SAN DIEGO, Calif. - The Yotes competed at the prestigious UC San Diego Triton Invite. This meet hosts many professional athletes and is home to many worlds' leading marks over the years. Valarie Allman did just such on the Friday portion of the meet in the Women's Invite Discus where in the second round she threw a world leading mark of 71.46m (234'05''). This was the farthest throw in the event in the last 30 years.
CSUSB started Friday in the Women's Hammer. Tayler Salley led the way for the throws group with a throw of 49.10m (161'01"). This earned her 10th place in a competitive field and was the top Div-II competitor in the event. Abby Venglass threw a mark of 40.87m (134'01") and Victoria Soto achieved a personal best in the event with a throw of 37.64m (123'06"). These three athletes hold three of the top four marks (1st, 2nd, and 4th) in CSUSB history, all achieved this year.
Tayler Salley later that same day also achieved a school record in the Discus throw on her last round throw with a mark of 40.42m (132'07"). This was a season's best for Salley and has her sitting in third in the CCAA conference.
"It was a very rewarding feeling to earn the discus record since we have been really working hard on adjustments. In the end staying with the new approach paid off in my last throw" said Tayler Salley.
On the second day of the meet, CSUSB started off on the track with the 4x100m relay clocking in a time of 48.09. This was their second-best performance on the year. This earned them fifth overall in the event.
Joanna Lopez led the way in the pack of Yotes competing in the 1500m run. She ran a time and a lifetime personal best of 5:03.81. She was one of three Yotes who achieved personal bests in the event including Miranda Avila who ran her first 1500m race of the year in a time of 5:10.04.
Journie Alexander, after leading off the 4x100m team, competed in the long jump achieving a wind legal mark of 5.11m. Her relay teammate Maya Price competed in the high jump at the same time and earned a season's best in the event with a jump of 1.52m (4'11.75"). This has her tied for eighth overall in the conference.
In the women's 400m the Yotes had two top-10 performances all time. Alexandria Owens ran a time of 1:01.34, earning her ninth all time, and Ladaijah Wright running a time of 1:00.21, earning her a CCAA qualifying time and fifth all time at CSUSB.
Abby Venglass competed in the Shot Put, getting to a mark of 11.92m, just six centimeters off her season's best on the year earned at the PLNU Invite two weeks ago.
In the 800m Savannah Milner led the pack of Yotes in a time of 2:27.98, one of seven seasons or personal bests for the Yotes in the event here at Triton. In the 100m, Maya Price ran a season's best in the event in a wind legal time of 12.49. This has her and her teammates holding three of the top 12 spots in the conference.
Kaleigh Giannone, in her first race in the event since February, ran in the fastest heat of the 400m hurdles and achieved a personal best in the event of 1:07.09. This solidifies her second best time in CSUSB school history. This has her sitting sixth overall in the conference in the event.
The 4x400m team of Maame Banahene, Kaleigh Giannone, Savannah Milner, and Alexandria Owens, competed in the competitive first heat of the event and came through in a time of 4:09.06.
In the last event of the day Nicole Renteria competed in the 5000m race. With the clouds coming in a chill from the sun setting she achieved a personal best with a blistering kick in the final 100m to a time of 19:04.95.
CCAA Qualifiers:
Sariyah Copeland – 100m, 200m
Journie Alexander – 100m, Long Jump
Maya Price – 100m, 200m, High Jump
Ladaijah Wright – 400m
Kaleigh Giannone – 400m Hurdles
Destiny Colton – Long Jump
Tayler Salley – Hammer, Discus, Shot put
Abby Venglass – Shot put, Hammer, Discus, Javelin
Victoria Soto – Discus, Hammer
The Yotes travel up north to Cox Stadium at San Francisco State University to compete in the Johnny Mathis Invitational on April 15th and 16th, the future site of the CCAA championships held May 5th-7th.
