The University of Redlands men's and women's track & field teams are primed to make a splash in the upcoming Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championships at Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges on Saturday, April 27, and Sunday, April 28. With each team owning an undefeated multi-dual record, the Maroon and Gray holds high expectations for strong results throughout the weekend.
The Bulldogs have stepped up this season with the highest national rankings in recent history. Both squads began the outdoor season ranked at No. 4, as determined by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCA) preseason polls. While the men have remained a top-20 team, currently ranked 16th nationally with 59.97 points, the women have upped the ante to No. 3 with 124.67 points heading into the SCIAC Championships. Regionally, the men are currently fourth in the West and the women remain solid at No. 2 with a slight edge over CMS and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively.
On the men's side, sophomore Tucker Cargile (Denver, CO) currently ranks second in the nation in the 800 Meters due to his 1:51.30 performance at the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational. Cargile also sits ninth regionally in the 1500 Meters with a time of 3:56.40, which came the SCIAC Multi-Dual No. 1 in Ted Runner Stadium.
In addition, junior Maliq Champion (Beaumont, CA) has found his stride with the third-fastest 200-Meter time in the nation at 21.10 duringthe SCIAC Multi-Dual No. 3. On that same day, he also fired off a time of 10.83 in the 100 Meters, which ranks fifth in the West Region. Finally, he shows his versatility as the fourth-ranked high jumper in the region with a height of 6' 6 ¾".
In the 4x100 Relay, senior Luke Bohlinger (Mercer Island, WA), Champion, and sophomores Domanick Murray (Palm Springs, CA) and MJ Wheeler (St. Louis, MO) cracked the top 10 in Division III by firing off a time of 41.51 at the SCIAC Multi-Dual No. 2. Furthermore, Bohlinger owns the second-fastest times in the West Region in both the 100 Meters (10.75) and 200 Meters (21.58).
In the hurdles, seniors John Pease (Fallbrook, CA) and Nick Burchett (Gold River, CA) have pushed each other all season and this weekend will provide an outstanding race for these Bulldogs. Pease and Burchett rank fourth and fifth in the region, respectively, with times of 54.96 and 55.22.
The 4x400 Relay of Cargile, Burchett, first-year Donavan Prince (San Diego, CA), and junior Tyler Lufkin (Yucaipa, CA) ran a time of 3:20.86 at the SCIAC Multi-Dual No. 3 meet to claim the second-fastest time in the region. At the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational, senior Joseph Esparza (Arcata, CA) ran a time of 9:16.00 in the 3000 Steeplechase, which ranks him third in the West.
Among the field events, Wheeler reached a distance of 23 1 ¾" in the Long Jump during the second conference meet of the season for the best mark in the West. Senior Matthew Hayashi (Hacienda Heights, CA) impresses with the region's No. 2 spot in the Shot Put with a distance of 48' 6 ¾".
For the women, junior Jessica Fields (Las Vegas, NV) and Chyenne Kimble (Big Bear Lake, CA) continue to bring out the best out of each other in the 100 Hurdles. Pushing themselves to the fastest two times in NCAA Division III, Fields is first with a time of 14.18 and Kimble closely follows in second at 14.19. Fields also owns a strong time of 1:01.77 in the 400 Hurdles, which is second in Division III and first in the West.
In the Heptathlon, Kimble accumulated a score of 4,608 points at the Jim Click Shootout to put her in sixth on the national leaderboards. She also ranks second regionally in the 100 Meters with a time of 12.21.
Kimble joins the talents of sophomore Hannah Albrecht (Cottage Grove, OR), first-year Annick Bangou (Redlands, CA), and first-year Courtney O'Neal (Atlanta, GA) as a formidable 4x100 Relay that ranks second both nationally and regionally with a quality time of 46.74. Bangou also shines in the 200 Meters with the fifth-fastest time in the region of 25.26.
With a solid showing at the Oxy Distance Carnival Spring Break Classic, junior Maria Ramirez (Orange, CA) ran the fourth-fastest 10,000 Meter time in the region with a mark of 38.14.36. Senior Ellie Ramsey (Waterbury, VT) rounds out the top five in the West in the 3,000 Steeplechase with her 11:32.56 time, which came at the Pomona-Pitzer Invite.
In the field events, graduate student Reyna Ta'amu (Lakewood, CA) threw a national best heave of 48' 6 ¾" in the Shot Put at the Redlands Invitational. Junior Katie Gonzalez (San Gabriel, CA) earned the fourth spot in the region in the Hammer Throw with a distance of 146' 1".
The SCIAC Championships will be hosted by CMS on Saturday, April 27, through Sunday, April 28. Action begins at 2 p.m. on both days.