Long Beach State University Athletics
49ers Host Long Beach Classic This Saturday
3/15/2006 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
49ers Set to Host 17th Annual Long Beach Classic
LONG BEACH, CA-- Long Beach State will host the 17th Annual Long Beach Classic this Saturday, giving the 49ers a delayed start to its outdoor season, and teams from back East a little warmer climate to compete in during their respective spring breaks. The meet will also serve as Senior Day for the team's 14 seniors, honored after the meet. Results will be available at www.ezmeets.com and www.longbeachstate.com. "This meet has always produced some pretty close battles, and it's a different flavor for our athletes with much of the competition coming from out of state," said Head Coach Andy Sythe, whose team was virtually washed out last week at the Ben Brown Invitational. "This will get our athletes use to the team concept with our ultimate goal being to win the Big West Team Championship." Among the dozen teams slated to compete this Saturday will be Division-III Cortland State, coached by former 49er defensive back Shawn Wilbourn (1989-1990), who played on the George Allen led LBSU football team in 1990. Wilbourn's men's team just finished 10th at this month's indoor championship. Also slated to return is Cornell, whose men won last year's meet. LBSU finished second on both the men's and women's sides. Amongst those making their outdoor debuts are NCAA indoor participant John Temidara (Santa Fe Springs), who finished 10th at last week's championship. Temidara will look to compete in his fourth straight high jump championship later this spring. Ronald Carter will also look to return to the outdoor national finals for the second straight year in the triple jump. Throwers Robert Jennings and Ed Cornell had strong winters, while Jimmy Grabow will compete in his second distance race. On the women's side it will be the much anticipated debut of Australian national team sprinter Kyle Wildman. Wildman won 12 medals from 1998 to 2004 at the Australian Nationals and ranked in the top-six in Australia in the hurdles, in her age group, for the past half dozen years. Sprinter Patrice White is healthy following a quad injury in the MPSF Championships in late February. White was a part of the school record breaking relay teams last year, as that squad returns three-fourths the team in 2006. Kim Heinz, the newly minted record holder in the javelin and the Big West Athlete of the Week two weeks ago, will also compete. Amongst those on the MASH unit; all three of the team's male pole vaulters are out of action, with Tim Burnham out six weeks with a fracture sternum; while javelin thrower Sarah Faulkner is out for the season following elbow surgery.
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