The UCSD track team displayed its strength in a striking, record-breaking performance at the annual All-Cal Challenge Cup track and field championships at UC Irvine. The team competed against UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Riverside and UC Santa Barbara, with several individuals garnering NCAA Championship provisional qualifying marks.
The UCSD women finished the competition second to UCSB, while the men’s side finished third, scoring 197 points and losing to UCI and UCSB.
“Being the only non-scholarship team as well as the only Division II team among Division I schools made our success today even more significant,” head coach Tony Salerno said.
The qualifying marks helped UCSD outperform and defeat many of the Division I opponents that competed at the event.
“I am proud of how all of our people competed against some tough Division I level competition,” Salerno said. “I can’t say enough about our performance across the board.”
The Triton women totaled 199 points, 54 points behind Division I rival UCSB and nine points ahead of UCI.
UC Davis and UC Riverside were far behind; they finished fourth and fifth at 154 and 146 points, respectively.
Sophomore Kaylin Siever of the triple jump event and senior Michelle Beebe, a javelin thrower, were event winners for the Tritons.
Junior Meredith Perry set a UCSD school record in the pole vault at 11 feet, 9.75 inches to take second place. In addition, Perry’s performance earned her an NCAA Championship provisional qualifying mark.
“Perry was the outstanding performer for the women today,” Salerno said.
Outranking UCSD on the men’s side were UC Irvine and UCSB, who came in first and second with 269.5 and 225.5 points, respectively.
UC Davis was fourth at 156 points, with UC Riverside a distant fifth with 99 points.
Senior steeplechaser Julian Nahan’s performance of 9 minutes, 22.40 seconds was an NCAA Division II provisional qualifying performance along with sophomore Mike Cunningham’s 400 hurdle mark of 53.20.
“Our athletes really took the program to a new level with their performances today,” Salerno said.
In track and field competitions, event winners and those scored in multiple events are always considered the standouts in a scoring meet.
“[Sophomore] Brad Libuit’s throw to win the javelin was a 16-foot personal record and came within a few inches of the school record,” Salerno said.
The coaching staff made sure the team was well-prepared, but also well-rested to ensure maximized results from its intensive training.
“We have been looking forward to this meet for quite a while, so we rested people in preparation for this one and made sure we deployed our people to score as effectively as possible,” Salerno said.
Expectations are high given the exceptional level of competition UCSD offered to a slew of Division I sister-school rivals.
While head coach Salerno predicts strong results, he also senses heightened competition from accomplished teams with diverse talents.
“The men should have a fairly successful meet on March 13 [against San Diego State] … [but] the women have it a bit tougher,” Salerno said.
Both the UCSD men’s and women’s teams will be back in action at the March 13 San Diego City Championships against a varied field of opponents, including Cal State San Marcos, Point Loma Nazarene and crosstown rival Division I San Diego State.
“They are a very good Division I-caliber team, but our depth may keep us close against them,” Salerno said about the Aztecs. “Our women’s team was just a few points away from beating them last year and we are a much better program this year than last.”
