As UCLA track and field began preparing for the final leg of its season this week, the Triton Invitational in San Diego helped the Bruins relieve some of the pressure they will face soon, all while showcasing their talents.
The team rested some of its main athletes in anticipation of the challenges of its head-to-head meet with its crosstown rival on May 3 and the subsequent Pac-12 championship.
The Bruins who did compete this weekend, however, looked to take full advantage of the opportunity.
Redshirt sophomore shot putter Torie Owers and senior high jumper Zibby Boyer used this meet as preparation for the more difficult meets in the month of May. Owers finished fourth in the collegiate shot put competition and Boyer won the collegiate high jump with a leap of 5 feet 8 inches.
“This meet was just another shot to get more practice because we have championships coming up,” Boyer said. “This weekend was important.”
Boyer added that she’s eager to move forward and avenge the team’s losses to its crosstown rival in recent years.
“Men have won the last three years (against USC). We, the women, didn’t win three years ago, we did win two years ago, and we did not win last year,” the senior high jumper said.
The Bruins have kept their eye on the Trojans, but they have also focused on the task at hand and have kept building momentum with each passing week.
“We’ve got USC this weekend and we are very excited for that, but this was also a very good meet,” Owers said. “It was just a good meet especially for the shot putters to get some intensity flowing and get another meet where we could build our rhythm for the rest of the season.”
Owers is one of the newest faces on the team. A native of Georgia, the redshirt sophomore did not compete at all last season after transferring from Cal. She has been doing some heavy training since the season started. Owers finished this weekend’s invitational with a season-best performance in the women’s shot put competition.
“This was really the first meet where I wanted to move back up to where I think I should be this season. So I still had a hard week of (intense) training, but I really tried to focus on making this meet a better one,” Owers said. “I didn’t really have the best meet last weekend, and so this weekend I was especially motivated to come back and show myself that I can do better. I know I can.”
On the men’s side, the Bruins got more contributions from one of their top freshman performers in San Diego.
Freshman sprinter Leon Powell finished first among all collegiate competitors in the 100-meter sprint with a time of 10.67 seconds.
Looking ahead, Powell said that a tough challenge lays ahead for the Bruins as he and the rest of his teammates look forward to competing against the Trojans next weekend leading up to their final and fourth home meet in the Pac-12 championship.
“We used this (meet) as mental preparation to prepare for (USC). This is my first time competing against USC, so I’m not really sure what to expect, but honestly I’m looking forward to it,” Powell said.