For redshirt junior Dustin DeLeo, vaulting to lifetime bests is starting to become routine. Just a week after clearing a height of 17 feet, 3 inches in the pole vault, DeLeo went to the Triton Invitational and smashed that height with a vault of 18-1.
“Everything kind of came together at this last meet,” DeLeo said.
With the 10-inch improvement, DeLeo not only tied for first at the meet but moved into the No. 5 spot on the all-time UCLA list.
“In the coach’s office there are pictures of the top 10 guys,” said DeLeo. “So I’ve seen those the past three years (and) worked hard to get there.”
Besides the fact that DeLeo will now be joining those faces on the wall, he was also named the Pac-10 Male Field Event Athlete of the Week. He now ranks second in the nation with his 18-1 clearance.
Pole vault coach Anthony Curran said he had an “easy jump at 17-5.” That set the tone for the day and surpassed DeLeo’s previous lifetime best by two inches.
“He’s been really good in practice,” Curran said. “He had an awesome day. I’m expecting something big from him.”
Those expectations could mean a Pac-10 or even a national title. Curran said it will all depend on “who’s on that day,” and is hoping the Bruins can sweep the pole vault event at the USC meet coming up this week. DeLeo also has his eyes set on the upcoming dual meet.
“I’m not worried about height,” DeLeo said. “Just beat the best ‘SC guy and do our job in the pole vault and try to score for our team.”
With only big meets left for the rest of the season, the focus will be on keeping the team healthy and performing well every meet.
“I just put it in perspective and try and jump a bit higher each meet,” DeLeo said.
DeLeo also praised his team for working so hard and being a group that can train so well together.
That has proven to be a recipe for success so far this season, as the Bruins as a team have a total of five regional marks.
DeLeo was not the only Bruin to achieve success in San Diego this weekend.
Freshman hurdler Brian Law also came up with a lifetime best for the second week in a row. His time of 53.42 seconds in the 400-meter hurdles placed him fourth in the competition.
UCLA also added two more regional qualifying marks to bring the total up to 28.
These came from redshirt senior Zack Miller, who placed sixth in the pole vault with a clearance of 16-7.25, and freshman Jonathon Clark, who placed second in the high jump with a mark of 6-10.75.
There were high expectations on UCLA’s throwers going into the weekend because of favorable winds, and the Bruins came away with some good performances.
Among these were the performances by redshirt freshman Bo Taylor, who threw a lifetime best of 185-9 to finish 13th in the discus, and redshirt junior Boldizsar Kocsor, who finished second in the hammer throw but was the top collegiate finisher.