Cal Hosts 116th Renewal of Big Meet vs. Stanford

Courtesy Cal

THIS WEEK IN CAL TRACK & FIELD: California hosts the annual Big Meet
Saturday when the Stanford Cardinal visits Edwards Stadium. The men will be
facing off against each other for the 116th time, while the Cal and Stanford
women meet for the 31st consecutive year.

The Golden Bears will be looking to break into the win column for the first time
since 2006, as the Cardinal has swept the competition each of the last three
seasons. Last spring, the Stanford men edged Cal, 83-80, in a meet that wasn’t
decided until the next-to-last event, while the Cardinal women prevailed, 92-71.
Overall, Cal leads the men’s race, 66-47-2, and Stanford holds a 20-10
advantage on the women’s side.

The field events begin with the women’s hammer at 10:30 a.m., while the
running events are scheduled to start at 1:05 p.m. The meet will conclude with the
men’s 4x400-meter relay at 4:45 p.m. There will also be a ceremony to honor
graduating seniors at 3:55 p.m.

BIG MEET STREAKS: Both Cal and Stanford have put together some impressive
runs against their Bay Area opponents in the history of the Big Meet. The longest
streak lasted from 1972-96 when the Cal men won 25 Big Meets in a row. The
Stanford men claimed 11 straight from 1924-34 and are currently on a three-meet
roll since Cal’s last victory in 2006. On the women’s side, the series was even
through 2000 with the Bears and Cardinal tied at 10 wins each. However,
Stanford has not lost to Cal since that 2000 event, having taken 10 straight.

MORRISON POSTS NO. 5 DECATHLON MARK AT CAL: In his first decathlon
effort of the season, junior Mike Morrison finished second to Oregon’s Ashton
Eaton at the Texas Relays April 1, putting up a total of 7,557 points that ranks as
the fifth-highest mark in school history and highest for a Golden Bear since Bevan
Hart accumulated 8,002 points in 2000.. Morrison established four PRs in the twoday
competition and overtook Texas A&M’s Trinity Otto on the final event – the
1500 meters – for the runner-up position. Only four men are ahead of Morrison on
Cal’s all-time performer’s list – Chris Huffins (school-record 8,007 points in 1993),
Hart (8002 in 2000), Ross Bomben (7,808 in 1998) and Dave Steen (7,778 in
1980).

JIM CLICK SHOOTOUT RECAP: Cherrelle Garrett won the 100 and 200 meters
and anchored the Bears’ victorious 4x100 relay and Steve Sodaro posted a
victory in the 3000 meters and a runner-up finish in the 1500 meters to lead the
Cal track & field team at the Jim Click Shootout at the University of Arizona last
Saturday. In all, the Golden Bears set 13 personal bests and 11 season bests on
the day.

Others first-place finishers for Cal included Alima Kamara in the 400, Deborah
Maier in the 1500 and Kimyon Broom in the 100 hurdles. Hammed Suleman (long
jump, triple jump), Patrick Kowalsky (shot put), Sofia Oberg (800) and the
women’s 4x400 relay all took second in their respective events.

Kristen Meister was third in the high jump, and her height of 5-10.75 was the
No. 3 mark ever at Cal. Taylor Bryson also ran the school’s No. 7 3000-meter
steeplechase (11:37.96), while other Top 10 Cal performances came from
Kamara (400, 53.84, #9), Oberg (800, 2:06.81, #8), Alison Greggor (5000,
16:25.88, #7), Linda Oseso (hammer, 169-2, #9) and the 4x100 relay (45.35, #9).
Suleman continued his impressive freshman season with a personal-best mark
of 24-8.50 in the long jump, and Kowalsky, the MPSF indoor champion in the shot
put, improved his lifetime best to 59-3. Broom’s 13.32 in the 100 hurdles was also
a season best.

