LA JOLLA, Calif. – UC San Diego Track and Field will host UC Riverside, CSUN, and San Diego State's women in the annual Triton Invitational on Saturday, April 10 at Triton Track and Field Stadium. Located in La Jolla, the meet will start with throwing events and horizontal jumps at 2 p.m. with vertical jumps and track events beginning shortly after.
DETAILS
vs.
Triton Invitational
Saturday, April 10
Throwing Events / Horizontal Jumping Events – 2 p.m.
Vertical Jumping Events / Track Events – 2 p.m./2:25 p.m.
Triton Track and Field Stadium • La Jolla
Live Results |
Schedule
UC SAN DIEGO AND COVID-19
UC San Diego's nationally renowned Return to Learn program was created to return to in-person teaching, learning, conducting pioneering research and serving our communities in the safest way possible. The program has three adaptive pillars that are central to our strategy to resume on-campus activity: risk mitigation, viral detection, and intervention.
For the latest information on UC San Diego and COVID-19, please visit the University's
Return to Learn site.
ATTENDING UC SAN DIEGO HOME EVENTS
Per current COVID-19 safety guidelines and protocols implemented by UC San Diego, spectators are not permitted to attend home meets at Triton Track and Field Stadium at this time.
TRITON INVITE HISTORY
Over the years, the Triton Invite has ranked among the top annual meets in the nation. UC San Diego has regularly put up competitive numbers on its home turf.
Most recently, in 2019, the men's 4x400 relay team consisting of
Maximilian Halvax,
Makhai Husband,
Adam Winding and
Josef Polk came in second place with a time of 3:13.81. The time also put them second in Triton program history. Later on, the quartet would beat their own mark to become UC San Diego's all-time record holders which still stands to this day.
For a list of Triton Track & Field Stadium Records, click
here.
LAST TIME OUT
The Tritons competed at the Chris Rinne Twilight last Saturday, April 2, in Riverside, Calif. UC San Diego matched up against Seattle University, Montana State, Western New Mexico, and UC Riverside. University of San Diego had some athletes in attendance as well.
Highlighting the weekend was senior
Blake Walkowiak's record breaking 176'10" toss in the discus, placing him second overall. The Saugus native surpassed a longstanding 29-year mark set by Triton alum Scott Sargeant in 1992. The hurl is currently ranked third among the Big West Conference.
In addition, senior
Jake Selstad took first place in the 800 with a time of 1:51.78 – a meet record and a time that tied his No. 10 all-time performance from 2019. Other event winners from the men's side include sophomore
Gabriel Reuter in the 3000 (8:32.81), junior
Brett Beattie in the 1500 (3:59.39), sophomore
Kalobe Jimenez in the 110 hurdles (14.94), and junior
Jordan Baker in the hammer (162'07").
For the women, sophomore
Gloria Kalt finished first in the 400 hurdles (1:03.41) as fellow classmate
Naomi Chin won the pole vault (11'6.25"). The UC San Diego 4x400 A squad of junior
Ellie Flint, Kalt, and seniors
Jenna Mencarelli and
Mckenna Meaney took home the crown, crossing the line in 3:59.66.
WALKOWIAK NAMED USE CREDIT UNION ATHLETE OF THE WEEK
Following his big performance at the Chris Rinne Twilight, Walkowiak earned UCSDTritons.com Athlete of the Week on April 5. It is his second time earning the honor. He was last recognized as a sophomore in 2019.
BIG WEST'S TOP MARKS
Men
Women
ON THE MOVE
After 20 seasons competing as an NCAA Division II team, the entire athletics program has begun a four-year transition to NCAA Division I, culminating in full DI status as a member of the
Big West Conference for the 2024-25 academic year. At that time, all sports will be eligible for conference and NCAA postseason play.
RETURNING 2020 CCAA ALL-STARS
The Tritons return seven standouts that were voted as 2020 CCAA All-Stars for their pro-qualifying performances, prior to the abrupt cancelation of the season.
On the men's side,
Blake Walkowiak (throws),
Evan Shimasaki (pole vault), Maxamilian Halvax (sprints),
Nathan Yoder (jumps), and
Leyikun Solomon (hurdles) were recognized. In addition,
Devin Lecakes-Jones (throws), also honored, looks to capitalize on an extra year of eligibility as he returns for another senior season.
For the women,
Naomi Chin (pole vault) is the lone female CCAA All-Star award-winner who returns for the blue and gold.
REWRITING THE RECORD BOOKS
The Tritons have already seen some record-breaking performances in the 2021 campaign. On top of Walkowiak's number one display, sophomore
Kalobe Jimenez moved to ninth all-time in the 110 hurdles (14.78), sophomore
Gabriel Reuter took fifth all-time in the 3000 (8:32.81), while redshirt sophomore
Sebastian Garcia jumped to sixth all-time in the discus (164'9").
