Coming off of a dominating victory over USC at the USC-UCLA Dual Meet, the No. 10 Bruins look to further demonstrate their skill and depth at the Pac-10 Championships this weekend.
UCLA had a fourth-overall finish and three Pac-10 champions last season: Chelsea Johnson in the pole vault, Nicole Leach in the 400-meter hurdles and Rhonda Watkins in the high jump.
At the USC-UCLA Dual Meet, Leach ran the second-fastest time in the nation this season in the 400m hurdles with a time of 55.60. Watkins, competing in both the high jump and long jump events, holds the title of 2007 NCAA Long Jump Indoor Champion. Boasting multiple past and present All-Americans and a driven team, the Bruins have the depth and are poised to take home the Pac-10 title as a unified team.
With UCLA possessing depth in every event, the Bruins are hoping to compete well in their respective events.
“There are a lot of talented girls (in the pole vault event), but no single dominant athlete,” redshirt senior pole vaulter Jackie Nguyen said. “So it is really up in the air to place up the top three. If everyone just focuses on doing what they can do and complete their job then we can bring home the Pac-10 Championship.”
In addition to the possibility of becoming Pac-10 champions, UCLA also looks to use this weekend as an opportunity for more of its athletes to reach qualifying marks for the regional championships coming up May 26-27 in Oregon. The Bruins already have 31 qualifying marks, and 23 of those marks are ranked top eight in the conference.
After training consistently and vigorously, the athletes will strive to record personal bests and use each other as support to utilize their talents.
“We’re hoping that a lot more of our athletes will compete well and be able to go to regionals,” coach Jeanette Bolden said. “But winning the Pac-10 Championship would be really nice, in part because of the depth of other Pac-10 teams.”
When asked whether winning the Pac-10 Championships is a feasible achievement this season, jumper Rhonda Watkins spoke up.
“I don’t see why not,” Watkins said. “We’re as good as any team. We just have to go and execute, and make good calls at the right time. We want to win the championship.”