The Arizona track and field team began the outdoor track season in the Willie Williams Classic on its home field at the Roy P. Drachman Stadium, starting off the outdoor track and field season on a high note.
Competing against Grand Canyon University, Central Arizona College, Glendale Community College, Pima Community College, Edsonora, Paradise Valley, Arizona Christian University and Western New Mexico, the Wildcats took home several first-place finishes on both the men’s and women’s sides.
For the women, Gia Trevisan finished first in the 400-meter dash event with a 54.98 time, followed by second- and third-place finishes by her teammates Jasper Gray and Tatum Waggoner. Gray, Waggoner, Traci-Lynn Hicks and Savaughn Christman teamed up in the 4×100-meter relay race to place first.
Gray, Elizabeth Smith, Katelin Warren and Bealoved Brown won the 4×100 relay. Hanna Peterson clocked a 4:38.61 time to finish first in the 1500-meter run, also with second-place finishes by teammates Molly Callahan and Kristina Aubert, and Stephanie Bulder placed first in the 5000-meter run with a time of 18:05.73.
“It was a pretty good effort for the first outdoor 5K,” Bulder said.
Bulder said she was able to keep a consistent pace throughout the event and said she believed working together with her teammates in the event for a large portion of the race, Kate Penney and Daylee Burr, was important in achieving her first-place finish.
On the men’s side, Collins Kibet finished in first in the 1500-meter run clocking a 3:50.89 time, followed by second-, third- and fourth-place finishes by teammates Samuel Macaluso, Kevin Bierig and Michael Godbout.
Kibet, Blake Eichler, Bryce Houston and Pete Lauderdale teamed up to win the 4×400 relay race.
Thomas Valente placed first in the 5000-meter run with a 15:12.97 time. Pau Tonnesen cleared 4.45 meters in the pole vault to win that event, and Erik Mensendiek threw 61.34 meters in the javelin throw event to place first, followed by a second-place finish by teammate Jonathan Giess.
Mohammad Alhasan clocked a 10.41 time in the 100-meter dash to finish atop that event.
Going into the meet, Alhasan said he was confident to begin the outdoor season. He made technical adjustments and said his sprints were strong going into the 100-meter dash. Alhasan also competed in the 4×100-meter relay race, where his team placed third, and said they are working to build their strongest team for that event going forward.
Several Wildcats said they saw this event as a strong starting point to the outdoor season because they can see where they are at and how they can improve. Senior Steven Scarvelis, who missed all of last season due to injury, was satisfied with how he performed after a long absence.
“I picked up right where I left off two years ago,” Scarvelis said. “I know exactly what I need to work on going into the season.”
Many Wildcats also set personal records over the weekend. Harrison Ivie set a personal record in the long jump event by jumping 6.84 feet. Ivie said he still thinks he can improve but said he sees the Willie Williams Classic as a strong starting point for the entire team.
The Wildcats are off before heading to Tempe this weekend, where they will compete in the Arizona State Invitational on Saturday.
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