Bears Reach Double-Digit Top Finishes In Day One
SPOKANE, WASHINGTON – Cal track & field started their first multi-day session of 2022 with an impressive showing at day one of the WSU Open & Invitational, compiling a total of 11 Top-3 finishers at the end of a long day at The Podium in Spokane, Washington. Although the team saved the bulk of their competitors for Saturday's slate, plenty of Bears managed to set the tone and stand out from the crowd.
On the women's side, the top four spots in the 60m dash competition were seized by Cal runners. Senior Ezinne Abba took home first place with her time of 7.52, while classmate Jenea Spinks followed just behind at 7.55. In third came yet another senior in Maisie Stevens with a time of 7.58; she was closely tailed by freshman Aysha Shaheed, who clinched fourth place and a final time of 7.62 in her collegiate debut. Shaheed qualified for the finals after winning her preliminary heat in 7.56, tied for the ninth-best time in school history. Two Cal sprinters posted personal records in the women's 200m dash while finishing in the top 10: freshman Aly Conyers with her sixth-place 25.17 and sophomore Ryan Lacefield with a 10th-place 25.51. In the 60m hurdles race, sophomore Jazlynn Shearer set a new Podium record with her winning time of 8.44, while freshman Jordyn Grady finished in second place with 8.72 - eighth-fastest in Cal history - in her collegiate debut.
For the men's 60m dash, junior Christian Catlin led the pack with his first-place time of 6.87, while freshman Aiden Lippert nearly kept pace with a second-place (and personal-best) 6.88. Sophomore George Monroe also qualified for the finals, claiming fifth place with a time of 7.02.
A few of Cal's women also competed in the field events on Friday, quickly dominating the competition. Junior Asha Fletcher entered the long jump and posted a personal-best leap of 5.80m (19-0.5), tied for eighth-best in the Pac-12 and good for first place in the meet. Eager to join her at the top of the ranks, senior Felicia Renelus made her Cal debut with a third-place mark of 5.52m (18-1.5). Meanwhile, in the weight throw competition, fellow senior Camryn Rogers set the pace early and put an exclamation point on the night with a best heave of 21.97m (72-1), over a meter farther than the second-place finisher and a new record at The Podium. Both sophomore Rebecca Tomann and junior Anna Purchase bettered their marks from the last meet, with Tomann remaining in sixth place in the Pac-12 with her throw of 17.33m (56-10.25) and Purchase holding steady at eighth place in the conference with a toss of 17.20m (56-5.25).
For the second straight meet, junior Mason Mangum won the men's long jump competition, leaping a distance of 7.09m (23-3.25) as Cal's lone male field competitor on the day. Freshman Riley Knott competed in the heptathlon for the first time in a Cal uniform, compiling a total of 4606 points over the seven events.
Men's Results
Heptathlon: 7. Riley Knott 4606 (60m Dash 7.43; Long Jump 6.36m/20-10.5; Shot Put 10.72m/35-2; High Jump 1.90m/6-2.75; 60m Hurdles 8.79; Pole Vault 4.20m/13-9.25; 1000m Run 3:18.42)
60m Hurdles: 7. Di'Niko Bates 9.65
60m Dash: 1. Christian Catlin 6.87; 2. Aiden Lippert 6.88 (PR); 5. George Monroe 7.02; 14. Kamau Carlisle 7.04 (prelims); David Foster 6.89 (qualifier)
200m Dash: 10. Samir Thota 22.07; 12. Isaiah Shaw 22.16 (PR); 18. Henry Larkin 22.51
Long Jump: 1. Mason Mangum 7.09m/23-3.25
Women's Results
60m Hurdles: 1. Jazlynn Shearer 8.44 (Podium record); 2. Jordyn Grady 8.72 (8th Cal history)
60m Dash: 1. Ezinne Abba 7.52; 2. Jenea Spinks 7.55; 3. Maisie Stevens 7.58; 4. Aysha Shaheed 7.62; 17. Jahzara Richardson 7.91
200m Dash: 6. Aly Conyers 25.17 (PR); 10. Ryan Lacefield 25.51 (PR)
Long Jump: 1. Asha Fletcher 5.80m/19-0.5 (T8th Pac-12) (PR); 3. Felicia Renelus 5.52m/18-1.5
Weight Throw (WSU Invitational): 1. Camryn Rogers 21.97m/72-1 (Podium record); 7. Rebecca Tomann 17.33m/56-10.25 (6th Pac-12) (10th Cal history); 8. Anna Purchase 17.20m/56-5.25 (8th Pac-12)
UP NEXT
The Bears stay in Spokane for another day as they take on the bulk of the WSU Invitational, the first event of which is scheduled to start at 10:00 a.m. PT.
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