LOS ANGELES – The Nevada women's track and field distance squad along with the men's cross country team competed at the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival, collectively bringing home a whopping total of 15 new personal records across five different events Friday evening, to start off the outdoor season.
"It was a solid rust buster for both squads," said head distance coach
Kirk Elias. "I am thrilled for those who grabbed BIG PRs! It is always fun when that happens. We definitely have some things to clean up, but now we have our focus going forward."
To kick off the breezy California evening,
Marije Hijman and Maddy Shipman competed first in the 3000 meter steeplechase with Hijman crossing the finish line third overall with a time of 10:55.72. Shipman dropped six seconds from her previous personal record of 11:39.22 to finish with a time of 11:33.44 in seventh place.
Continuing with the women's events,
Claire Nelson and
Ashley Boone both saw tremendous drops in their 5000 meter races. Nelson finished 14
th with a time of 17:54.22, smashing her previous best by 140 seconds, set in her senior season of high school in 2021. This time drop was the largest of the day across both squads. Boone, finishing in 18
th, dropped 31 seconds from her previous best to run an 18:16.32.
On the men's side, nine out of the 10 men that competed in the 5000 meter earned a new personal record. Leading the field, freshman
Danyom Yosief finished 7
th overall, dropping 84 seconds in the event with his time of 14:34.80.
Andrew Ribeiro and
Celime Garcia finished 12
th and 14
th, Garcia earning a new personal record of 14:53.78, dropping a total of five seconds. Just behind Garcia,
Sergio Mazon finished 15
th with a time of 14:54.67, earning a new personal record by 40 seconds. Tyron Jardin and
Soma Baligad would finish 17
th and 18
th respectively, marking the first time Jardin has run a 5000 meter in his career for a new personal record of 14:56.29. On the other hand, Baligad set a new personal record by eight seconds with a time of 14:56.33.
The last four Wolf Pack men that competed in the 5000 and earned new personal records were
Zander Simone (20
th),
Matthew Kruse (32
nd),
Cris Kubatko (35
th), and
Jackson Hammons (37
th). Simone saw the second largest time drop of the day behind Nelson, running a 14:59.67 to drop 124 seconds from his previous personal best. Coming in behind Simone, Kruse beat his previous best by 51 seconds, to run a 15:34.57. Kubatko bested Kruse by a second to beat his previous best by 52 seconds, finishing with a 15:46.38. Rounding out the 10 men competing in the event,
Jackson Hammons earned a time of 15:52.21, a new best by 22 seconds.
Wrapping up the night with the women's and men's 1500 meter, three out of the five competitors from the women and men combined saw new personal records in their races.
Emily Clarke placed 14
th, running a time of 4:33.98, dropping six seconds and coming just shy of sitting in the Nevada all-time top-10 in the event. The newest addition to the Pack this spring,
Kylee Denver, finished 34
th with a 4:46.30, to set a new personal record. For the men,
Pierce Simpkins saw a massive 10-second improvement, running a 4:09.26.
Jared Marchegger finished 42
nd (4:06.15) while
Ryan Petzing finished 35
th (4:03.86), just shy of his personal best, with Simpkins 48
th.
The Pack will continue with the outdoor season next weekend competing at the Stanford Invitational and Mike Fanelli Invitational at San Francisco State, March 31- April 1.
Results (Nevada)
Women's 3000 Steeplechase
3.
Marije Hijman – 10:55.72
7. Maddy Shipman – 11:33.44
Women's 5000 meter
14.
Claire Nelson – 17:54.22
18.
Ashley Boone – 18:16.32
Men's 5000 meter
7.
Danyom Yosief – 14:34.80
12.
Andrew Ribeiro – 14:52.54
14.
Celime Garcia – 14:53.78
15.
Sergio Mazon – 14:54.67
17. Tyron Jardin – 14:56.29
18.
Soma Baligad – 14:56.33
20.
Zander Simone – 14:59.67
32.
Matthew Kruse – 15:34.57
35.
Cris Kubatko – 15:46.38
37.
Jackson Hammons – 15:52.21
Women's 1500 meter
14.
Emily Clarke – 4:33.98
34.
Kylee Denver – 4:46.30
Men's 1500 meter
35.
Ryan Petzing – 4:03.86
42.
Jared Marchegger – 4:06.15
48.
Pierce Simpkins – 4:09.26