The San Diego State Aztecs competed in two different meets on Friday, kicking off the start of their 2022 outdoor season. The sprinters and throwers stayed close to home, competing at the San Diego Collegiate Challenge in La Jolla, while the distance runners traveled to Fullerton to run in the Astro Al Distance Classic.
The Aztecs dominated the track at the San Diego Collegiate Challenge, leaving the meet with 16 podium finishes.
The pole vaulters were the ones to watch on Friday as the Aztecs swept the podium spots. Freshman Ashley Callahan and senior Kaitlin Heri battled for first place both clearing a height of 4.16 meters. Callahan completed the jump on her first try, while Heri scratched her first two attempts, making the height on her third attempt. This result gave Callahan first place, with Heri following in second. Fellow Aztec junior Corey Friedenbach came in third, clearing a height of 4.01 meters
Sophomore Rhea Hoyte was on fire this meet, setting a new personal record in the 100-meter dash with a time of 12.33 earning herself second place. Hoyte also finished in third place for the 200-meter dash with a time of 24.93. Teammate and junior Nyjari McNeil earned herself a spot on the podium in the 400-meter dash with a time of 56.50 seconds and came in fifth for the 200-meter dash with a time of 25.53 seconds.
Senior Sakura Roberson blew away her competition in the 800-meter run, finishing in first by over a second with a time of 2:10.7.
Junior Sara Absten is another Aztec to keep your eye on this season, as she had many notable performances in her events. Absten came in second for the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 14.91 seconds, along with finishing in second for high jump clearing a height of 1.62 meters. Abstain also competed in the javelin throw where she earned herself a personal best throw of 25.51 meters.
Freshman Jenna Feyerabend wasn’t far behind Absten in the 100-meter hurdles, finishing in second place with a time of 15.11 seconds.
The other podium finishes from this meet came from juniors Erica Grotegeer and Felicia Crenshaw in the discus throw. Grotegeer earned first place with a throw of 48.39 meters and Crenshaw followed behind in second with a throw of 46.59 meters. Crenshaw also earned third place for hammer throw and shot put where she threw 46.05 meters and 12.76 meters respectively. Sophomore Onyi Anigbogu won first place in shot put with a throw of 13.10 meters.
The Aztecs had numerous athletes finish in the top five of their event, at the Astro Al Distance Classic.
Sophomore Lauren Harper was the highlight of the meet for the Scarlet and Black, starting things off strong for the Aztecs with a first place finish in the 3000-meter steeplechase. Harper had a time of 11:33.73, beating the second place finisher by 0.06 seconds. Junior Natale Regladao wasn’t too far behind in fifth place with a time of 12:10.14.
Sophomore Alex Lomeli ran a time of 2:15.35 in the 800 meters finishing in fourth place alongside teammate and fellow sophomore Jessica Kain who finished in fifth place with a personal best time of 2:15.52.
In the 1500 meters, Kain also had a top five finish coming in at second place with a time of 4:28.15. Senior Emily Burd competed in the 1500 meter as well and received fifth place with a time of 4:34.39.
The San Diego State Aztecs continue their 2022 outdoor season on Saturday at the Ross and Sharon Irwin Invitational in Point Loma and the Franson Classic meet in Azusa, California.
