Fueled by victories in the mile, high jump, shot put, weight throw and distance medley relay, the Cougar women tallied 79 points to finish third among the 12-team field, trailing only meet host Nevada and California.
NAIA champ Vivian Chukwuemeka led the way with 20 points of her own, winning the shot put (56-8 ¾) by nearly 7 feet ahead of her next competitor, and the 20-pound weight throw (56-8½). Teammate Vanessa Wilhelm shadowed Chukwuemeka’s efforts, finishing third in the weight (54-1) and sixth in the shot (45-8½) with season-best efforts.
Sophomore All-American Brianna Carstensen won her first attempt in the mile this year, clocking a career-best 5:03.90, more than 5 seconds ahead of Nevada’s Jenna Huber. Carstensen also ran a leg on the Cougars’ winning distance medley relay (12:24.79).
Junior Mireya Beltran won the high jump (5-5¾) and in the process improved her season-best mark, putting her among the favorites to capture the NAIA crown.
Fellow junior Lisette Saucedo finished 10th in the 800 meters (2:22.62) and in the in process qualified for the NAIA Indoor Championships.
Like their female teammates, the Cougar men finished third among the 14-team field, recording 61 points to finish behind Fresno State and California.
The Cougars won a pair of events, including the distance medley relay which clocked a 10:45.21. Sophomore Tim Ramirez won the 800 with a personal-best 1:55.32, which also qualified him for NAIAs.
Though he had already qualified for the NAIA high hurdles via the 60-meter version, senior Dominque DeGrammont blazed an NAIA-best 7.38 in the 55-meter distance of the high hurdles. Meanwhile, Nate Farris tentatively registered his name in the 55 meters with a provisional-qualifying 6.57.
Other strong individual showings include Brian Wardell’s second-place finish in the mile (4:24.78), and a third-place effort by Mike Cory in the long jump (22-1).
Azusa Pacific returns home next week to host another indoor qualifying invitational on Saturday (Feb. 15).
