BAKERSFIELD, Calif. – The Roadrunner men's and women's track and field teams will head north to Clovis, Calif. for the first of back-to-back meets hosted by Fresno State. CSU Bakersfield will compete in the Bulldog Open on Saturday, Apr. 22, with only two meets to go before the Western Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships.
“The coaching staff is excited with the progress of the team this season,” said Marcia Mansur-Wentworth, CSUB's Director of Track and Field “We are looking to keep our momentum going through the WAC Championships.”
The 'Runner men will be led by a group of veteran student-athletes in Clovis. Senior Justin McKinley will compete in the long jump where he is currently ranked third in the WAC. Sophomore Tim Van Horn and junior Joselito Flores will tackle the high jump, in which the pair are ranked No. 1 and No. 2, respectively, in the conference this season.
Redshirt senior Emmett Wirtz will compete in the hammer throw and shot put this weekend. He is currently ranked third in the hammer in the WAC this season.
Curt Threlkeld rounds out the top expected CSUB performers this weekend. The freshman will run in the 800m after being unable to run the 400m due to a hamstring strain, but is healthy and ready to run on Saturday. Gabe Gaeta will miss this week's competition to attend a required field trip for a geology course. The redshirt sophomore is a geology major.
On the women's side, a young group mixed with a few veterans will continue to pace the 'Runners. Freshman Julianne Finch will compete in the pole vault and try to improve her WAC-leading mark. Fellow freshman Falon Wilson will tackle the 100m hurdles and long jump, the latter of which she leaped all the way to fourth in the conference.
Another freshman, Mariah LeSure, will run the 100m and 200m dashes and has shown great improvement this spring. Junior Micaiah Lugo will compete in the hammer throw and discus and continue a strong season in which is she is currently sixth in the WAC in hammer.
Junior Angel Valdez will lead the CSUB distance runners with a go at the 3000m race this week. Valdez, a Bakersfield native, was hospitalized briefly last week with a stomach virus, but is healthy and prepared for the weekend.
Links to live stats and an event schedule for the Bulldog Open can be found here. A full recap will be posted here at GoRunners.com Saturday night.
~GoRunners.com~
