The Big West will be represented in large numbers this postseason with 81 of the league’s top track and field qualifiers set to compete at the NCAA West Regional in Austin, Texas, May 24-26.
All eight Big West track and field clubs will be represented in the competition. Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara lead the way as each school is represented in a total of 17 events.
On the men’s side, UC Irvine’s Charles Jock and UC Santa Barbara’s Ryan Martin posted the two fastest qualifying marks in the 800 meters. Both marks were set at the Big West Championship on May 12 when Jock (1:44.75) edged Martin (1:44.77) by two-hundredths of a second.
In field events, Long Beach State’s Ben Woodruff is the No. 5 seed in the men’s javelin after back-to-back conference championship victories. He qualified for the regional with a lifetime-best toss of 243-02 on April 15 at the Big West Challenge in Fullerton.
Barbara Nwaba of UC Santa Barbara headlines the Big West women's contingent as she appears in three regional events, qualifying as a top five seed in two of them. Nwaba posted the nation's second-best qualifying mark in the heptathlon after tallying a season-high 5,986 points on April 3 at the Sam Adams Invitational. The junior also ranks No. 5 in the high jump and takes a qualifying mark of 5-9.75 into regional action. Nwaba will also compete in the 100-meter hurdles with Long Beach State’s Shakina Phillips and UC Irvine’s Amber Middleton.
The preliminary events for the 2012 NCAA Division I Track and Field West Regional will start on Friday, May 24 on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin. The three days of competition take place at Mike A. Myers Stadium and feature some of the nation's premier student-athletes. Qualifying teams and individuals advance to the 2012 NCAA Division I Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Des Moines, Iowa on June 6-9.
Men’s Decathlon
19. Derek Masterson – UC Santa Barbara – 7558
Men’s 100-meter Dash
48. Jamison Jordan – Cal Poly – 10.56
Men’s 200-meter Dash
31. Kemar Marsden – Cal State Northridge – 21.07
46. Cameron Glasgow – Long Beach State – 21.32
Men’s 800-meter Run
1. Charles Jock – UC Irvine – 1:44.75
2. Ryan Martin – UC Santa Barbara – 1:44.77
35. Gabe Hilbert – Long Beach State – 1:49.41
48. Shyan Vaziri – UC Santa Barbara – 1:50.07
Men’s 1500-meter Run
13. Derek Thomas – Cal Poly – 3:43.44
23. Nathan Strum – UC Davis – 3:44.86
Men’s 5000-meter Run
11. Jonathan Peterson – UC Davis – 13:48.43
Men’s 10000-meter Run
41. Chris Frias – Cal Poly – 29:44.14
Men’s 110-meter Hurdles
15. Jacob Yowell – UC Irvine – 13.91
23. Koree Hines _ Long Beach State – 14.06
38. Michael Woodham – Cal State Northridge – 14.25
Men’s 400-meter Hurdles
10. Christopher Lawson – Long Beach State – 50.66
29. Jacob Yowell – UC Irvine – 51.71
36. Eric Surprenant – Cal Poly – 51.93
Men’s 4x400 Relay
18. UC Santa Barbara – 3:09.67
19. UC Irvine – 3:09.89
Men’s High Jump
11. Mitchell Haag – UC Santa Barbara – 2.17
47. Michael Larocca – UC Santa Barbara – 2.11
Men’s Pole Vault
10. Kyle Inks – Cal Poly – 5.40m
15. John Prader – Cal Poly – 5.35m
21. Tyler Wallace – Long Beach State – 5.27m
24. Ethan Ostrom – UC Davis – 5.25m
47. Michael Peterson – UC Davis – 5.15m
Men’s Long Jump
26. Ted Hooper – UC Riverside – 7.53m
Men’s Triple Jump
15. Ryan Swafford – UC Riverside – 15.77m
40. Donovan Toban – Cal State Northridge – 15.25m
Men’s Shot Put
17. Travis Smith – UC Riverside – 18.29
20. Jacob Weintraub – Long Beach State – 18.03m
33. Alex Umstead – UC Santa Barbara – 17.56m
39. Daniel Erdman – Cal Poly – 17.38m
40. Tucker Weathers – Cal State Northridge – 17.38m
44. Brandon Greenberg – UC Davis – 17.16m
Men’s Discus Throw
21. Jacob Weintraub – Long Beach State – 56.00m
43. Jacob Fraser – Long Beach State – 52.59m
Men’s Hammer Throw
10. Caleb Stuart – UC Riverside – 63.10m
29. Alex Ulmstead – UC Santa Barbara – 60.02m
Men’s Javelin Throw
5. Ben Woodruff – Long Beach State – 74.12m
20. Michael Guerra – UC Santa Barbara – 66.79m
36. Brock Bennett – UC Davis – 64:04m
Women’s Heptathlon
2. Barbara Nwaba – UC Santa Barbara – 5986
Women’s 100-meter Dash
28. Melanise Chapman – UC Davis – 11.59
Women’s 400-meter Dash
25. Jackie Harrison – Cal State Northridge – 53.50
35. Katie Wilson – Cal State Fullerton – 54.03
Women’s 800-meter Run
40. Raquel Hefflin – UC Riverside – 2:08.25
44. Katie Fry – UC Davis – 2:08.57
Women’ 1500-meter run
30. Vanessa Hancock – Cal Poly – 4:24.32
32. Damajeria Dubose – UC Riverside – 4:24.41
35. Rosa Del Toro – Long Beach State – 4:24.97
Women’s 3000-meter Steeplechase
16. LeAnne Fogg – Cal Poly – 10:18.65
24. Jessica Barnard – Long Beach State – 10:22.90
27. Andrea Jacobs – UC Santa Barbara – 10:24.10
Women’s 5000-meter Run
29. Alycia Cridebring – UC Davis – 16:30.23
Women’s 10000-meter Run
12. Sarah Sumpter – UC Davis – 33:19.77
29. Krista Drechsler – UC Davis – 34:4-.39
48. Danielle Moreno – UC Santa Barbara – 35:25.67
Women’s 100-meter Hurdles
21. Shakina Phillips – Long Beach State – 13.52
28. Barbara Nwaba – UC Santa Barbara – 13.59
39. Amber Middleton – UC Irvine – 13.71
Women’s 400-meter Hurdles
24. Ericka Nowell – UC Irvine – 58.76
26. Amber Middleton – UC Irvine – 58.96
41. Shakina Phillips – Long Beach State – 59.89
Women’s 4x400-meter Relay
21. Cal State Northridge – 3:39.42
Women’s High Jump
5. Barbara Nwaba – UC Santa Barbara – 1.84m
14. Katrina Graves-Johnson – Long Beach State – 1.80m
18. Whitney Sisler – Cal Poly – 1.80m
44. Sara Macey – Long Beach State – 1.74m
Women’s Pole Vault
35. Emily Bush – UC Davis – 4.02m
Women’s Long Jump
44. Phylicia Johnson – Long Beach State – 5.87m
47. Veronica Gines – UC Santa Barbara – 5.87m
Women’s Triple Jump
39. Ese Ntekume –Cal State Northridge- 12.46m
Women’s Shot Put
40. Itene Kujore – UC Santa Barbara – 15.13m
Women’s Discus Throw
25. Ashley Hearn – UC Davis – 52:05m
35. Deja Watkins – UC Riverside – 50.39m
41. Irene Kujore – UC Santa Barbara – 49.98m
Women’s Hammer Throw
40. Ashley Gatewood – UC Riverside – 57.62m
Women’s Javelin Throw
16. Ashley Gatewood _ UC Riverside – 49.22m