UCLA
Bob Larsen Distance Carnival
Bruins Kick Off Home Opener with Four Victories
March 30, 2018 | Track & Field
LOS ANGELES โ The UCLA track and field team hosted its first outdoor meets of the season Friday, with the Bruins taking three victories in the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival and a victory in the women's hammer throw in the Jim Bush Legends Invite.
Friday's action kicked off with the women's hammer throw, the only event of the Legends Invite on the day. Freshman Alyssa Wilson took home a wire-to-wire victory in the event, taking the lead with her first throw and ultimately finishing with a mark of 59.16m (194-01). In the men's competition, junior Justin Stafford launched a personal-best throw of 62.23m (204-02) to finish second overall.
Senior Daniel De La Torre opened his senior outdoor campaign in style, winning the Larsen Distance Carnival men's 5,000m competition in a time of 14:06.06, running almost the entire second half of the race by himself. In the women's 5,000m invitational, junior Jackie Garner produced a fierce kick and leaned her way to a third-place finish (17:23.37). Heat 1 of the women's 5,000m saw freshman Kennedy Meyer finish second overall (17:50.34), while sophomore Lucie Semone was seventh at 19:14.04.
Junior Robert Brandt took home UCLA's third event victory of the day, gutting an impressive win in the 10,000m. With the exception of the first few laps paced by redshirt freshman Garrett Reynolds, Brandt ran 50 meters clear of any challenger for the duration of the 25-lap race to finish with a time of 29:02.14. His time is good for sixth place all-time in UCLA school history. Senior Myles Smith was also superb, finishing fourth overall with a time of 29:17.29, a massive personal best by almost 18 seconds.
Robert Brandt wins the 10,000m with a time of 29:02.14! #GoBruins pic.twitter.com/5m78G6dzWY
โ UCLA Track & Field (@UCLATrack_Field) March 31, 2018
Not to be outdone, freshman Christina Rice followed Brandt's performance with a 10k victory of her own in her collegiate track debut. Rice was brilliant in the final quarter of the race, surging to the front and running away with the win with a time of 34:49.87, also good for sixth in school history in the event. Sophomore Claire Markey took third overall with a time of 35:37.55.
What a way to end the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival! Freshman Christina Rice wins the 10,000m with a time of 34:49.87, the No. 6 all-time mark at UCLA. #GoBruins pic.twitter.com/tIwXq3hf6A
โ UCLA Track & Field (@UCLATrack_Field) March 31, 2018
Junior George Gleason led the way for the Bruins with a third-place finish in the men's mile, clocking a time of 4:05.69. Sophomore Carter Blunt was fourth at 4:06.31, while sophomore Riley Kelly crossed with a time of 4:09.50. In his 2018 track debut, Reynolds finished seventh overall with a time of 4:09.92.
The women's 1,500m saw redshirt freshman Kelly Bernd cross as UCLA's first runner in her collegiate track debut, finishing sixth overall at 4:36.10. Sophomore Cassandra Durgy followed at 4:36.29. Junior Madison Moore rounded out the Top-10 with a time of 4:43.96.
Senior Cole Smith finished third in the men's 3,000m steeplechase, clocking a time of 9:02.72. Senior and UCLA school-record holder Emily Scharmann was third in the women's field, crossing the line at 10:27.33.
The Jim Bush Legends Invite will continue Saturday. Field event action will get started at 10:30 a.m. with the men's javelin competition. The first event on the track will be the women's 4x100m relay at 2:05 p.m.
Players Mentioned
