LONG BEACH, Calif. — The UC San Diego track and field team split up to take on three different meets this week, with the action wrapping up on Saturday after day two of the Beach Invitational. The Tritons also competed in the Bryan Clay Invitational and Mt. SAC Relays.
 
All told, the Tritons set five program records and had 16 marks in the top 10 all-time at UC San Diego. Nine Tritons reached the qualifying levels for The Big West Championships, and 29 personal-bests were set.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – BRYAN CLAY INVITATIONAL
Allyson Abandonato started the week off on Thursday with a 2:09.09 in the 800m, improving on her second-best all-time mark that she first set two weeks ago at the Triton Invitational. The evening slate of races that night included Sylvana Northrop winning her heat of the 5,000m with a time of 16:02.47 as the senior continues to break her own school record in the event.
 
The distance squad came back on Friday with more strong performances, including Nathan Garderes and Shane Badcock setting the two-fastest times in program history in the 1,500m. Garderes ran 3:47.19 and Badcock finished in 3:48.98.
 
The Bryan Clay Invitational was hosted by Azusa Pacific at Cougar Stadium in Azusa, California. The Tritons competed in the event on Thursday and Friday.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – MT. SAC RELAYS
Friday's trip to the Mt. SAC Relays included two-straight school records for the Tritons in the 4x400m relay. The women's team of Lauren Schiele, Idara Ibekwe, Rachel Aguilar and Jordyn Thomas was up first, with the squad coming home with a time of 3:40.22. That mark set the school record by four tenths of a second.
 
The men's squad was up next on the track and continued where the women left off, besting the previous school record that had stood since 2019 by two tenths of a second. Liam Urich, Brandon Orlow, Anthony Flowers and Kian Maher finished in 3:12.52.

Miles Bennett won the collegiate high jump event for the Tritons, finishing with a mark of 2.05m (6'8 3/4").
 
The Mt. SAC Relays was hosted by Mt. San Antonio College at Hilmer Lodge Stadium in Walnut, California. The Tritons competed in the event on Friday.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED – BEACH INVITATIONAL
The final meet of the weekend for the Tritons was the Beach Invitational, where Kelsie Yamano won the 3,000m steeplechase event on Friday morning with a time of 10:39.44 to top her own school record. The senior finished 28 seconds clear of her next-closest competitor in an event that largely consisted of fellow Big West runners.
 
The Beach Invitational was hosted by Long Beach State at Jack Rose Track in Long Beach, California. The Tritons competed in the event on Friday and Saturday. Long Beach State will also host The Big West Championships in May.
 
UP NEXT
The Tritons have just one final regular season meet left on the schedule. UC Irvine hosts the Steve Scott Invitational May 2-3, with The Big West Multis and Championships to come in the weeks following.
 
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 began a new era in 2020 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 84 Tritons have earned Academic All-America honors, while 38 have earned 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.