PAC-10 CHAMPIONSHIPS AT CAL: California will host the 2010 Pac-10
Outdoor Track & Field Championships at Edwards Stadium/Goldman Field this
spring. The decathlon and heptathlon will take place May 8-9, with the remaining
events being contested May 15-16. Cal last played host to the meet in 2001.
Check CalBears.com for more details, including event times and ticket information, as the event gets closer.

2010 Big Meet Schedule
Field Events
10:30 a.m. Women’s Hammer followed by
Men’s Hammer
11:30 a.m. Women’s Long Jump followed by
Men’s Long Jump
12:30 p.m. Women’s Javelin followed by
Men’s Javelin
1:00 p.m. Women’s Pole Vault followed by
Men’s Pole Vault
Men’s Shot Put followed by Women’s Shot Put
Men’s High Jump followed by
Women’s High Jump
2:30 p.m. Women’s Triple Jump followed by
Men’s Triple Jump
Men’s Discus followed by Women’s Discus
Running Events
1:00 p.m. National Anthem
1:05 p.m. Women’s 3000m Steeplechase
1:25 p.m. Men’s 3000m Steeplechase
1:45 p.m. Women’s 4x100m Relay
1:50 p.m. Men’s 4x100m Relay
1:55 p.m. Women’s 1500 meters
2:05 p.m. Men’s 1500 meters
2:10 p.m. Women’s 100m Hurdles
2:15 p.m. Men’s 110m Hurdles
2:25 p.m. Women’s 400 meters
2:30 p.m. Men’s 400 meters
2:35 p.m. Women’s 100 meters
2:40 p.m. Men’s 100 meters
2:45 p.m. Women’s 800 meters
2:50 p.m. Men’s 800 meters
3:00 p.m. Women’s 400m Hurdles
3:10 p.m. Men’s 400m Hurdles
3:20 p.m. Women’s 200 meters
3:25 p.m. Men’s 200 meters
3:30 p.m. Women’s 3000 meters
3:45 p.m. Men’s 3000 meters
3:55 p.m. Senior Ceremony
4:40 p.m. Women’s 4x400m Relay
4:45 p.m. Men’s 4x400m Relay

Individual Rankings
Name Event Mark NCAA Pac-10
Men
Collin Jarvis 3000m 8:14.63 3 2
Connor Landry PV 17-0.75 T18 4
Hammed Suleman LJ 24-8.50 T18 2
Patrick Kowalsky SP 59-3.00 13 3
Mike Morrison Decathlon 7557 2 2
Women
Alima Kamara 400m 53.84 13 1
Sofia Oberg 800m 2:06.81 7 2
Sofia Oberg 1500m 4:23.79 14 9
Deborah Maier 1500m 4:23.98 15 10
Alison Greggor 5000m 16:25.88 19 1
Kristen Meister HJ 5-10.75 T8 2
Kimyon Broom 100mH 13.32 10 2

CAL IN THE 2009 BIG MEET: Although California fell to Stanford in the 115th
annual Big Meet at Stanford, the Golden Bears produced multiple strong
performances.

Katie Morgan and Ryan Young both set Big Meet records for Cal. Morgan took
top honors with a height of 13-6.50 in the pole vault, winning a jump-off with
Stanford's Katerina Stefanidi that took 15 attempts to decide a victor. Young broke
the previous Big Meet record in the javelin, which was set in 1931, with his throw
of 224-10. The old mark was 221-7 by Cal's Kenneth Churchill.

