The UCLA track and field team will host ten schools this weekend in what it will treat as a trial meet. The Bruin Legends of Track and Field Invitational is a two-day meet open to both college and high school competitors, slightly lowering the intensity of competition for the Bruins. While various members of the team will be competing this weekend, each individual will be treating the invitational as a “training meet.”
For redshirt senior Kylie Price, who holds top-15 marks in three events after her impressive performance in her season debut last week, the meet will serve as a stepping stone for bigger goals at hand.
“Going into Saturday, it’s more of a training meet. Since there are a lot of schools out there, we’re going to focus more on the training aspect and getting stronger,” Price said. “That’s why I’m running the 400 and the 4×400, to get some good conditioning in. It’s kind of like a glorified practice.”
The former All-American currently holds the top long jump mark in the nation with a distance of 21-4.75. With only seven meets left until the Pac-12 championships – or rather the beginning of the end – Price was quick to note her goals for the season.
“My goal is to win nationals in the long jump, so we’re just going to take it step by step and meet by meet,” Price said. “Also, our 4×100 team last week ran the fastest time since 2004, so I really want to get them into nationals and score so that we’re all All-Americans. I know we’re good enough.”
Fellow long jumper Austin Hazel is also coming fresh off an impressive performance from last week’s Jim Bush Collegiate Invitational. The junior was able to leap a distance of 25 feet on his final attempt in the long jump, giving him the first place win in addition to a new personal best. Despite such success, Hazel has tempered his expectations for this weekend’s competition.
“We’ve got a relatively long season, so after talking to my coaches, we decided my goal is to train through this meet,” Hazel said. “We know regionals and Pac-12 championships are at the end of the season, and this is only a small stepping stone for that point.”
Hazel is also drawing motivation from the rival school USC, keeping track of its long jumpers’ marks.
“I want be on their heels and make them a little uncomfortable,” Hazel said. “Adoree Jackson jumped (25-8) so I’m super motivated to just come out and jump strong. So that’s my goal at this point.”
Stamatia Scarvelis will compete in three throwing events this weekend for the Bruins. Last week, the novice was able to take first in the hammer and discus throws, also grabbing second in a shot put sweep for the women’s side. With such early success in her first outdoor campaign, Scarvelis attributed her year-long journey of changing to the spin technique to her victories. Although her teammates maintain a mindset of training for this week, the nation’s former top high school discus and shot put thrower is looking to take advantage of the widespread competition this weekend.
“Kansas State has great throwers in the hammer and in the shot put, so my goal is to just to try keep up with them, which will hopefully lead me to some PRs and competing really well,” Scarvelis said. “That’s what it’s all about at the end of the day – just competing.”