BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – CSU Bakersfield's Director of Track and Field, Marcia Mansur-Wentworth, is pleased to announce the addition of Alex Collatz to the Roadrunner coaching staff. Collatz will be a volunteer assistant coach for CSUB and will work with her father, Alan Collatz, in training the 'Runner throwers.
“We are very fortunate to have Alex join us,” said Mansur-Wentworth. “Alex is a talented athlete and will bring tons of experience and knowledge to our team.”
The summer after completing her collegiate career, Collatz traveled to Eugene, Ore. and placed 12th in the discus throw at the USA Track and Field Championships. Collatz graduated from USC in 2015 after a standout career during which she posted the second-best mark all-time for the school in the discus (187-06).
The former Trojan was a three-time All-American in the discus and helped USC place second at the Pac-12 Outdoor Championships and seventh at the NCAA Outdoor Championships as a senior. Collatz was also named Co-Woman of the Year for USC Track and Field in 2015. While completing a degree in cognitive science with a minor in business, Collatz earned over a 3.50 GPA and was named Capital One Academic All-America Second Team in her senior season.
As a junior, Collatz became the first Trojan woman to earn All-American twice in the discus when she placed eighth at the NCAA Championships. She also became the first woman for USC to earn the Pac-12 title in the event in 2014 while setting her personal record earlier in the season (187-06).
The year prior, Collatz finished fifth at NCAAs with her first All-American honor. She also became the first Trojan female to score points in the discus at the NCAA Championships since 1992 while recording the best-ever mark for USC in the NCAA meet.
During her freshman year, Collatz broke the school's freshman discus record with a throw of 176-05. The 5-foot-8 native of Bakersfield, Calif. moved into fourth all-time in the event for USC in just her first year. She would finish the season with a PR of 177-11, which was already second-best all-time for the Trojans.
Collatz was a 2012 graduate of Stockdale High School in Bakersfield, where she had a standout prep career. In 2010, she posted the best discus throw in the country with a mark of 180-09. Collatz also went on to win the State Meet that year. As a sophomore, Collatz set the national record for her class with a throw of 177-00. She also had success at the national level as she finished fourth at the 2010 USATF Juniors in the discus.
Collatz' father, Alan, was the Head Coach of the 'Runners until he retired in 2012. He decided to stay on as Coach Emeritus to train the throwers and has made a great impact as CSU Bakersfield has had a great deal of success with its throwers. In 2015, Karnell Grimes earned a Western Athletic Conference title in the javelin while Bryan Wilmert took the conference crown in the hammer in 2015 and 2014.
Alex will join forces with her father to bring up the next crop of CSUB throwers which is currently highlighted by senior Alicia Torres, who earned All-Conference honors at the 2015 WAC Championships. The Roadrunners open the outdoor season this weekend with a trip to the Cal State LA Invitational.
~GoRunners.com~
