CLU’s Kuretich Sprints to Fast Start

Don Strametz of Cal State Northridge and Don Green of Cal Lutheran viewed Saturday’s six-team, non-scoring track meet at CSUN as an early season evaluation. It was a chance for both coaches to observe the competitive sharpness of their athletes early in the season.

“I’m not expecting any super performances this early in the year,” Strametz said before Saturday’s meet. “I just want to see how our athletes perform in competition.”

Although the performances Saturday weren’t earth-shattering, both coaches were encouraged by what they saw.

Troy Kuretich of Cal Lutheran won the 100 and 200 meters in wind-aided times of 10.72 and 21.2, respectively. He also finished second in the long jump with a wind-aided 24- and ran the second leg on the victorious 400-meter relay team that clocked 41.85.

Teammate Art Castle placed second in the 1,500 meters (4:03.98) and won the two-mile in 9:18.99, covering the last lap in 59 seconds. Don Price of Cal Lutheran won the 400 meters in a personal best of 48.92 and the triple jump at 46-11 1/2.

Gary Jackson, Chris Fisher and Doug Sullivan all won events for the Northridge men and Dee Dee Williams, Nancy Bowman and Lolita Pile led the CSUN women.

Jackson, the school record-holder in the long jump, won that event with a first-round, wind-aided effort of 24-8 1/2. That was his only legal jump. He strained his right knee in the second round.

Fisher, a powerfully built freshman from Notre Dame High, won the 400-meter intermediate hurdles in 55.5.

Sullivan’s winning time of 4:01.41 in the 1,500 wasn’t spectacular but the way he did it was. After running the first 400 meters in a pedestrian 67 seconds, Sullivan reeled off consecutive laps of 65 and 63 seconds, clocking 3:15 at the 1,200-meter mark. He ran the final 300 meters in 46.4.

Williams led the Lady Matadors with victories in the 100- and 200-meter dashes in the respective times of 12.34 and 25.46. She also ran a leg on the winning 400-meter relay (48.4). Teammate Bowman, an NCAA Division II All-American in cross-country, won the 1,500 meters in 4:43.78, and Pile won the triple jump with a jump of 38-2.

Northridge hosts Cal State Los Angeles, the defending California Collegiate Assn. men’s champion, and UC Riverside in a triangular meet Saturday.