In addition, Kimyon Broom established a Big Meet record in the 100-meter
hurdles, clocking a time of 13.26. She surpassed the old record time of 13.43, set
in 2004 by the Bears’ Osarhiemen Omwanghe.
Cherrelle Garrett won both the 100 and the 200, clocking a personal-best time of
11.34 in the 100 that ranks second in school history and was just shy of a Big Meet
record. In the 200, she crossed the finish line at 23.81. Another victory in the
sprints for the Bears came from senior Kellan Patterson, who won the men’s 100
at 10.60.
Brook Turner led a 1-2-3 Cal finish in the women’s 400 meters in 54.42, and
Evelyn Smith won the 400-meter hurdles in 1:00.92. Michael Coe (3000, 8:13.09)
and Steve Sodaro (3000 SC, 8:54.16) prevailed at longer distances, and the Bears
swept all four of the relay events.
MATUSAK SETS INDOOR MILE RECORD: Mark Matusak ran the second-fastest
mile in school history under any conditions when he covered the distance in
3:58.36 indoors at the Husky Classic Feb. 13. Only teammate Michael Coe’s
3:56.18 mile, set outdoors last year, is better. Other Bears to run a sub-4-minute
mile outdoors are David Torrence (3:58.62, 2007), Don Bowden (3:58.7, 1957) and
Andy Clifford (3:59.59, 1979). Matusak went on to win the 3000 meters at the
MPSF championships in 7:59.67 and ran leadoff on Cal’s distance medley relay
that finished fourth at the NCAA meet in 9:38.19. Last week, in his 2010 outdoor
debut, Matusak stepped down to the shorter 800 meters and posted a time of
1:53.69 at the Jim Click Shootout.
VROOM BROOM: Senior Kimyon Broom broke out of the blocks quickly in her first
meet of the 2010 campaign, setting a Cal indoor record in the 60-meter hurdles at
the Cherry & Silver Invitational in Albuquerque, N.M. (8.30). Broom then matched
the time in her next competition, also crossing the line in 8.30 at the UW
Invitational a week later. The two-time defending Pac-10 champion in the 100
hurdles outdoors, Broom owns the Cal outdoor mark of 13.02. So far this season,
she has captured the 100 hurdles at the Stanford Invitational and the Jim Click
Shootout and has a best of 13.32 seconds.
LANDRY BECOMES CAL’S 10TH 17-FOOT POLE VAULTER: Connor Landry, a transfer to Cal from Cal Poly, has become the
10th pole vaulter in school history to clear 17 feet in the event. He posted an indoor best of 17-5.50 at the Husky Classic, and then
cleared 17-0.75 outdoors at the Stanford Opener. Landry’s indoor mark was the highest for a Bear since Robert McLean went 18-
0.50 in 2002. The Bears also boast a second 17-footer in Ryan Shuler, who owns a PR of 17-4.25, while Justin Miller just missed
the level indoors when he vaulted 16-11.50.
NEWCOMERS HIGHLIGHT CAL’S BEST MARKS LIST: Cal’s men’s recruiting class was rated the fourth best in the country by
