GENEVA, Ohio – Pacific Lutheran University senior Bailey Forsyth earned All-American honors in both the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes on Saturday at the SPIRE Institute.  Forsyth placed third in the 100 (11.63) before taking fifth in the 200 (24.02) and completing a five-year Lute career as a six-time American and a two-time NCAA Division III national champion. 
 
"Oh man, I don't even know where to start," said Forsyth.  "It's all so overwhelming right now!  I knew it was going to be a fight to even get into finals. It's hard to not compare this season to last season, but it was a different year. I had a flawless 2021 season in every capacity. This year was a little different. I had a couple injuries, my training wasn't as solid as it was last year because of that, but I'm not trying to make excuses. I was out to prove that I still have it, I still belong in that All-American category, and that's what I did. I wasn't disappointed for a second, just so happy to be able to finish out my season healthy and competitive and among the top sprinters in the nation."

The defending national champion in both events, Forsyth qualified in third in the 100 on Friday and fifth in the 200 on Thursday.  The two-time Northwest Conference Track Athlete of the Meet smashed her previous personal record of 11.80 on Saturday, which she set in finals of last season's national championship. 

"I'm beyond proud of the way Bailey was able to compete," said PLU Sprint Coach Marqui Makupson. "She will forever be one of the best competitors that I'll ever have the pleasure of coaching. As returning national champion, there was a lot of pressure that she felt throughout the year and then an injury in the middle of the season. She showed more grit then ever this weekend. I am going to miss the way she showed up to practice, showed up to races, and how often her desire to compete was matched by incredible performances. Bailey is the most decorated athlete I have ever coached and that may be the case forever. I'm going to miss her, I'm going to miss her tenacity and all the special moments throughout her track career!"

The Lute women's team totaled 20 points.  Forsyth scored 10 with her third and fifth-place finish, while Ava Nelson's national championship in the javelin brought in 10.  PLU finished ninth last season and tied for 12th this weekend. 
 
Making his first appearance in the national championship meet, Ryan Stracke outperformed his No. 14 seed by finishing in 11^th in the 5,000-meter run. 

"Ryan had a great race in his first appearance at nationals," said PLU Head Coach Adam Frye. "He ran relaxed through the early and middle part of the race to set himself up for a strong finish. It was exciting to see him improve on his ranking coming in. This is valuable experience for national meets in the future and caps a special season for Ryan."