UCSD track and field resumed action at the two-day California-Nevada Championships this weekend. The Tritons also attended the Aztec Track and Field Classic on March 23 following a two-week break from competition.
The annual Cal-Nevada Championships, hosted this year at Fresno State University’s Warmerdam Field, featured some of the top teams in California and Nevada, including Division I powerhouses UCLA, San Diego State University, Fresno State and Cal State Northridge.
The Triton women gave a solid effort, finishing 15th out of over 25 schools in the team standings with 10 points, but at a distance behind team-winner Cal State Northridge, which finished with 129.50.
Audrey Sung’s first-place 3,000-meter-run mark of 10:06.27 met the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II Championships qualifying time in the event. Kathy Read followed in at 12th with a time of 10:27.94 and Lindsey Stalker took 16th with a mark of 10:40.74.
In the field, Megan Bergin took 12th in the women’s hammer throw with a mark of 165’02”.
The men did not fare as well, finishing 22nd with four points out of over 25 squads.
The top showing on the day for the Tritons was Rob Ewanio’s sixth-place finish in the shot put with a distance of 57’02.75. Ewanio, who has already qualified for nationals in the shot put, would have qualified again with that mark.
Julian Nahan and Steve Martin finished 10th and 16th, respectively, in the 3,000-meter steeplechase, and rounding out the top performances was Jon Wong’s 11th-place finish in the 1500-meter run.
At the Aztec Track and Field Classic at San Diego State, a nonscoring meet that featured several professional clubs, the Triton track and field athletes had another successful outing despite combating cold, gusty weather.
Bergin qualified for the NCAAs in the women’s hammer throw and four UCSD athletes posted all-time top 10 school marks. Bergin, who posted a 154’2″” mark, bested the 150′ mark necessary for a preliminary qualification in San Angelo, Texas at the end of May.
Mary Peate’s 12:32.73 in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase was the third fastest time in UCSD history — good enough for fourth place on the day. In the women’s javelin, Lisa Caldwell earned the sixth-best mark in school history with her throw of 117’6″”.
Stalker ran a 4:45.33 in the women’s 1500 meters, finishing fifth on the day and sixth in the UCSD record books. Alison McGrane completed the record book with the 10th-best time in school history: a 2:19.78 in the 800-meter run.
The men’s competition featured strong outings by the Triton runners. In the 800 meters, the Tritons had a deep field competing, with Wong finishing third, Steve Smith finishing sixth, John Morrison finishing eighth and Brian Parisi finishing 16th.
UCSD dominated the results in the 3,000 meters as well, with Nahan finishing fourth, Martin finishing sixth, Neil Kalla finishing seventh, Erick Wackenstedt finishing eighth, Luke Sigmon finishing 11th and Lota Reichert taking 15th.
Ewanio turned in the most successful individual performance of the day for the men in the field, taking second in the shot put.
Strong marks were also turned in by Jeff Conkey in the 400 meters, Ryan Vincent in the high jump and Marcus Keller in the triple jump.
This weekend the Tritons head to Point Loma Nazarene University to take on the Crusaders, Azuza Pacific and Claremont College in a four-team meet before coming home for their first intercollegiate home meet next weekend, the UC San Diego Intercollegiate Invitational on April 13th.
