The Arizona track and field teams had a busy weekend of competition in California, splitting their time among three competitions. Most of the Wildcats participated in five-day Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, Calif., while the Arizona throwers took part in events hosted by Cal State Los Angeles and Long Beach State.
Sophomore Robert Cheseret delivered another remarkable performance, finishing second in the invitational section of the men's 5,000-meters with a time of 13:22.65. His new time beat the Arizona record by 10 seconds and is a 23-second improvement from the Arizona freshman record he set last year.
Yesterday, junior Sharifa Jones followed suit, winning the special invitational section of the 100-meter dash in 13.13 seconds. The time would have broken the school record had it not been wind-aided, and was the sixth-fastest time in the country this season.
In the university/open section of the 5,000-meters, senior Kyle Goklish finished at 14:12.05, meeting the Pac-10 and NCAA Regional qualifying standards.
Junior Mark Ramos also had a solid performance in the long jump. With a leap of 22 feet, 7 inches, Ramos placed fifth.
Senior J.R. Harrison took seventh in the triple jump with a leap of 50 feet, 8 3/4 inches.
In the university/open section of the men's pole vault, junior Chris Chappell took first at 16 feet, 10 3/4 inches. Sophomore Sam Jacobson finished fourth with a 15-foot, 9-inch jump.
In the throws competitions, sisters Amber and Rachel Varner continued their successful seasons. At CSLU, Rachel won the discus with a new personal best of 179 feet, 6 inches, exceeding her previous best score by more than three feet. At Long Beach State, Rachel topped that personal best with a mark of 190 feet, beating last year's NCAA champion Deshaya Williams. The mark moves Rachel to second in the country and third in Arizona history.
Senior Amber Varner claimed the title in the shot put competition at the CSLU meet with a throw of 47 feet, 6 inches.
In the same competition, freshman Adam Kuehl scored a victory in discus with a throw of 177 feet, 9 inches.
"(Our performances were) absolutely incredible, everything we wanted to get out of a meet like this," UA head coach Fred Harvey said. "Robert (Cheseret) set a school-record in the 5,000 meters. We knew he was talented; that performance was there and warranted. And Rachel Varner threw number two in the country.
"(The competition is) definitely everything we expected. We know what we were getting into when we come to Mt. SAC. The kids are doing everything they need to do to get prepared," Harvey said.
The California Invitational Heptathlon was held Thursday at Azusa Pacific University. Amanda Underwood, the Wildcats' sole representative, finished eighth out of 21 women. With 4,547 points, Underwood surpassed her previous overall personal best by 103 points and qualified for the Pac-10 Championships.
"I'm finally getting everything to come together at the right time," Underwood said. "(The competition) was intense. The girl who got second place just set a new Mexican national record."
"(Amanda) started off with not such a great day, but finished off with a personal best in the 100 meters, (which) got her spirits up for day two," Harvey said. "We are really pleased with what she achieved."
The heptathlon was won by Virginia Tech's Saskia Triesscheijn with 5,292 points. Miryea Beltran, an unattached athlete, came in second with 5,173 points.
The Wildcats look forward to the Drake Relays, held in Des Moines, Iowa, this weekend. A handful of athletes will make their way back to California for Saturday's Triton Invitational.