Track & Field News, and the new faces have not disappointed. Tom Booker helped the Bears’ distance medley relay place fourth at
the NCAA indoor meet and he owns the team’s top time in the 400 meters outdoors at 49.02. Collin Jarvis, also a key member of
the cross country team in the fall, covered the 3000 meters in 8:14.63 at the Stanford Opener, which rates 10th on the school’s alltime
list. In the horizontal jumps, Hammed Suleman tops the charts in both the long jump (24-8.50) and triple jump (49-9.25). His TJ
PR mark is the best for a Cal athlete in six years, since Bruce Giron and Vincent Ibia both surpassed 52 feet in 2004. Other
newcomers leading the best marks lists are Mike Morrison (100m, decathlon),
Cody Schmidt (3000m steeplechase) and Connor Landry (pole vault). All this
despite the fact several freshmen expected to contribute right away have been
sidelined to date by injury, notably long jumper Chase Wheeler, middle distance
specialist James Brewer and high jumper Maurice Valentine Jr.
Although not as highly rated as their male counterparts, the women’s
newcomer group owns team best marks in four events. Alima Kamara has a best
of 53.84 in the 400 meters, and Sofia Oberg leads the list in both the 800
(2:06.61) and 1500 (4:23.75). In addition, Angelica Weaver’s 1:01.36 paces all
Bear 400 hurdlers.
TEAM RANKINGS: Both the Cal men and women are ranked among the top
teams in the country in the first regular-season rankings from the track & field
coaches association (USTFCCCA). The Golden Bear men are 19th, while the
women are 30th. During the indoor season, Cal’s men rose as high as 16th and
finished 17th at the NCAA championships.
As of: April 3, 2010
2010 California Track & Field
Outdoor Best Marks List
Cal Record in Parentheses / ^ New Cal Record
h Earned Mark in Heptahtlon / d Earned Mark in Decathlon / i Earned Mark Indoors
Men
Name Mark Date Site PR
100 meters (10.18a)
Mike Morrison 10.79d 3/31 Austin 10.79
Nick Porter 10.92 4/3 Tucson 10.50
Aaron Burney 11.34 3/6 Stanford 11.34
Kevin Kuechler 11.43d 3/24 Berkeley 11.43
200 meters (20.20)
Nick Porter 21.95 4/3 Tucson 21.53
Tom Blocker 22.01 3/6 Stanford 22.01
Hammed Suleman 23.34 3/6 Stanford 23.34
400 meters (45.46)
Tom Blocker 49.02 3/6 Stanford 49.02
Mike Morrison 49.25d 3/31 Austin 49.25
Tojsh Kennedy 50.56 4/3 Tucson 48.31
Keagan Wethington 50.81 3/26 Stanford 47.98
Kevin Kuechler 51.94d 3/24 Berkeley 51.94
800 meters (1:45.4)
Mark Matusak 1:53.69 4/3 Tucson 1:53.69
Austin Jett 1:57.20 3/6 Stanford 1:57.20
1500 meters (3:39.9)
Steve Sodaro 3:46.96 3/6 Stanford 3:46.96
Yosef Ghebray 3:48.39 3/26 Stanford 3:42.14
Kari Karlsson 3:50.28 3/6 Stanford 3:50.28
Sebastian Sam 3:51.40 4/3 Tucson 3:51.40
Mike Morrison 4:51.93d 4/1 Austin 4:51.93
Kevin Kuechler 5:06.70d 3/25 Berkeley 4:58.72
3000 meters (7:48.05i)
Collin Jarvis 8:14.63 3/6 Stanford 8:14.63
Steve Sodaro 8:31.11 4/3 Tucson 8:31.11