In 2020, UC San Diego boasted numerous productions that bypassed the all-time marks in Triton history. In the pole vault, Shimasaki cleared 16'6.75" to tie the program's record and Lecakes-Jones earned the fourth slot in the shot put (53'11"). Halvax, alongside his 4x400 relay team, exhibited tremendous speed as expected, bumping to third all-time as they crossed the finish line in 3-minutes, 14.81-seconds.
For a full look at the record books, click
here.
OPTING OUT
So far, two Tritons have opted out of participation this season due to COVID-19. Junior sprinter
Richie Caragao and sophomore sprinter
Danika Pagaduan will sit out the 2020-21 season.
SUCCESS IN DIVISION II
Over the past 20 years, as members of the California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA), the track and field squad took home a combined six CCAA team titles (women: 5, men: 1), as well as 15 CCAA runners-up and 171 individual or relay conference championships.
Just after four meets in 2020, UC San Diego had eight individuals who posted pro-qualifying marks, proficient scores that would likely take them to Nationals. Among 13 events, multiple individuals and relay teams surpassed personal bests or become prevalent in the Triton all-time record books.
KALT FAMILY TIES
Sophomore
Gloria Kalt is proudly following in the footsteps of her mom Renée, UC San Diego's 1995 DIII Long Jump National Champion. Renée was the best long jumper in the country in 1995 after an impressive 18'9.25" winning leap at the NCAA's. After 25 years, the mark remains tied for fifth in the record books and a feat Gloria is working hard to beat one day. Read about their mother-daughter connection, the track program's continued family culture, and more,
here.
100-PLUS YEARS AT THE HELM
100-plus years of combined coaching experience sits at the helm of the UC San Diego track and field program. Four coaches in particular have bled blue and gold for quite some time. Head Coach Tony Salerno of the men's team approaches his 22nd year at the top, while Head Coach Darcy Ahner enters her 14th stint leading the women. Sprint Coach Mick Gieskes begins his 25th year overall and Distance Coach Nate Garcia embarks on season 19 between cross country and track. For more on the Triton coaching staff, click
here.
WHAT'S NEXT
The Tritons will head to Long Beach next weekend, Friday, April 16 and Saturday, April 17, to compete in the Long Beach Invite at Jack Rose Track.
UC SAN DIEGO ATHLETICS LAUNCHES WEEKLY PODCAST
As part of UC San Diego's transition to Division I, the Athletics Department launched a weekly podcast, Tritoncast. Produced by UC San Diego Athletics Communications, Tritoncast features in-depth interviews with UC San Diego personalities including scholar-athletes, alums, coaches, and administrators. Triton fans will get an inside look at the UC San Diego Athletics Department as the program transitions to NCAA Division I and the Big West Conference. New episodes of Tritoncast are available each week on the most popular podcasting apps, including Apple Podcasts, iHeartRadio, Spotify, Stitcher, and TuneIn. In addition, each episode can be heard and downloaded on UCSDTritons.com. For individual show information and listen links, follow Tritoncast on Twitter
@Tritoncast.
FOLLOW THE TRITONS
Keep up with the Tritons all season long on social media through
Twitter,
Facebook, and
Instagram. The team's handle is @UCSDtrackfield.
GEAR
For the latest Triton apparel and accessories, visit the official team store of the Tritons
here.
FOR THE YOUNGER CROWD
Got some young Triton fans in your family? If they are eighth grade or under, check out the
Junior Triton Club. Membership includes a free t-shirt, admission to over 100 UC San Diego home athletic events, and much more!
About UC San Diego Athletics
After two decades as one of the most successful programs in NCAA Division II, the UC San Diego intercollegiate athletics program has begun a new era as a member of the Big West Conference in NCAA Division I. The 23-sport Tritons earned 30 team and nearly 150 individual national championships during its time in Divisions II and III and helped guide 1,400 scholar-athletes to All-America honors. A total of 83 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 37 have garnered prestigious NCAA Post Graduate Scholarships. UC San Diego scholar-athletes exemplify the academic ideals of one of the world's preeminent institutions, graduating at an average rate of 91 percent, one of the highest rates among institutions at all divisions. For more information on the Tritons, visit UCSDtritons.com or follow UC San Diego Athletics on social media @UCSDtritons.
Return To Sport… Safely
In order for UC San Diego scholar-athletes to be permitted to return to training and competition safely and within federal, state, local and university guidelines, the athletic department implemented a number of measures designed to complement and enhance the university's highly-successful Return To Learn program. Notable actions include being physically distanced when practical, including during out-of-season training sessions; wearing masks, except when undergoing physically strenuous exercise; and maintaining proper hygiene. Athletes, coaches and staff are testing at a higher frequency than the campus population, teams adhere to CDC, NCAA and Big West Conference guidelines and department officials participate in regular meetings with conference and university-affiliated physicians and the UC San Diego emergency operations staff.
