FULLERTON, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton track and field is set to compete at two separate meets this week as the Bryan Clay Invitational begins on Wednesday night with the 10,000-meter races while the Beach Invitational starts on Friday. The Bryan Clay Invitational, hosted by Azusa Pacific, is a Wednesday-Friday meet with competition beginning at 7:15 p.m. PT, 3 p.m. and 9 a.m. on each day. At Long Beach State's Jack Rose Track, the 25th Annual Beach Invitational begins on Friday at 8:30 a.m. and at 9 a.m. on Saturday.
The Titan distance runners will compete at the Bryan Clay Invitational against some of the top student-athletes from around the country, including Arizona State, Wisconsin, Texas, Texas Tech, Nebraska, Mississippi State and many others. At the Beach Invitational, where the sprinters/hurdlers, jumpers and throwers from Fullerton will compete, the Titans square off against student-athletes from some of the top schools in the nation such as USC, Oregon, Iowa, Colorado State, Washington, Georgia, UCLA and many others.
The Titans have had at least one Big West Athlete of the Week honoree in all but one week of the 2019 outdoor season. The most recent honoree was Marcel Espinoza, for the second time this season, as his time of 46.13 in the 400 meters at the Rafer Johnson/Jackie Joyner-Kersee Invitational set a school record, breaking Darion Zimmerman's mark of 46.86 from 2017. The time also ranks as the 23rd-fastest in the country and 10th-best in the West Region. Espinoza and the 4x400-meter relay team clocked a season-best time of 3:10.11 to win the event.
In the men's sprints, the Titans own three of the top five spots in the Big West in the 100 meters and and each of the top four in the 200 meters, led by Mason Rollins in both at 10.45 and 21.23, respectively. Charles Kelly's 110mH time of 14.29 is fourth in the league on the year and so is his 400mH time at 52.65. Diego Courbis' 400mH time of 52.88 is fifth. Espinoza (46.13) and Parris Samaniego (47.01) hold the top two times in the 400-meter race.
Jake Smith owns the top time in the conference in the 1,500 meters at 3:50.22 while Huerta is second in that distance at 4:25.03. Trinity Ruelas also holds the top women's 5K time at 16:32.56 with Alyssa Block at third at 16:50.59. Jorge Sanchez's 3K steeplechase time of 9:05.27 is No. 1 in the Big West on the men's side while Gabrielle De La Rosa is first on the women's side at 10:50.53.
Kyle Beck (16-0.75, 4.90m) and Shelby Noble (12-7.5, 3.85m) are second and third, respectively, in the league in the men's and women's pole vault. Naiah Boardingham's women's long jump mark of 19-11 (6.07m) is tops in the league. Iesha Hamm is second in the Big West in the women's high jump with a mark of 5-9.25 (1.76m).
Sierra Valdivieso is second in the Big West in the women's discus with a mark of 168-0 (51.20m) and Nicole Clark is second in the women's javelin with a toss of 159-7 (48.65m). Trevor Gorwin is third in the conference in the men's hammer (198-3/60.47m) and fourth in the shot put (53-6.25/16.31m).
With the 2019 season under way, cross country and track and field head coach John Elders is in his 31st season at the helm of each program making him the longest tenured head coach in the history of Cal State Fullerton. Cal State Fullerton won the 2017 Big West Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championships, the first conference title in program history, then repeated that feat in 2018 to become back-to-back champions.
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