Collin Jarvis 8:35.51 4/3 Tucson 8:35.51
Andres Diaz 8:39.10 3/6 Stanford 8:39.10
Cody Schmidt 8:40.90 3/6 Stanford 8:40.90
Simon Schmidt 8:41.42 3/6 Stanford 8:41.42
Matt Petersen 8:49.87 3/6 Stanford 8:49.87
5000 meters (13:31.8)
Kari Karlsson 14:01.99 3/26 Stanford 14:01.99
Collin Jarvis 14:37.37 3/26 San Francisco 14:37.37
Matt Miller 14:52.19 3/26 San Francisco 14:52.19
Andres Diaz 15:24.59 3/26 San Francisco 15:25.59
James Slater 15:54.02 3/26 San Francisco 15:54.02
110-meter hurdles (13.39)
Aaron Burney 14.56 3/27 Stanford 13.95
Ryan Holmes 14.75 4/3 Tucson 14.05
Mike Morrison 14.92d 4/1 Austin 14/92
Kevin Kuechler 15.37d 3/25 Berkeley 15.37
400-meter hurdles (48.46)
Ryan Holmes 53.21 3/6 Stanford 52.91
2000-meter steeplechase
Simon Schmidt 6:11.68 3/6 Stanford 6:11.68
Cody Schmidt 6:14.03 3/6 Stanford 6:14.03
Nate Beach 6:25.80 3/6 Stanford 6:25.80
Name Mark Date Site PR
3000-meter steeplechase (8:35.37)
Cody Schmidt 9:20.02 3/26 Stanford 9:20.02
Simon Schmidt 9:41.00 3/26 Stanford 9:41.00
4x400-meter Relay (3:03.9)
Holmes/Sam/Kennedy/Blocker 3:15.34 4/3 Tucson 3:15.344
High Jump (7-5.75)
Brian Carmichael 6-10.75 (2.10m) 3/6 Stanford 6-10.75
Mike Morrison 6-5.00 (1.96m)d 3/31 Austin 6-5.00
Mike Tracy 6-4.75 (1.95m) 3/6 Stanford 6-4.75
Kevin Kuechler 6-0.75 (1.85m) 3/24 Berkeley 6-0.75
Pole Vault (18-8.25)
Connor Landry 17-0.75 (5.20m) 3/6 Stanford 17-5.50i
Ryan Shuler 16-6.75 (5.05m) 3/27 Stanford 17-4.25
Justin Miller 15-7.00 (4.75m) 3/27 Stanford 16-11.50i
Mike Morrison 15-1.00 (4.60m)d 4/1 Austin 15-1.00
Kevin Kuechler 13-1.50 (4.00m)d 3/25 Berkeley 13-3.50i
Long Jump (26-6.25)
Hammed Suleman 24-8.50 (7.53m) 4/3 Tucson 24-8.50
Mike Morrison 23-11.00 (7.29m)d 3/31 Austin 23-11.00
Chad Jones 22-10.00 (6.96m) 4/3 Tucson 22-10.00
Kevin Kuechler 22-1.00 (6.74m)d 3/24 Berkeley 22-5.00i
Triple Jump (55-0)
Hammed Suleman 49-9.25 (15.17m) 3/27 Stanford 49-9.25
Chad Jones 46-11.00 (14.30m) 3/27 Stanford 46-11.00
Shot Put (66-3)
Patrick Kowalsky 59-3.00 (18.06m) 4/3 Tucson 59-3.00
Kyle Mills-Bunje 43-9.75 (13.35m) 3/6 Stanford 46-9.00i
Mike Morrison 41-5.00 (12.62m) 3/6 Stanford 42-7.00i
Kevin Kuechler 39-4.00 (11.99m)d 3/24 Berkeley 41-2.50i
Discus (210-11)
Patrick Kowalsky 155-5 (47.37m) 3/26 Stanford 159-3
Mike Morrison 129-3 (39.39m) 3/25 Berkeley 129-3
Kevin Kuechler 121-7 (37.07m)d 3/25 Berkeley 129-9
Hammer (229-0)
Mile Palacios 187-8 (57.20m) 4/3 Tucson 187-8
Javelin (250-10)
Kyle Mills-Bunje 178-10 (54.50m) 3/6 Stanford 178-10
Mike Morrison 176-0 (53.65m)d 4/1 Austin 176-0
Brian Norton 169-11 (51.79m) 3/26 Stanford 169-11
Kevin Kuechler 159-1 (48.49m)d 3/25 Berkeley 159-1
Decathlon (8,007)
Mike Morrison 7,557 4/1 Austin 7,803
Kevin Kuechler 6,638 3/25 Berkeley 6,638
Cal Record in Parentheses / ^ New Cal Record
h Earned Mark in Heptahtlon / d Earned Mark in Decathlon / i Earned Mark Indoors
