One of the most prestigious tournaments hosted by a Big West school is in the spotlight this weekend as the Steve Scott Invitational takes place at UC Irvine.
The Steve Scott is in its 16th year at Anteater Stadium and is named for arguably the greatest track athlete in UCI history. Scott, the current coach at Cal State San Marcos, was a six-time All-American in track and cross country at UCI, and a three-time Olympian. The meet will run Saturday-Sunday and will attract some of the best athletes, both professional and collegiate, that the west coast has to offer.
There will also be a meet in Northern California that has Big West teams competing, the Payton Jordan Invitational. The meet, which is hosted by Stanford, will have conference schools Cal Poly, Cal State Fullerton, UC Davis, UC Riverside and UC Santa Barbara in the field. The elite meet is named for the legendary Cardinal coach who passed away in 2003 and is particularly known for its evening distance carnival.
Finally, a couple of rivals will take on each other in a dual meet this weekend as Central Coast foes UC Santa Barbara and Cal Poly meet in San Luis Obispo for a one-day showdown.
Big West Multi Championships A Week Away: The first leg of the Big West Championships is just a week away as the eight clubs will send their best multi athletes to Northridge for the decathlon/heptathlon championships. The competition allows clubs to get early points in the race for the Big West titles that will be contested a week later.
UCSB's Finley Vaults Way To School Record: UC Santa Barbara pole vaulter Scott Finley put himself at the top of the Gaucho record book over the weekend. Finley’s mark of 17-2.5 not only tied for first in the event at the UCSD Triton Invitational, but it also put him at the top of the UCSB list. The effort also puts him in the top 20 in the NCAA and top 12 in the region.
Big West Athletes Compete at Drake Relays: One of the nation’s oldest track festivals, the Drake Relays, was run last week and a couple of Big West schools competed in the 101st running of the event. Long Beach State had two men’s athletes there in Sam Jeter and Kenneth Medwood. The duo ran in the 400 hurdles with Jeter finishing sixth overall (51.65) and Medwood wrapping up the event in 21st place (53.33). UC Riverside also had its men's sprint contingent in Des Moines, highlighted by a season-best effort in the 4x200 relay (1:27.05) which netted the group a 10th place finish.
CSF's Short Triple Leader in Sprints: Cal State Fullerton sprinter Ciara Short has cemented her status as the favorite in the sprint events with just two weeks remaining until the Big West Championships. Short is tops in the 100 (11.66), 200 (23.77) and 400 (53.16). No runner in Big West history has won all three events in a single championship and only one Titan has ever won any of the three events at the Championships (Kandace Wilson - 400, 2007).
O'Boyle Enters Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame: UC Irvine head track and field/cross country coach Vince O'Boyle has been inducted into the Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame. O’Boyle was inducted along with two-time Olympic medalist John Godina (throws) and Toby Stevenson, the 2004 Olympic silver medalist in the pole vault. The induction ceremony took place April 14 at the 52nd annual Mt. SAC Relays Banquet at the Pacific Palms Conference Resort in the City of Industry. O'Boyle has been involved with the Mt. SAC Relays for the past 47 years, first as a runner for Monrovia High School in 1963 and later for Citrus College and Cal Poly Pomona, and as a coach at Citrus College and UCI.
UCR's Martinez Lands on Bowerman List: UC Riverside's Brenda Martinez landed on the watch list for The Bowerman, the award handed out by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association recognizing the track athlete of the year on both the men’s and women’s side. Martinez finds herself on the also receiving mention portion of the preseason list, meaning she can move up to the primary watch list at any point in the season. Martinez is the Big West record holder in the 800 and 1500 and completed a whirlwind summer circuit which saw her compete in six races across Europe. She also ran the fastest 800 in the NCAA in her first race of the 2010 outdoor season.