The University of Redlands track & field teams completed the opening day of the 2014 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championship meet in Eagle Rock at Occidental College on Friday, with the men sitting third (30 points) and the women in fourth (19 points) after 10 events.

The highlight of the day came in the Long Jump, as senior Darron Usher (Rialto, CA) uncorked a first-place mark of 24' ¾", which lands him atop the current NCAA Division III list for that event. In addition, this career-best effort came on his final jump of the night, which propelled him from second to first in the final standings.

In addition, senior Jorge Cervantes (Indio, CA) finished second in the Shot Put with a toss of 46' 11", while senior Gilbert Navarro (Chula Vista, CA) fired off a mark of 42' 1 ½" for eighth place.

Redlands' senior Chris Bode (Elk, WA) took fourth in the Javelin Throw at 179' 3", with his teammate, senior Kyle Houtzer (Anaheim, CA), closely following in fifth at 167' 2".

Sophomore Jarron Helbock (San Diego, CA) completed the 3000 Steeplechase among the scoring eight, taking seventh for the Bulldogs with a career-best time of 9:48.85.

For the women, junior Merritt ten Hope (Phoenix, AZ) impressed on the Pole Vault with a second-place mark of 11' ¾".

Freshman Bree Wilkinson (Lafayette, CA) uncorked a distance of 117' 10" in the Discus Throw, taking fifth in her inaugural SCIAC Championship meet.

Furthermore, sophomore Kylie Scott (Snohomish, WA) and senior Jazzmin Altamira (Winetka, CA) scored crucial points in the Hammer Throw, taking sixth (132' 7") and eighth (127"), respectively. Senior Vanessa Anchondo (Oceanside, CA) and junior Lauren Tritz (Orange, CA) also stepped up with point-scoring performances. Anchondo posted an eighth-place time of 11:56.11 in the 3000 Steeplechase, while Tritz recorded a leap of 16' 7 ¾" to finish eighth in the Long Jump.

Redlands looks forward to finishing the 2014 SCIAC Championship meet on Saturday, beginning at 1 p.m. in Eagle Rock.