Westmont Track and Field kicked off the 2013 indoor season by competing in the Azusa Pacific Indoor Events Qualifier on Saturday afternoon. Collectively, the Warriors met five automatic qualifying standards and two provisional standards for the NAIA Indoor Track and Field Championships.
“We had a team effort today,” said Westmont head coach Russell Smelley. “The coaches travelled down early and the student-athletes got themselves on the bus and to the event. That set the tone. We had a lot of good national-caliber performances. It was also good to see the freshmen handle themselves very well the first time out.”
Senior Theresa Nealon took second place in the women’s 800 meter race, posting a time of 2:17.79 to claim Westmont first automatic qualifier of the day. Sophomore Elysia Hodges opened the 2013 season by taking first in the women’s 200 meter with an automatic qualifying time of 25.02.
“Theresa was at the back of the pack when she realized she could keep moving up,” noted Smelley. “She ran an even pace and came home in second with the fourth best time of her career. Elysia had a very strong, first place performance in the 200.”
Freshman Jessica Meyers placed second in the women’s 5,000 meter, beating the automatic qualifying time by more than 10 seconds with a mark of 18:12.84. Sophomore Shane Rowan placed fourth in the triple jump, but his mark of 14.45 meters exceeded the automatic qualifying standard by 0.15 meters.
“I gave Jessica instructions to move with the pack and when the pack breaks up, go with the front, which she did very nicely,” offered Smelley, “A post-collegiate runner won the race, getting away from Jessica at the end. But she beat two good competitors from Biola and Vanguard.
“Shane qualified but was unsatisfied. He didn’t win and didn’t perform as well as he thought he should have. He has high standards for himself.”
Also earning an automatic qualification to the NAIA Indoor Championships next March was the women’s 4 x 400 meter relay team of Amanda Chevalier, Hodges, Laurel Stormans and Nealon. The Warriors finished in third place, nearly half a second ahead of the automatic time. The time was the third fastest in Warrior history.
Notching provisional qualifying times were junior Evan Bradford and sophomore Corrine Cherne. Bradford won the men’s mile in a time of 4:21.91 while Cherne placed fifth in the women’s 3,000 meters in a time of 10:30.72.
“Evan ran a smart race,” said Smelley. “He tagged along with the guys that were pushing hard up front. When the front runners backed off, he made his move, kept the pace going and ran away with the win.
“Corrine should make the automatic standard against UCSB. Like she often did as a freshman, she sagged in the fifth lap. But this time, she recovered and got back in the race and back on pace. She didn’t give up on herself and it was a big confidence booster for her.”
The Warriors will have two more opportunities to qualify for the Indoor Championship that take place February 28 through March 2 in Geneva, Ohio. On Saturday, February 2, the Warriors host the Westmont Sunshine Indoor Open at the Westmont Track. Then on Saturday, February 16, Westmont will host UCSB and Pepperdine in a tri-meet. Both events start at 11:00 a.m.
