
Senior
Salt Lake City, Utah

Murphy improved on her No. 8 ranked all-time Conference mark in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, setting a school record and personal best by more than a second with a time of 9:51.36 to finish third in the event at the Stanford Invitational. The time is currently the best in the Pac-12 and third-best nationally for the 2017 steeplechase All-American.

ALSO NOMINATED: Kaitlyn Benner, COLORADO; Lilli Burdon, OREGON; Colette Richter, OREGON STATE; Abbie McNulty, STANFORD; Christina Rice, UCLA; Iman Brown, WASHINGTON; Alissa Brooks-Johnson, WASHINGTON STATE.

Men's Field Athlete of the Week
McKay Johnson, CALIFORNIA
Sophomore
Clovis, Calif.

Johnson moved into second place on California's all-time shot put list with a throw of 19.80 meters (64-11.5) on his final attempt at the Stanford Invitational. Johnson bettered his personal best by more than a foot to take second in the competitive Invite field and post the nation's fourth-best mark to date. Johnson also took third in the discus competition with an NCAA top-50 throw of 53.08 meters (174-2).

ALSO NOMINATED: Justice Summerset, ARIZONA; Austin Swanson, COLORADO; Jaak Uudmae, STANFORD; Justin Stafford, UCLA; Nick Ponzio, USC; Brock Eager, WASHINGTON STATE.

Women's Field Athlete of the Week
Ashlie Blake, UCLA
Junior
Las Vegas, Nev.

Blake threw the nation's top collegiate mark this year in the shot put at the Jim Bush Legends Invitational, unleashing a lifetime-best of 17.73 meters (58-2) to win the event. Her throw ranks as the No. 5 throw in UCLA history and is less than two inches shy of the Pac-12 all-time top 10. Blake also earned a second-place finish in the discus with a throw of 47.66 meters.

ALSO NOMINATED: Karla Teran, ARIZONA; Isabella Marten, CALIFORNIA; Elisa Grandemange, COLORADO; Destiny Dawson, OREGON STATE; Valarie Allman, STANFORD; Breana Jemison, USC; Jelani Heath, WASHINGTON; Molly Scharmann, WASHINGTON STATE.

Pac-12 in the USTFCCCA National Rankings (April 3)

Men's Top 25: #4 Oregon, #5 USC, #20 Stanford

The men of Oregon dropped from the top of the preseason ranking to No. 4, but are now joined in the top 5 by rival USC.

Women's Top 25: #2 Oregon, #4 USC, #12 Stanford, #14 Arizona State, #17 Colorado

The Pac-12 maintains the second-most teams in the women's national rankings with five, highlighted by reigning national champion Oregon and USC in the top 5.

Pac-12 on The Bowerman Watch List

Men's Post-Indoor: Rai Benjamin, USC; Michael Norman, USC.

Women's Post-Indoor: Kendall Ellis, USC; Maggie Ewen, ARIZONA STATE.

2018 Pac-12 Track & Field Athletes of the Week

  Men's Track Women's Track Men's Field Women's Field
March 20 Ricky Morgan Jr., USC Karolina Pahlitzsch, ARIZ Brock Eager, WSU Isabella Marten, CAL
March 27 Michael Norman, USC Twanisha Terry, USC Bryant O'Georgia, ARIZ Maggie Ewen, ASU
April 3 Sean McGorty, STAN Grayson Murphy, UTAH McKay Johnson, CAL Ashlie Blake, UCLA