SPOKANE, Wash. - Whitworth College heads into this weekend's Northwest Conference Track & Field Championships with high hopes of placing near or at the top of the team standings. The meet will run on Friday and Saturday at the University of Puget Sound in Tacoma, Washington.

Howell is the top seed in the 800 meter run

Click here for the championship website. The website includes event schedules, directions to the meet location and will also host results as they become available.

The Pirate men, who finished fifth last season, have a chance to challenge for the NWC team title. Led by a pair of talented middle-distance runners, the Bucs have high seeds spread throughout the event schedule. The men's meet appears wide open, with defending champion Willamette and Linfield also in the hunt for a title.

Brandon Howell, who broke a 42 year old school record last Saturday, heads into the meet as the top seed in the 800 run and the second seed in the 400 dash. Emmanuel Bofa is the third seed in the 800 and the fourth seed in the 400, giving Whitworth ample opportunity to score points in those two events.

Two other Pirate men are also top seeds in their events. Ben Spaun, who finished third in the NWC decathlon last week, is the top seed in the 110 high hurdles and also the third seed in the 400 hurdles. Freshman Cody Stelzer, who became Whitworth's first ever Indoor Track & Field All-American in March, is the top seed in the high jump.

Freshman Jeff Kintner will lead a strong group of throwers. He is seeded second in the discus and third in the shot put. Kory Kemp, who has posted a provisional qualifying mark already this year, is the fourth seeded javelin thrower.

Kristin Dormaier will compete in five events

The Whitworth women hope to match or improve on last season's third place team finish. Defending champion Willamette looks like a strong favorite to repeat based on seeding in the NWC top marks list.

Kristin Dormaier, who has already scored eight team points for the Pirates with her runner up finish in the NWC Heptathlon last week, has a full schedule ahead of her. She is scheduled to compete in both the 100 and 200 dashes, the triple jump, long jump and high jump. She is a strong favorite to final in all five events.

Suzy Viducich is the third seed in the high jump, while Mara Daugs is the fourth seed in the triple jump. Jenna Hays and Katherine Lane are tied for fifth in the pole vault and Hays is also the sixth seed in the 400 hurdles. Freshman Jo E Mayer has a chance to score highly in both the 5,000 and 10,000 meter runs.