Women
Name Mark Date Site PR
100 meters (11.33)
Cherrelle Garrett 11.67 3/26 Stanford 11.38
Emani Truluck 12.37 4/3 Tucson 12.37
200 meters (22.72a)
Cherrelle Garrett 24.18 4/3 Tucson 23.63
Alima Kamara 24.24 3/6 Stanford 24.24
Kayla Dixon 24.72 3/6 Stanford 24.33
Hayley Huxtable 24.90 3/6 Stanford 24.90
Jasmine Joseph 25.17 3/27 Stanford 25.17
400 meters (52.53)
Alima Kamara 53.84 4/3 Tucson 53.84
Jasmine Joseph 55.07 4/3 Tucson 55.07
Hayley Huxtable 56.89 3/6 Stanford 55.70
Kayla Dixon 56.46 3/26 Stanford 55.29
800 meters (1:59.29)
Sofia Oberg 2:06.81 4/3 Tucson 2:06.81
Taylor Dutch 2:13.41 3/27 Stanford 2:13.41
Taylor Bryson 2:20.25 4/3 Tucson 2:20.25
1500 meters (4:09.23)
Sofia Oberg 4:23.75 3/26 Stanford 4:23.75
Deborah Maier 4:23.98 4/3 Tucson 4:23.98
Alison Greggor 4:30.39 4/3 Tucson 4:30.39
Taylor Dutch 4:33.46 4/3 Tucson 4:33.46
Taylor Bryson 4:34.54 3/26 Stanford 4:34.54
Crystal Esparza 4:44.69 3/6 Stanford 4:44.69
Hillary Hayes 4:48.22 3/26 Stanford 4:48.22
3000 meters (9:20.05i)
Michelle Davis 9:57.12 3/6 Stanford 9:57.12
Nicole Hough 10:16.74 3/6 Stanford 10:16.74
5000 meters (15:46.8)
Alison Greggor 16:25.88 3/26 Stanford 16:25.88
Michelle Davis 16:49.62 3/26 Stanford 16:49.62
Crystal Esparza 18:01.24 3/26 San Francisco 18:01.24
Nicole Hough 18:03.54 3/26 San Francisco 18:03.54
100-meter hurdles (13.02)
Kimyon Broom 13.32 4/3 Tucson 13.02
Emani Truluck 14.07 4/3 Tucson 14.02
400-meter hurdles (57.61)
Angelica Weaver 1:01.36 4/3 Tucson 1:01.36
Natalya Beneby 1:02.19 3/6 Stanford 1:00.58
Shannon Forbes 1:03.66 3/26 Stanford 1:01.85
Laureina Toler 1:05.54 3/26 Stanford 1:05.54
3000-meter Steeplechase (10:22.38)
Taylor Bryson 11:37.96 4/3 Tucson 11:37.96
4x100-meter Relay (44.28)
Broom/Holmes/Dixon/Garrett 45.35 4/3 Tucson 45.35
4x400-meter Relay (3:35.46)
Joseph/Oberg/Weaver/Kamara 3:43.80 4/3 Tucson 3:43.80
High Jump (6-0.75)
Kristen Meister 5-10.75 (1.80m) 4/3 Tucson 5-11.50i
Kristin Rimbach 5-5.25 (1.66m) 3/26 Stanford 5-5.25
Gianna Fernandez 5-3.25 (1.61m) 3/26 Stanford 5-3.25
Pole Vault (13-9.25)
Theresa Raub 12-9.50 (3.90m) 3/6 Stanford 12-10.00i
Allison Stokke 12-3.50 (3.75m) 3/27 Stanford 13-9.75
Cyrena Giordano 11-11.75 (3.65m) 3/6 Stanford 13-4.25
Name Mark Date Site PR
Long Jump (22-1.00)
Kristin Holmes 19-5.25 (5.92m) 3/26 Stanford 19-9.50i
Malaina Payton 19-5.25 (5.92m) 3/26 Stanford 19-5.25
Tracey Stewart 18-1.00 (5.51m) 4/3 Tucson 19-3.50
Triple Jump (46-0.75)
Mercedes Marchbanks 41-0.50 (12.51m) 3/27 Stanford 41-0.50
Tracey Stewart 39-4.00 (11.99m) 4/3 Tucson 40-9.00
Shot Put (54-4.75)
Linda Oseso 43-1.75 (13.15m) 3/6 Stanford 45-5.25i
Discus (188-11)
Kendall Morris 150-8 (45.93m) 4/3 Tucson 152-11
Hammer (214-0)
Linda Oseso 169-2 (51.57m) 4/3 Tucson 169-2
Kiely Smith 161-11 (49.36m) 4/3 Tucson 163-11
Javelin (152-10)
Dana Hoolko 128-7 (39.20m) 3/6 Stanford 139-4