For Allie Miller, Saturday was her best day as a Bruin.
The senior jumper won the high jump at the Long Beach Invitational at Cerritos with a lifetime best of 5 feet, 10.75 inches.
“I haven’t really had a personal record since high school,” Miller said. “It was just great to overcome that barrier.”
The height qualifies for regionals and is tied for the fifth best mark in the nation.
“She made a big step forward today realizing she is pretty good,” jumps coach Mike Powell said. “It’s one of those days as a coach you can enjoy.”
Miller came into UCLA as the California state champion jumping 5-9. During the past three years she has consistently jumped 5-7 or 5-9. It has taken her a while to move past those marks.
“A big part of track and field is trusting what your body can do,” Powell said. “She didn’t talk herself out of it and today she just figured it out.
Finally having that breakout performance Saturday will help her in her final season as a Bruin.
“It has been a long road for me,” Miller said. “This solidifies everything I’ve worked for.”
Taking what was learned from this meet and moving on to the rest of the year, Miller will have more confidence in the upcoming big meets.
“I’ve been working my tail off, and my coach has always told me I can do it,” said Miller. “Now we’re on the same page and we can just believe and work together.”
Several other athletes also turned in good results at Cerritos.
In the high jump, junior Maryann Wee cleared 5-7 to finish second behind Miller, and senior Kathleen Mahony placed fifth at 5-5.
Junior Gabrielle Bournes highlighted the distance group with a sixth place finish in the 800 meters with a run of 2:14.25. Junior Lauren Jirges placed 12th at 2:17.28, and freshman Cobbie Jones ran 2:20.66 to finish 22nd.
Running season bests on Saturday were freshmen Brittany Stalworth in the 100m with a time of 12.82 and Shannon Murakami in the 1500m 4:38.86.
For the distance group, it was the second race in two days since the runners were also a part of the group that competed in the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut along with the pole vaulters.
Murakami ran 4:45.17 on Friday while Jirges ran 4:38.75 in the 1500m.
Senior Ingrid Kantola headlined the squad with a fourth-place finish in the pole vault with a height of 12-7.50.
Freshman Tori Anthony reached the same height as Kantola but came in seventh based on misses. Sophomore Tori Pena finished eighth at 12-1.
On Sunday, sophomore Krishna Curry ran 2:12.93 in the 800m.
LOOKING AHEAD: On Wednesday, the Bruins begin competition in the prestigious Penn Relays held in University Park, Pa. It is one of the most famous meets in the entire country, with over hundreds of thousands of fans attending during the five day event. For those not competing in Pennsylvania, the Triton Invitational will be held at UC San Diego next weekend.