Gymnast Darian Burns wins national title
Seattle Pacific junior Darian Burns won her second national title in the all-around competition at the USA Gymnastics Collegiate Championships. Burns racked up 39.225 points for her four events on April 12 at the Wheeler Recreation Center in Bridgeport, Connecticut. It included a 9.825 on both the vault and the uneven parallel bars, a 9.725 on the balance beam, and a 9.850 on the floor exercise. In the individual finals two days later, Burns finished second on the vault and floor, and tied for sixth on the bars. Burns is the fifth SPU gymnast to win a national all-around championship. It was the fifth USAG crown of Burns’ career; as a freshman, she shared the gold medal on the floor exercise.
Men’s basketball team in NCAA Tournament
The SPU men won the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Tournament in March, giving the Falcons an automatic berth in the NCAA West Regional. They won their first game and lost the second game of the regional semifinals. Their season ended with a 22-7 record, including a 13-game winning streak.
SPU earns NCAA Presidents’ Award for Academic Excellence
SPU is one of more than a dozen NCAA Division II schools that has been presented with a 2018 Presidents’ Award for Academic Excellence by the NCAA. This prestigious honor is bestowed to athletics departments whose student-athletes achieve a four-year academic success rate of 90% or higher. Seattle Pacific is one of five schools with a 97% ASR. Only a select number — 11 in all — have received the Presidents’ Award for each of the eight years it has been presented. During that period, Seattle Pacific has maintained its 97% ASR.
Women’s rowing earns national ranking, championship berth
The SPU women’s rowing team was ranked #4 in NCAA Division II schools. Their season performance earned them a spot in the six-team NCAA Division II Women’s Rowing Championships field, held May 31 to June 2 in Indiana. The Falcons were joined by top-seeded Central Oklahoma, the defending national champion, along with Florida Tech, Jefferson, UC San Diego, and Western Washington. The rowers finished fourth in every category at their national appearance.
Top-15 finish at the NCAA Championships for Women’s Cross Country
Seattle Pacific freshman Kaylee Mitchell raced to an All-American 35th place finish, and the Falcon women were 15th in the team standings at the NCAA Division II Cross Country Championships in December. By placing in the top 40, Mitchell became the 17th cross country All-American in school history. It was the second straight top-15 finish for the team.