Junior Chris Walden clocked a 13:59.34 in the 5000-meters, which placed him 10th on Cal's All-Time...
Courtesy: GoldenBearSports.com
Courtesy: GoldenBearSports.com
SEATTLE – The California Golden Bears track and field team opened the first day of the MPSF Championships on Friday at Dempsey Indoor on the campus of the University of Washington in Seattle. The men are aiming to defend their first ever conference championship and sit tied for second place after the first day of competition with 31 points. The men’s throwers grabbed nine early points for the Bears behind solid performances by senior Isaac Dan, redshirt senior Scott Esparza and freshman Peter Simon, who finished fifth, sixth and seventh respectively. Junior Chris Walden also scored, setting a new PR in the 5000-meters in the process with a time of 13:59.34, which places him 10th on Cal’s All-Time Performers List. The men’s distance medley relay also showed extremely well with a second place finish in a time of 9:33.81, which is fourth on the school’s All-Time Performers List. On the women’s side, redshirt senior Chioma Amaechi opened the meet with a stellar performance in the weight throw, placing second after a mark of 64-8.00 (19.71m) to seize eight points for the Golden Bears right out of the gate. The women’s distance medley also made some history of their own and with their fifth place finish, the squad claimed the fifth spot in the Cal All-Time Performers List on their way to four points. The Cal women are currently tied for eighth, with a total of 14 points heading into Saturday.
“Across the board I felt like everyone stepped up,” Director of track and field Tony Sandoval said on Friday night in Seattle. “There weren’t any major mishaps today, there were a lot of PR’s and season bests and we put points on the board so I thought we had a very good day. It started out with Chioma, though she didn’t win the event, she had a season best on her last attempt and it seemed to go that way the rest of the meet. Throughout the day everyone was stepping up and what else could you want than people giving their best.”
Walden eclipsed his previous best mark of 14:07.09 to place fifth on Friday to capture four key points for the Bears. He also passed former Bear David Torrence for 10th on Cal’s All-Time Performers List in the process. His teammate, sophomore Yohaness Estifanos also PR’ed in the 5000-meters, posting a time of 14:29.04.
The men’s throwers put on a very efficient performance in the weight throw, as Dan led the way for the Bears with a fifth place finish after his mark of 61-2.25 (18.65m). Right behind him was Esparza, who fell just shy of a new PR with a throw of 61-2.00 (18.64m). Simon, a freshman, posted his collegiate best with a mark of 59-9.00 (18.21m) to grab another two points for the Golden Bears with his seventh place mark.
The men’s distance medley relay team, anchored by junior Thomas Joyce made a late move from fourth to seize second place and eight key points for the Bears to pull them into a tie with UCLA for second place after six events on the men’s side with 31 points, and the team is just one and a half points behind the current leaders, Washington.
On the women’s side, Amaechi earned eight big points with a second place finish in the weight throw with a mark of 64-8.00 (19.71m), while junior Kelsey Santisteban placed eighth in the 5000-meters to grab two points of her own with a time of 16:31.81. The distance medley also showed very well with a fifth place finish for four more points after their time of 11:27.31, which placed them fifth on Cal’s All-Time Performers List.
The Bears will return to action Saturday to conclude the MPSF Championships at Dempsey. The men will be looking to defend the school’s first ever conference title, while the women are set to improve on last year’s seventh place finish. Fans are encouraged to follow @Cal_Track for the latest news and updates.
MPSF ChampionshipsSeattle, Wash.
Dempsey Indoor
California Results
Men
60-meter dash (prelims) – 6. Khalfani Muhammad 6.78q PR; 14. Walt Jones IV 6.95
60-meter dash (prelims) – 6. Khalfani Muhammad 6.78q PR; 14. Walt Jones IV 6.95
200-meters – 10. Khalfani Muhammad 21.74 PR; 19. Jalen Doss 22.37; 22. Ashtyn Davis 23.16; 23. Ben Greenwald 23.21; 25. Ja’Vion Robinson 24.04
5000-meters – 5. Chris Walden 13:59.34 PR – 4 points; 16. Yohannes Estifanos 14:29.04 PR
60-meter hurdles (prelims) – 6. Ashtyn Davis 8.04q PR; 14. Jonte Turner 8.42; 16. Ja’Vion Robinson 8.48
Distance Medley Relay – 2. Josh Lewis, Ellis Newton, Eugene Hamilton III, Thomas Joyce 9:33.81 – 8 points
Long Jump – 3. Walt Jones IV 24-5.50 (7.45m) – 6 points; 5. Jonte Grant 24-4.25 (J7.42m) – 4 points; 14. Karsten Wethington 22-3.50 (6.79m); 17. Ben Davis 21-0.00 (6.40m)
Weight Throw – 5. Isaac Dan 61-2.25 (18.65m) – 4 points; 6. Scott Esparaza 61-2.00 (18.64m) – 3 points; 7. Peter Simon 59-9.00 (18.21m) PR – 2 points; 14. Matt Esparza 54-8.75 (16.68m)
Team Standings – 1. Washington 32.5; T-2. California 31; T-2. UCLA 31; 4. Oregon 26; 5. Stanford 25.5; T-6. BYU 24; T-6. USC 24; 8. Arizona State 20; 9. Washington State 10; 10. Colorado 6; 11. Long Beach State 3; 12. Arizona 1
Women
60-meter dash (prelims) – 15. Jayla Scholis 7.54 PR; 28. Jasiri Blake 7.72 PR
200-meters – 23. Jayla Scholis 25.18; 26. Khala Taylor 25.26 PR; 40. Jasiri Blake 25.95; 44. Morgan Robertson 26.22; 46. Allanah Hughes 26.94
5000-meters – 8. Kelsey Santisteban 16:31.81 – 2 points; 17. Heather Cerney 17:26.43
60-meter hurdles (prelims) – 22. Morgan Robertson 8.96
Distance Medley Relay – 5. Mariel Mendoza, Natalie Herberg, Sydney Gray, Bethan Knights 11:27.31 – 4 points
Pole Vault – T-11. Victoria Rische 12-6.25 (3.82m)
Long Jump – 15. Kiare Tanner 17-9.75 (5.43m); 23. Allanah Hughes 17-5.50 (5.32m); 33. Ashley Anderson 16-6.50 (5.04m)
Weight Throw – 2. Chioma Amaechi 64-8.00 (19.71m) – 8 points; 23. Ginika Iwuchukwu 50-10.00 (15.49m) PR; 30. Destiny Parker 46-10.00 (14.27m)
Team Standings – 1. UCLA 51; 2. Washington 36; 3. USC 35; 4. Colorado 27; 5. Arizona 21; 6. Arizona State 17.333; 7. BYU 15.333; T-8. California 14; T-8. Washington State 14; 10. Long Beach State 13; 11. Stanford 10; T-12. Portland 5; T-12. Oregon State 5; 14. Cal State Northridge 4; 14. Utah 4; 16. Oregon 1; 17. Hawaii 0.333
q- qualified for final
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