Cal's men's team finished third out of 10, while the women placed seventh on Saturday in Albuquerque
Courtesy: GoldenBearSports.com
Courtesy: GoldenBearSports.com
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – The California Golden Bears track and field team opened their 2015 indoor season at the New Mexico Team Invitational on Saturday in Albuquerque, New Mexico, at the Albuquerque Convention Center. Cal’s men’s team placed third overall with a total of 62 points, while the women placed seventh with a total of 41.50 points. Individually, freshman mid-distance runner Ellis Newtondebuted with a win in the 600-meters, clocking a time of 1:20.82 in his first competitive collegiate race and also placed third in the 800-meters. Senior thrower Isaac Dan set a new PR in the weight throw, claiming the individual event title with a mark of 61-11.00. The women’s team had a pair of second place finishes, as redshirt senior Chioma Amaechiwas second in the weight throw with a mark of 67-7.00 and junior Sydney Gray clocked a 4:54.60 in the mile to earn eight points each.
“This was a good college scoring meet,” Director of track and field Tony Sandoval said on Saturday. “With Pac-12 members UCLA and Arizona State, Big 12 teams TCU and Kansas State as well as Alabama, it was a spirited, competitive meet all day long. Some highlights for us were Ellis winning the 600 and placing third in the 800 and Isaac set a career best in winning the weight throw. This was a nice beginning for us as we’ll split up in two weeks in Seattle for the Husky Classic and a return to Albuquerque for the Don Kirby Invite.”
Dan’s sixth and final attempt carried him to victory, capturing 10 important points for the Golden Bears with his PR throw. Teammate and redshirt senior Scott Esparza also set a new PR, eclipsing his previous best mark of 60-4.50 (on Feb. 28 in Seattle), by posting a mark of 61-3.00 on his fifth attempt to grab six more points for Cal.
On the women’s side, Amaechi earned eight points for the Golden Bears with a second place finish in the women’s weight throw. Her mark of 67-7.00 on her fifth attempt came up just short of the event winner from UCLA, Ida Storm (70-4.25).
On the track, Newton made quite an impression in his collegiate debut with his win in the 600-meters. His time of 1:20.82 was more than a second better than the second place finisher. His sophomore teammate Eugene Hamilton III performed well also, seizing five more points for the Bears with a fourth place finish in the 600 with a time of 1:22.65. Newton continued to impress with another solid performance in the 800-meters, clocking a time of 1:52.89 to grab six additional points. Gray’s mile performance also produced eight points for the women’s team after her sub-five minute mile (4:54.60). She also contributed three more points in the 3000-meters with her time of 9:52.91.
Several Bears made their debuts for the Blue and Gold on Saturday, and the team will aim to improve on their opening performances on Feb. 13 and 14 when they head to the Don Kirby Elite Invitational back in Albuquerque and the Husky Indoor Classic in Seattle.
New Mexico Team InvitationalAlbuquerque, N.M.
Albuquerque Convention Center
California Results
Weight Throw – 1. Isaac Dan 61-11.00 (18.87m) PR; 3. Scott Esparza 61-3.00 (18.67m) PR; 11. Peter Simon 51-10.00 (15.80m)
Shot Put – 4. Sullivan Parker 56-10.00 (17.32m) PR; 6. Ethan Cochran 55-3.75 (16.86m); 9. Peter Simon 53-4.25 (16.26m)
Team Scores – 1. UCLA 74; 2. Arizona State 72; 3. California 62; 4. New Mexico 60; 5. Kansas State 59; 6. Alabama 58; 7. Utah State 55; 7. TCU 55; 9. Air Force 53; 10. UTEP 37
Weight Throw – 2. Chioma Amaechi 67-7.00 (20.60m); 11. Destiny Parker 50-8.75 (15.46m); 15. Ginika Iwuchukwu49-3.75 (15.03m)
Shot Put – 6. Chioma Amaechi 48-7.25 (14.81m); 7. Ginika Iwuchukwu 47-7.25 (14.51m); Destiny Parker 43-11.75 (13.40m)
Team Scores – 1. UCLA 93; 2. New Mexico 91.50; 3. Alabama 80.50; 4. Kansas State 79.50; 5. Arizona State 65.50; 6. UTEP 64; 7. California 41.50; 8. Utah State 29; 9. TCU 20; 10. Air Force 11.50
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