The UCSD men’s and women’s track and field teams bested a number of top-ranked rivals at a five-way team meet hosted by UC Riverside on April 10. The women’s team earned top honors while the men’s team finished third.
The Triton women finished first with 234 points, one point ahead of Southern Utah.
“The meet went well overall, with the women’s team winning and beating out several Division I teams, which was a surprise because several national qualifiers did not compete,” head coach Tony Salerno said.
The UCSD men finished third with 200 points, just two points behind second-place Southern Utah and 19 points behind first-place Cal Poly Pomona.
Freshman sprinter Elisa Holiday was a key standout on the women’s side, finishing first in the long jump and second in the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes.
Holiday has made considerable headway in her first year. Holiday’s jump of 18-2 1¼4 was three and a half inches better than her second-place opponent.
Holiday’s 100-meter time of 12.21 seconds and her NCAA Provisional-qualifying performance in the 200-meter dash of 24.89 seconds were both less than two-tenths of a second off the winning pace.
The Tritons won several other events, including the women’s high jump and women’s javelin.
High jumpers junior Kelsey Turner and sophomore Briana Hinga claimed first-place honors with their marks of 5-4 1¼4 in the high-jump pit.
Senior javelin thrower Michelle Beebe achieved a distance that was more than eight feet longer than the next competitor, hurling the javelin 132-3.
Freshman Matt Maybeno and sophomore Jon Patton secured nine points and the lead for the men’s side with their second-place finishes in the 100-meter and 200-meter dashes, respectively.
Senior Marcus Keller was the sole victor for the men’s team with his jump of 13.65 meters, good enough to win the triple jump. Keller also placed fourth in the long jump.
Sophomore Brad Libuit and senior Abel Aramburo each added an additional nine points for the Tritons. Libuit’s 171-9 throw earned him second place in the javelin event. Aramburo’s 153-3 mark in the discus also placed second.
“The most impressive thing was that the team went into a low-key meet after the Cal-Nevada Championships and was still successful against Division I foes,” Salerno said.
In addition to Cal Poly Pomona, Southern Utah and UC Riverside, Claremont College also competed against UCSD in the five-team meet in men’s and women’s events.
“The new national dual meet statistical results that placed UCSD as the No. 1 women’s Division II program and No. 2 in the men’s Division II program was also gratifying,” Salerno said.
UCSD men’s and women’s track and field will be back in action on April 16 when the team takes part in the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational at Claremont, Calif.
Following the event, the Tritons will return home to host the UCSD Triton Open on April 23 and April 24.
