TURLOCK – In their final bid to post or improve NCAA Championship qualifying marks, members of the Chico State men’s track and field team traveled to Turlock Friday to compete in the Stanislaus Twilight Meet. The trip resulted in several outstanding Wildcat performances – including a handful of personal bests – on Al Brenda Track at Warrior Stadium.
Nick Lonnegren was able to match his PR in the 100-meter dash, winning the event with a time of 10.80 seconds. The Wildcats grabbed the top three spots in the 800-meter run, won by Clinton Hayes (1:53.75), followed by Manny Mejia (1:54.03) and Kyle Robinson (1:54.11). Joshua Linen, who already owns an NCAA provisional mark in the 5,000-meter run, finished first in the event Friday in Turlock with a time of 14:43.83…and the team of Lonnegren, Damaris Greer, Isaiah Haywood and Dwight Aitkens took top honors in the 4x100 relay, crossing the finish line at 42.68 seconds.
Jerome Kendricks came in third in the 400-meter hurdles, matching his personal best with a time of 54.10 seconds; Robert Nagle placed fourth in the event, clocking in at 56.16. Miles Dunbar, who posted a provisional mark in the 3,000-meter steeplechase last weekend during the CCAA Championships, finished third Friday with a time of 9:44.73, while Alan Campos placed fourth in the event, registering a PR of 9:58.87.
In field events Friday, Eric Wright finished second in the shot put with a toss of 46-feet-05.25, and fifth in the hammer throw; his longest heave at 173-feet-09. Derek Nichols’ toss of 144-feet-09 was good for fifth place in the discus throw.
While the Wildcats were competing at Cal State Stanislaus, decathlete Brian Beeman was down in southern California taking part in the Claremont Classic VII at the Burns Track and Field Complex in Claremont. Beeman finished sixth in the decathlon, but his total of 6,512 points were more than enough to earn an NCAA provisional bid. Among the 10 decathlon events, Beeman won the 1,500-meter run with a time of 4:31.75, placed third in the 400-meter dash (51.19 seconds) and tied for third in the high jump (6-feet-02.75).
Chico State now waits for the Wednesday, May 21st announcement to find out which Wildcats will be chosen to participate in the NCAA Track and Field Champioships, taking place May 27-29 in Charlotte, North Carolina.
