The upcoming schedule of track & field competition for Big West programs has a local flavor to it as the teams in competition will participate in meets close to their general areas.

Thursday, Cal State Northridge hosts its second meet of the early season in the Northridge Spring Break Open. UC Irvine will also participate in the two-day event at Matador Track.

The following day, two other local meets take center stage as UCI hosts the Spring Break Invitational, while Pac-10 power USC hosts the Trojan Invitational. The Anteaters will welcome fellow Big West member UC Riverside to the Spring Break Invitational, while conference members Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, CSUN, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara will be in Los Angeles for the Trojan Invite.

UC Davis will also head to a local site as the Aggies head to rival Sacramento State for the Hornet Invitational Saturday afternoon.

The transition from indoor to the outdoor season opened with a bang for a couple of Big West athletes as seniors Brenda Martinez of UC Riverside and Brent Gray of Long Beach State were named All-Americans following their performances at the NCAA Indoor Nationals.

Martinez gained the status after finishing seventh in the mile, while Gray added to his accolades following a sixth place finish in the 200-meter dash. Both performances were among the best in the nation for the indoor season and were on the world indoor IAAF list.