SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. – Just on the other side of the Santa Ynez mountains, UC Santa Barbara Track and Field had a phenomenal outing at the Mark Conover Classic this weekend, March 22 and 23. The two extraordinary days were characterized by a plethora of podium finishes and personal records and exemplified the tenacity the team has shown this season.
TRACK
The 110m Hurdles stood out for the Gauchos, with Tyler Holl finishing first in the event with a personal record of 14.19s. Matthew Molina crossed the line second with his personal best of 14.42s, while Dario Rock came in third with 14.43s. Jeramiah Havens and Brad Thomas set PR's of 15.48s and 15.37s, respectively. Finn Andrews set personal bests in both the 110mH (14.63s) and the 400m Hurdles (54.03).
The 100m Hurdles were a success for the Gauchos as well, with Maddie Conte clinching the gold with 14 seconds flat. Alison Tjoe had a second place finish in the event with a personal record of 14.68s. Tjoe furthered her epic day, coming in first in the 400m Hurdles with 1:02.64. Abigail Monti then finished third in the event with 1:03.72.
Justin Fong took first in the 100m Dash with 10.77s. Matthew Staples had a second place slot in the 100m Dash in 10.80s. Sean Beihoffer set a personal best of 11.17 in the 100m. Emma Barthel also had a stunning first place in the 100m Dash with a personal best of 12.08s. Amor Jones set a PR in the event with 12.12s and a third place sprint.
The success extended throughout the remaining races. Matthew Staples ran in third for the 200m with a time of 21.75. Both Tyler Holl and Aoife Hernon finished second in their 400m races with times of 53.36s and 55.53s, which was a new PR for Hernon. The Men's and Women's 4x100m Relay also both finished second with times of 41.76s and 46.63s.
The distance runners had a fantastic day, dominating their runs. Parker Simmons finished a strong first in the 3000m with a time of 8:33.29, followed closely by KC Barber and his personal record of 8:33.35 in second place. Nate Osborn also set a personal best in the 3K for fourth place and a time of 8:37.16, while Hayden Owen secured fifth place and a personal record of 8:45.53. Aamir Rehman had a personal best of 8:55.13 in the event as well.
Sarah Auther had a great day on the track, coming in first for the Women's 3000m with a new personal best of 10:23.89. Lexi Darley then came in second with a personal record of 10:49.91 and Ava Maier in third with a personal record of 10:54.56.
Freshman Manny Correia finished first in his inaugural 800m run with the Gauchos with a stellar time of 1:53.10. Travis Bryson had a personal best in the race with his fourth place time of 1:53.34. Maya Lacamp finished second in the 800m with a personal best of 2:19.70, with Claire Selleck coming in third with 2:24.12. Ava Maier came in second in the 1500m with 4:58.90 and Noah de la Rionda took a PR in the 1500m, with 4:08.11.
FIELD
Legendary sophomore Eitan Goore once again set a UC Santa Barbara Pole Vault record, landing an incredible jump of 5.40m (17'8"). He shattered the record he made just two weeks ago by leaping another tenth of a meter, finishing in first place and an astounding 0.6m or two feet ahead of the second place spot. This was his fourth consecutive first place finish.
The success in jumps did not end there, though, as Will Denning finished first in the Triple Jump with a personal record and 14.22m. Emma Barthel also had a fantastic first place finish, leaping into the lead in the Long Jump with 5.83m. Matthew Molina finished second in the High Jump, hitting a 1.92m. Jeramiah Havens then set a personal record in the Pole Vault with a jump of 4.50m.
Jessica Swalve's heave of 12.34m in the Shot Put secured her first place in the event. Chris Nora also performed for the event, setting a personal record in the Shot Put, hitting 14.22m. Kayla Yap secured a personal record in the discus, hurling a 38.54m throw.
The Gauchos will return for two meets next week, the Stanford Invite (March 29-30) and the Mike Fanelli Distance Classic (March 28-30).
