Long Beach State University Athletics
49ers Head to Arkansas for NCAA West Preliminary Championships
5/27/2014 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
May 27, 2014
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LONG BEACH - The Long Beach State track & field team will send 22 athletes to Fayetteville, Ark., this week for the NCAA West Preliminary Championships, May 29-31.
NCAA WEST PRELIMINARIES
The NCAA West Preliminary will run from Thursday through Saturday at the University of Arkansas' John McDonnell Field. The top-12 finishers in each individual and relay event will advance to the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
Long Beach State has a Big West-leading 22 athletes (16 men, 6 women) declared in this weekend's regional meet. Willie Alexander (long jump, triple jump) and Jacob Fraser (shot put, discus) are both double qualifiers. Jason Harrell will join Fraser in the discus, while Fatima Vergara and Kody Robison are set to compete in the women's and men's hammer. Rounding out the field event entries are Adam Bianchessi (men's javelin), Tiffany Forbito (women's javelin) Conner Rouse (men's pole vault), Brandon Hierholzer (men's pole vault) and Kayla Kamaka (women's pole vault).
Three of LBSU's Big West champions - Chris Low (800m), Michael Perez-Rogers (400m) and Davon Wilson-Angel (110H) - are set to lead the way on the track. Dylan McCloskey will also compete in the 400m, while he will join forces with Perez-Rogers, Cameron Glasgow and Jahmani Lockett in the 4x400 relay. In addition, Chris Enriquez qualified in the 10000m, and both Devin Hickey and Koree Hines did the same in the high hurdles. Representing the 49er women in the running events are Amber Clark (100H), Kayla Goosby (100m) and Alex Kruthers (400m).
BEACH MAKES HISTORY AT BIG WEST CHAMPIONSHIPS
The 49er men won their second-straight Big West Track & Field championship, marking the first time in program history they have claimed back-to-back titles. The Beach put forth a dominating effort in which it compiled a school-record 218.5 points. It was the first time a team has surpassed 200 points since former Big West member Idaho scored 201 in 2001. The Long Beach State women finished fourth with 73.5 points. The LBSU men and women combined to win 10 events with 25 athletes earning all-conference honors (top-three finish).
PEREZ-ROGERS DOES IT ALL
Sophomore Michael Perez-Rogers scored 16 individual points, while also playing a part in 16 relay points at the Big West Championships on Saturday, May 17. Perez-Rogers opened the day by running the third leg of the 4x100 squad that took third. He went on to win the 400m and place third in the 200m before closing out the meet with a championship effort in the 4x400 relay. Earlier in the season, Perez-Rogers ran a personal-best 46.77 in the 400m, which is tops in the Big West and ranks 29th in the West Region.
DUAL THREAT
Sophomore Willie Alexander was the Big West champion in the triple jump (51-05.75), and also earned all-conference honors as the runner-up in the long jump (24-02.25). His mark in the triple jump, which was a season best, ranks first in the conference, 15th regionally and 29th nationally. In the long jump, Alexander reached 25-feet in four of seven meets. He posted a personal-record 25-05.25 at the Mt. SAC Relays, putting him at No. 16 in the West Region and No. 29 in the nation. One day later, he won the event at the Beach Invitational with an even 25-00. Alexander also took third at the prestigious Drake Relays (25-00), and finished ahead of the pack at the Cal-Nevada Championships (25-03.25). In addition, Alexander claimed top honors in the triple jump at the Steve Scott Invitational and was a double champion in the long jump and triple jump at both the RCC Quad Meet and the Big West Challenge Cup.
THE LOW DOWN
Junior Chris Low got off to a strong start, winning the 800m at the Anteater 4-Way Meet with the seventh-best mark in program history (1:49.43). He continued to produce top performances throughout the season as he went on to break a 31-year old school record en route to an individual victory at the Stanford Invitational where he notched a lifetime-best 1:48.3. Low's time ranks first in the conference, seventh in the West Region and 22nd in the nation. He also won the event at the Big West Championships (1:48.71) and the Drake Relays, while placing second out of 98 competitors at the Mt. SAC Relays.
RISING TO THE OCCASION
LBSU had five athletes combine for 26.5 points in the men's pole vault at the Big West Championships. The group was led by sophomore Conner Rouse and senior Brandon Hierholzer, who finished first and second, respectively. They each cleared a personal-record 17-00.75, with Rouse taking the title on fewer attempts. Rouse has consistently improved his marks throughout the season and cleared at least 16 feet in five of his last six meets. He had a previous best of 17-00 to tie for first at the Triton Invite and earn Big West Field Athlete of the Week honors. Hierholzer, on the other hand, saved his best performance for last as he had a season best of 15-07 prior to the conference meet.
THREE'S COMPANY
All three of Long Beach State's 110m hurdlers are NCAA West Preliminary qualifiers and all three rank among the top-10 in school history. The trio is led by senior and two-time Big West champion Davon Wilson-Angel, who recently ran a personal-best 13.97 to defend his title at the conference meet. Sophomore Devin Hickey also garnered All-Big West honors (3rd) with a personal-record 14.06. Senior Koree Hines rounds out the group with a lifetime-best 14.13, which he established at the Beach Invitational. Hines is making his fourth-straight NCAA West Preliminary appearance.
DYNAMIC DUO
Senior Jason Harrell and junior Jacob Fraser have become one of the most formidable throws duos in the Big West. The two combined to produce eight individual victories and 20 top-five performances in the shot put and discus this year. Harrell was the Big West discus champion with a toss of 182-02. Earlier in the season, he recorded a personal-best 191-09, which ranks first in the conference, 11th in the West Region and 25th in the nation.
Fraser was the Big West runner-up in both the shot put (57-09.5) and discus (172-02). He was also named the Big West Men's Field Athlete of the Week and the Outstanding Men's Field Athlete of the Meet for his effort at the Cal-Nevada Championships, where he posted two lifetime bests in a pair of first-place finishes. His winning toss of 58-07.5 in the shot put was the seventh-best mark in school history. Fraser followed that outing with a meet-best 189-05 in the discus, obliterating his previous record by over 10 feet. That distance ranks No. 8 on the LBSU all-time list, No. 16 regionally and No. 34 nationally.
KAMAKA'S RETURN
After redshirting the 2013 season with an injury, senior pole vaulter Kayla Kamaka returned with a vengeance. She cleared 12-feet in all but one meet, with six top-five finishes and three individual victories. Kamaka's best showing to date came at the Anteater 4-Way Meet where she established two lifetime bests on separate tries. She first hit 12-10.75, before extending that effort with a mark of 13-01.5. Kamaka, who was named the Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Week for that performance, is tops in the conference and tied for second in school history.
VERGARA MAKES IMMEDIATE IMPACT
Junior Fatima Vergara has made an immediate impact in her first year at The Beach as she notched five individual victories in the hammer, with the most recent coming at the Big West Championships (189-04). Vergara also won the event at the season-opening RCC Quad Meet where she established the third-best hammer mark in school history at 181-03. She then bettered her PR with a monster toss of 192-02 to finish third at the Ben Brown Invitational on March 14. Vergara is just the third 49er to throw for over 190 feet.
UP NEXT
The NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be held at the University of Oregon's Hayward Field, June 11-14.
Players Mentioned
