Bruins place first nine times
For the second time this season, the UCLA men’s track and
field team earned a convincing victory at an invitational meet,
dominating competition at last weekend’s 2002 Cal-Nevada
Championships, which were held in Fresno.
With 16 top-three awards, including nine first place finishes at
the two-day meet, the Bruins tallied 204 points, nearly doubling
the score of second place Fresno State, which finished with
103.
UCLA received another strong performance from sprinter Mike
Lipscomb, who won the 200-meter dash with a final time of 21.09
seconds, more than .7 seconds faster than his closest
competition.
The Bruins also displayed superior skill in the pole vault, as
CJ Bell won the event, and three other athletes from the champion
school claimed placed in the top five.
After his team’s resounding victory, Bruin head coach Art
Venegas was named Cal-Nevada Coach of the Year.
Just like the men’s team, the Bruin women had several
strong individual performances over the weekend as the squad was
split between the meet in Fresno and the Stanford Track and Field
Invitational in Palo Alto.
The Bruins managed a sixth place finish at the Cal-Nevada
Championships despite competing with a partial squad consisting of
mostly freshmen.
Shot putters Briona Reynolds and Jessica Cosby swept the top two
spots in the event, while sophomore Cari Soong took first place in
the hammer throw.
Cal State Northridge finished first overall in the team
competition.
In Palo Alto, Tracy O’Hara added to an already sterling
senior season with a victory in the pole vault. Her jump of 14-1
1/4 was a season outdoor best.
Sophomore Lena Nilsson also had a strong meet, placing second in
the 1500, with a lifetime best mark of 4:14.11, No. 5 all-time on
the Bruin women’ s 1500 chart.
Compiled by Jeff Eisenberg, Daily Bruin Contributor.