With only one meet standing in the way of the NCAA
Championships, the Bruin sprint squad kicked it into high gear.
Over the weekend, several of UCLA’s men’s track and
field athletes punched their ticket to Sacramento next weekend with
their performances at the Western Regional Championships in Provo,
Utah. As a team, the No. 17 Bruins placed sixth in the region with
62.50 points, just a few points behind Oregon. The team
automatically qualified eight athletes for the NCAA Championships,
including the team’s top sprinters.
“The most important thing is to advance,” said
sprints coach Tony Veney, who saw his two prized athletes, senior
Craig Everhart and freshman Kevin Craddock, finish among the top
five, automatically moving them on to the national championships.
“You have to run smart through the rounds and I was really
pleased with the way both guys ran,” said Veney.
Everhart placed third in a very top-heavy field of 400-meter
runners. His time of 45.61 was a season best. Craddock will advance
to the NCAA meet as well, turning in a second-place finish in the
110m hurdles at 13.77 seconds. The freshman’s ability to
perform so well is especially remarkable considering that he has
only been able to practice for eight of the past 29 days, according
to Veney.
“Kevin continues to impress me just with the fact that he
is still not 100 percent,” Veney said. “He just keeps
getting sharper with each race, and he hasn’t even been able
to practice.”
The Bruins’ two standout runners figure to be the
team’s best bet for points at the national championships as
both Everhart and Craddock are ranked in the top 13 nationally.
Veney also saw his 4x400m relay perform well, placing fifth and
giving them a good shot at an at-large berth to the
championships.
JUMPERS ADVANCE: While the Bruins received
strong performances from their usual standout athletes, there were
also several surprises. In particular, sophomore Joel Tuosto came
out of nowhere to win the regional title in the long jump. On his
last attempt, Tuosto moved all the way from seventh to first place
with a giant leap of 25-6.75, over half a foot better than his
previous lifetime best (24-9).
“I knew before that last jump that I had one more left in
me,” Tuosto said. “I just had to execute and get it
done. I feel really confident going into the NCAA meet because I
just keep improving every week.”
Sophomore Michael Johnson also had a banner performance, jumping
51-2.75 in the triple jump to grab fourth place and a trip to
Sacramento State.
In the pole vault, junior David Shortenhaus also had a career
day, jumping a lifetime best of 17-5 and finishing in fifth place
to take the last automatic spot in that event. Redshirt junior Mike
Landers finished in sixth and should receive an at-large bid based
on prior performances.
OTHER QUALIFIERS: In the throws, a pair of
Bruins advanced as freshman Boldizsar Kocsor took fifth in the
hammer with a mark of 205-11 while junior Jason Rider’s
personal-best throw of 190-8 was good enough for fourth. …
Redshirt senior Martell Munguia also qualified, placing fifth in
the 800m with a season-best time of 1:49.04.