On Friday, March 6, the UC Riverside track and field team competed in a local single-day meet in The RCC/CSUF Tri Meet held at Riverside Community College.
The women’s side of the meet featured debut event performances from senior Callie Lawson-Freeman and sophomore Purnima Gunarathna. In their first appearance in the 100-meter hurdle event, Lawson-Freeman finished with a time of 15.29 seconds while Gunarathna finished with a time of 15.37 seconds. Lawson-Freeman and Gunarathna finished in fifth and sixth overall, respectively.
In the women’s long jump, sophomore Asia Mallory traveled a distance of 5.94 meters tying Cal State Fullerton’s senior Naiah Boardingham distance. After an adjustment of results, Mallory ultimately placed in second. Mallory also finished third in the women’s 100-meter dash event with a time of 12.22 seconds.
Junior Hana Johnson was especially successful in the women’s triple jump. On her third attempt, Johnson leaped a total distance of 12.38 meters, placing her first overall in the single event.
The triple jump on the men’s side was also a bright spot for the Highlanders. The top three finishes were all Highlanders. With the help of junior Brian Nnoli, junior Anthony Reyes and freshman Deondre Ruth, the Highlanders were able to earn crucial points on the score sheet. Nnoli led the way with an elevation of 14.95 meters.
In the men’s long jump, freshman Damion Loman placed in second, leaping a distance of 7.10 meters on his first attempt. Opening up his season on the same event, junior Anthony Reyes glided a distance of 6.92 on his first attempt before increasing to 7.03 meters on his third and best attempt.
Five Highlanders placed within the top 10 in the men’s 1,500 meter run event. Junior Carlos Rivera placed in fourth with a time of 4:04.73 while sophomore Tanner Anderson led UCR with a time of 4:00.49 that placed him second overall.
In the 4×400 meter relay event, the UCR men’s team placed third with a combined time of 3:24.37. In the same event, the women’s team also placed in third with a collective time of 4:00.26. This was a slight drop in performance from their display at the Don Kirby Invitational on Friday, Feb. 14 where they ran the event with a time of 3:51.73.
With their collective athletic performances, the women’s team finished third place overall with 73 points. Over on the men’s side, the Highlanders also placed in third overall with 90 points. A dominant performance from Cal State Fullerton saw them take first in both sections, with 232 points on the women’s side and 236 points on the men’s.
Following this meet, the Highlanders will compete in the NCAA Indoor Championships in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The two-day tournament will begin on Friday, March 13.
Editor’s Note: Callie Lawson-Freeman, a competitor in the 100-meter hurdle event, is a staff writer at the Highlander.
