With most of the squad taking a break from competition and training through the weekend, a small selection of athletes from the UCLA women’s track and field team took part in the 51st annual Mt. San Antonio College Relays in Walnut.
After three weeks in a row of intense home meets, coach Jeanette Bolden wanted to give her team a much-needed breather.
“We rested a lot of our athletes,” Bolden said. “(But) some of our athletes that we wanted to improve upon their performances did. That’s what we wanted to do.”
Day 1 on Friday was highlighted by a trio of season-bests and regional qualifiers.
Freshman Camilla Dencer improved her existing qualifier in the 800 meters to 2 minutes, 7.97 seconds. She placed fourth in the event.
“Camilla is now using her speed along with her strength, and that was nice to see,” Bolden said.
In the pole vault, sophomore Tori Anthony and junior Tori Pena tied for second by clearing 12 feet 11.50 inches, earning both vaulters a regional qualifier.
Also, redshirt senior Megan Jamerson placed third in the Olympic Development section of the pole vault with a mark of 13-1.50.
“We were looking to work on technical things with the pole vault, and we were able to do that,” Bolden said.
Redshirt freshman Jade Niemeyer threw 152-11 in the hammer to earn a 22nd-place finish.
“Even though Jade fouled on some throws, she had some very good ones, and that’s really encouraging,” Bolden said.
In the long-distance events, the Bruins achieved a lifetime best and one near best.
Freshman Sadee Martinez notched a personal record in the 3,000m steeplechase. She placed 14th in her section with a time of 11:05.85.
In the 1,500m, sophomore Shannon Murakami ran just shy of her lifetime best, finishing ninth and coming in at 4:27.98.
Saturday was another good day for the Bruins as they exhibited some more solid performances.
Sophomore Lindsay Rowe ran a 13.64 in the 100m hurdles and came in third in the Olympic Development section.
In the invitational section of the 800m, junior Krishna Curry came in 12th place with a time of 2:07.55.
Junior Katy Viuf was able to hit 13-1.50 in the invite pole vault to earn ninth place. One of the professional athletes competing in the meet, alumna Chelsea Johnson, won the event at 14-11.
There are a couple more weeks before the huge meets hit, with the USC Dual Meet coming at the beginning of May.
Lessons from this weekend will now be put into practice to prepare for the most important part of the season.
“Even though the results overall don’t seem great, we know why no one made a big jump,” Bolden said. “Right now my team is making technical adjustments. It’s encouraging heading into the second half of the season.”