UCR Track and Field Continues to Improve, Hit Qualifiers at Steve Scott Invitational

Friday, April 27

Irvine, CA

4:00 PM

UC Riverside

Steve Scott Invitational

UCR Track and Field Continues to Improve, Hit Qualifiers at Steve Scott Invitational

4/29/2018 9:01:00 PM | Men's Track and Field, Women's Track and Field

IRVINE, Calif. – UC Riverside Track and Field headed out to Irvine for the Steve Scott Invitational this past weekend, topping a number of lifetime-bests and seeing several Highlanders hit probable NCAA qualifying marks. The field mostly consisted of Division I competition, along with some international and unattached entrees.

Steve Scott Invitational

Full Results

Men's Highlights
Freshman Anthony Reyes was the top collegiate finisher in the Long Jump, likely collecting an NCAA First Round qualifying mark with a lifetime-best leap of 24-06.50 (7.48m). That was less than an inch away from first place and 3.5 inches shy of a top-3 all-time mark at UCR.

Also doing well to position himself for NCAA First Round competition was sophomore Heinrich Van Niekerk, who recorded a lifetime-best of 1:50.06 in the Men's 800m Run, good for the second-fastest time in program history. Crossing the finish line not long after was junior Ethan Van Setten, who took fourth in the event at 1:52.14.

Michael Kojin continued to burn it up on the track, leading all collegiate contestants with a 200m time of 21:46. The Valencia, Calif. native also just missed out on a top-10 overall mark in the 100m, posting the 11th-fastest time of 10.93 seconds.

The Highlanders once again found success in the Men's Shot Put, as senior Wesley Braddock (54-09.50) and sophomore Lawrence O'Hara (53-02.25) took first and third, respectively, among Division I student-athletes.

Women's Highlights
The Highlander women put together another impressive performance across the board, including meet-leading runs from seniors Faith Makau (1500m, 4:24.95) and Weslie Pearce (3000m Steeplechase, 10:26.68).

After working her way back from an injury for the majority of the last six months, sophomore Samantha Poliakon took 13th overall in the Women's 1500m with a personal-record of 4:42.42.

Camille Deadwiler also contributed to what was a good showing for UCR's seniors, making dents on the program top-10 charts for both the 200m and the 4x100m Relay.

Deadwiler's lifetime-best time of 24.76 seconds in the 200m was good for ninth overall and a Big West qualifier. It put her just 15 hundredths of a second shy of teammate Kenady Jackson (24.61) for eighth in the field and moved her into the No. 8 spot on the UCR all-time charts.

The Highlanders would utilize a new lineup in the Women's 4x100m Relay for the third time this season. And, for the third time in 2018, the Highlanders would see a new lineup crack the program's all-time top-10, as Deadwiler joined forces with Jackson, Destiny Mitchell and Victoria Sandoval to move into No. 8 all-time with a mark of 46.62.

Making her debut in the 5000m, freshman Alison Soto posted an impressive time of 17:56, the third-best mark on the team this season. Winning heat two in the same event was another first year Highlander in freshman Kiley Atwood, who led the pack in heat two with a time of 18:17.

Less than two weeks removed from receiving her fourth career Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Week honor, senior Tayler Fleming showed no signs of slowing down. In fact, she reached new heights in the 100m Hurdles, posting a lifetime-best of 14.35. Fleming also finished fourth overall in the Long Jump (19-10.25).

Junior Cydney Branch added another Big West Qualifier, finishing with a season-best of 2:14.57 in the Women's 800m.