Big West Challenge Takes Place At UC Irvine

4/5/2018

2018 Track and Field Release No. 5

UC Irvine hosts the 26th annual Big West Challenge at Anteater Stadium to highlight this week's track and field schedule.

Big West Challenge Highlights This Week’s Schedule: The 26th annual Big West Challenge takes place this Friday at UC Irvine’s Anteater Stadium.  The Anteaters are hosting one of the conference’s top showcase events for the first time since 2014.  UCI welcomes in fellow Big West members Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara in a semi-preview of next month’s conference championships.

On both the men’s and women’s sides, the Big West leader in 11 events (out of 20 total) will be participating in this meet.

Remainder Of Schedule: A smattering of other meets are taking place this week.  Cal Poly is sending heptathletes and decathletes to the Sam Adams Combined Events Invite in Montecito, Calif.  CSUN and UC Riverside are bringing contingents to the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational.  The only squad to travel out of state is UC Davis, which will be competing in the Sun Angel Classic hosted by Arizona State.

Four In A Row: Cal Poly freshman Brooke Tjerrild has had quite the impact in her first season on the collegiate track and field scene.  The pole vaulter won her fourth consecutive competition last week at the Titan Team Challenge.  She cleared 13-01.50 for her second best mark of the season.  Tjerrild’s top performance came the week before when she posted a distance of 13 feet. 7.25 inches at the Cal Poly ShareSLO Invitational, a mark that ranks No. 11 nationally.

Big West Athletes Rank Nationally: The Big West features some of the nation’s top performers in a variety of track and field events, based on reported marks in Track & Field Reporting Results System (TFRRS).  Eight women and 10 men are appearing in the national top 25 entering this week’s meets.  UC Santa Barbara senior Jenna Hinkle is the lone Big West athlete to be represented in two events – No. 12 in the 1,500 meters (4:19.11 at Aztec Invitational) and No. 18 in the 5,000 meters (16:07.85 at Stanford Invitational).  The highest ranked female Big West athlete is CSUN freshman De’Andreah Young, who is No. 10 in the 400 hurdles.  She ran 58.15 at the Stanford Invitational last week.  Five Big West male decathletes have registered scores that put them in the top 25 – Jonathan Broadhead (No. 14) and Cole Hicks (No. 25) of Long Beach State, and UC Davis teammates Drake Foote (No. 15), Kyle Clancy (No. 19) and Thomas Grossman (No. 24).  UC Santa Barbara senior Kordell Hamption owns the distinction of being the conference’s highest ranked men’s competitor, as he is No. 13 in the discus with a top throw of 186-09 at the Aztec Open.

BIG WEST NATIONAL RANKINGS – TOP 25 ONLY

WOMEN

Name, School	Event	Time/Mark	Rank	Meet
Samantha Huerta, Cal State Fullerton	800m	2:07.36	17	Titan Team Challenge
Jenna Hinkle, UC Santa Barbara	1500m	4:19.11	12	Aztec Invitational
Jenna Hinkle, UC Santa Barbara	5000m	16:07.85	18	Stanford Invitational
De’Andreah Young, CSUN	400 Hurdles	10:43.60	10	Stanford Invitational
Lily Lowe, Hawai‘i	High Jump	5-10.00	12	Rainbow Relays
Bria Palmer, Long Beach State	High Jump	5-08.75	24	Baldy Castillo Invitational
Brooke Tjerrild, Cal Poly	Pole Vault	13-07.25	11	Cal Poly Invitational
Kiely Gode, UC Santa Barbara	Long Jump	20-02.50	17	Aztec Invitational
Brandy Williams, CSUN	Shot Put	52-06.00	24	Northridge Invitational

MEN

Name, School	Event	Time/Mark	Rank	Meet
Swarnjit Boyal, Cal Poly	10,000m	29:05.54	16	Stanford Invitational
Jason Smith, Long Beach State	High Jump	6-11.00	22	MONDO Team Challenge
Steven Childs, UC Davis	Long Jump	25-05.25	14	Titan Team Challenge
Kordell Hampton, UC Santa Barbara	Discus	186-09	13	Aztec Open
Erick Loomis, CSUN	Hammer	211-04	23	Northridge Invitational
Jonathan Broadhead, Long Beach State	Decathlon	6,822 points	14	UCR Spring Break Classic
Drake Foote, UC Davis	Decathlon	6,759 points	15	Hornet Invitational
Kyle Clancy, UC Davis	Decathlon	6,627 points	19	Hornet Invitational
Thomas Grossman, UC Davis	Decathlon	6,491 points	24	Hornet Invitational
Cole Hicks, Long Beach State	Decathlon	6,481 points	25	UCR Spring Break Classic