A small group from the UCLA men’s track and field team went up to Seattle over the weekend in order to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships at the University of Washington Last Chance Meet.
But they came back in the same position they were in before the meet.
“We unfortunately had no improvements,” coach Art Venegas said. “Our team (for Nationals) is still going to be set up by Monday morning.”
The official announcement on who qualifies for the NCAA Championships next weekend will come out today.
There is a group of five athletes who look like they will be competing next week. Redshirt senior thrower Boldizsar Kocsor, senior hurdler Kevin Craddock, redshirt sophomore pole vaulter Johnny Quinn, redshirt sophomore thrower Bo Taylor and redshirt sophomore thrower Nick Robinson look like they will hold onto their spots. The distance medley relay is on the bubble and will have to wait for the official results.
At the Last Chance Meet, Robinson won the shot put with a toss of 59 feet, 5 inches. Taylor was right behind him at 58-10. Both have provisionally qualified but were hoping to further guarantee a spot at Nationals.
In the pole vault, three athletes tied for second. Redshirt senior Dustin DeLeo, redshirt sophomore Greg Woepse, and redshirt sophomore Casey DiCesare all cleared 17-0. The height was a lifetime-best for DiCesare.
Junior Alex Crabill also picked up a new personal best. In the mile he ran 4:08.02 to finish second in his heat. Junior Marlon Patterson placed eighth overall in the event with a time of 4:04.08.
“It’s always tough (to qualify) when they haven’t done it yet this year,” Venegas said. “They have one meet to do it, and it’s not common to make it. They just have to give it an effort.”
The Bruins who are done with the indoor season and did not go to Seattle saw their first outdoor action of the year and opened up with strong performances at the Ben Brown Invitational in Fullerton. Sophomore Taylor Hobson highlighted UCLA as the team’s first regional qualifier. Hobson tied for second in the high jump by clearing 6-10.75. He also placed fourth in the long jump at 23-0. Redshirt freshman Mark Weber earned two lifetime-bests. In the shot put he threw 53-10.50 for a first place finish and threw 164-9 in the discus to come in fourth.
The 4x400m relay team outsprinted the competition to come in first in a time of 3:13.90. The 4x100m team was second and ran 41.13. Freshman Karlton Rolle came in second in the 200m at 21.51. Sophomore Jonathan Clark jumped 49-1.75 to come within an inch of a regional mark in the triple jump. Junior Andreas Drbal threw 185-4 to place second in the javelin.