Bears Impress at Payton Jordan Invitational

STANFORD, Calif. – The California Golden Bears track & field team was in action across the bay on Sunday at the 19th Annual Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational at Cobb Track and Angell Field in Stanford, Calif. 27 Golden Bears were in action at arguably one of the world’s premier distance invitationals on Sunday afternoon and evening. The headliner today for California was sophomore Thomas Joyce who ran a sub-14-minute 5000-meters to win his section and etch his name into the record books, running a time of 13:57.31, which ranks him ninth on Cal’s All-Time Performers List. The Bears also had a strong day in the field events, finishing 1-2-3 in the men’s discus, posting solid marks in the hammer and shot put and junior Chioma Amaechi claimed the women’s shot put with a mark of 50-4.00. Additionally, a couple of Bears set PR’s in the 3000-meter steeplechase, as redshirt senior Simon Schmidt placed sixth in his section with a time of 9:01.83 and freshman Megan Bordes clocked a time of 10:47.11. 
 
Joyce obliterated his previous PR from last year in the 5000-meters, besting that time by over 46 seconds to win section four on Sunday. He surged to the front of the pack in the backstretch to claim the victory for the Bears. Also in that section was freshman John Lawson, who was impressive in his own right, finishing third with a new PR time of 14:03.78.
 
Freshman Megan Bordes set a new PR in the 3000-meter steeplechase, and improved her standing in sixth place on Cal’s All-Time Performers List with a time of 10:47.11. On the men’s side, redshirt senior Simon Schmidt also PR’ed, running a time of 9:01.83, which placed him sixth in his section of the steeple. Schmidt’s previous best was 9:02.38, which was set back in 2012 in Berkeley. Additionally, junior Kelsey Santisteban came in just under three seconds short of her personal best in the women’s 5000-meters, as she placed seventh in her section with a time of 15:52.94.
 
Over in the field events, the Bears men finished 1-2-3 in the discus, as senior Derek White took home the title with a mark of 187-6 on his third attempt. Freshman Brenden Song continued to show improvement for Cal, besting his PR mark from the Brutus Hamilton Challenge & Open last weekend with a throw of 179-2 on Sunday. Additionally, White placed second in the hammer with a throw of 207-7 and freshman Matt Esparza set a new PR in the shot put, where he placed third with a mark of 56-8.75 by surpassing his previous best of 53-0.00 last week at the Brutus Hamilton. On the women’s side, Amaechi claimed the shot put title with a mark of 50-4.00.
 
On deck are the Pac-12 Championships in Pullman, Wash. next Saturday and Sunday, which kick off with the Multis. The second weekend of the Pac-12 Championships gets underway on Saturday May 17 and carries through Sunday.
 
19th Annual Payton Jordan Cardinal Invitational
Cobb Track and Angell Field/Stanford, Calif.
 
California Results
 
Men
800-meters (Section 4) – 3. Jordan Locklear 1:50.99
 
800-meters (Section 5) – 4. Josh Lewis 1:52.50; 5. Eugene Hamilton III 1:52.71
 
5000-meters (Section 4) – 1. Thomas Joyce 13:57.31 PR; 3. John Lawson 14:03.78 PR; 11. Chris Walden 14:27.25; 14. Leland Later 14:44.32
 
3000-meter steeplechase (Section 3) – 6. Simon Schmidt 9:01.83 PR; 11. Seamus Land 9:21.11
 
Shot Put – 3. Matt Esparza 56-8.75 (17.29m) PR; 4. Sullivan Parker 56-0.00 (17.07m); 6. Cody Bickham 50-5.25 (15.37m)
 
Discus – 1. Derek White 187-6 (57.14m); 2. Brenden Song 179-2 (54.61m) PR; 3. CJ Nwuzi 173-2 (52.78m); 6. Cody Bickham 143-7 (43.77m)
 
Hammer – 2. Derek White 207-7 (63.27m); 4. Scott Esparza 203-2 (61.93m); 7. Isaac Dan 198-1 (60.38m) PR
 
Women
800-meters (Section 6) – 6. Arielle Stevenson 2:12.65
 
1500-meters (Section 4) – 10. Sydney Gray 4:28.63
 
5000-meters (Section 2) – 7. Kelsey Santisteban 15:52.94
 
3000-meter steeplechase (Section 3) – 15. Megan Bordes 10:47.11 PR
 
Pole Vault – 2. Victoria Rische 12-2.00 (J3.71m); 3. Nicole Larson 12-2.00 (J3.71m)
 
Long Jump – 2. Malaina Payton 18-4.25 (5.59m)
 
Triple Jump – 2. Kiare Tanner 39-11.25 (12.17m)
 
Shot Put – 1. Chioma Amaechi 50-4.00 (15.34m)
 
Hammer – 2. Maggie Simpson 163-2 (49.74m)