The four honorees for Big West Track and Field Athlete of the Week honors all turned in personal-best performances, with two breaking school records.
Cal Poly senior Chris Frias (Ventura, Calif./Buena HS) notched Big West Men’s Track Athlete of the Week honors after toppling a 31-year old school record. Frias posted a time of 28:45.60 in the 10,000 meters at the Stanford Invitational, eclipsing the old mark of 28:52.04 set by Carmelo Rios in 1983. The mark currently ranks No. 9 nationally. Frias shattered his previous personal best by 48 seconds as he finished 14th in Section 1 of the race at Cobb Track.
Another Cal Poly distance specialist received Big West Women’s Track Athlete of the Week distinction in senior Diana George (Livermore, Calif./Colorado). George ran a school record 10:15.93 steeplechase time at the Stanford Invitational, erasing the previous mark of 10:17.24 set in 2011 by Leanne Fogg. Finishing fourth in Section 2 of the 3,000 steeplechase, George clocked the 11th-best time in the country and beat her previous PR by six seconds.
The Big West Men’s Field Athlete of the Week honor went to Long Beach State junior Jake Fraser (Lake Forest, Calif./El Toro HS). Fraser posted two personal-bests with dual first-place efforts in the shot put and discus at the Cal/Nevada Championships. His toss of 58-7.50 in the shot put placed him No. 7 all-time in school history, while also ranking No. 14 in the West Region and No. 38 nationally. The heave also improved his PR by one foot and 4 3/4 inches. The 189-05 throw in the discus obliterated his previous personal record by 10 feet and five inches, and put him at No. 8 in the LBSU record book. The mark also ranks No. 7 regionally and No. 17 nationally. For his efforts, Fraser was named the Outstanding Men’s Field Athlete of the Meet.
Long Beach State junior Tiffany Forbito (Oregon City, Ore./Clackamas CC) earned Big West Women’s Field Athlete of the Week accolades for her performance in the javelin. She threw the javelin 157-04 at the Cal/Nevada Championships for a third place finish and an improvement on her personal-best by over nine feet. The mark also placed her No. 14 regionally and No. 28 nationally, while ranking as the Big West’s best effort by over nine feet so far this season.
Others nominated (Men’s Track): Gilbert Solorza (Cal State Fullerton); Chris Low (Long Beach State); Lloyd Sicard (UC Irvine); Jackson Bright (UC Santa Barbara)
Others nominated (Women’s Track): Katie Wilson (Cal State Fullerton); Emily Cooper (Long Beach State); Alycia Cridebring (UC Davis); Ericka Nowell (UC Irvine); Maxine Goyette (UC Santa Barbara)
Others nominated (Men’s Field): Ricky Strehlow (Cal Poly); Malik Johnson (Cal State Fullerton); Albert Hughes (UC Santa Barbara)
Others nominated (Women’s Field): Kendel Nielsen (Cal Poly); Jasmyne Davis (Cal State Fullerton); Jessica Emde (UC Santa Barbara)