CSUN Track Meet Gets Record Turnout

With the championship track and field meets just around the corner, Coach Don Strametz of Cal State Northridge said it was imperative that the Matadors take advantage of Saturday’s Northridge Open to qualify more athletes for the NCAA Division II championships.

Because scoring points will take precedence over producing good marks in the California Collegiate Athletic Assn. championships at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo next week, Strametz reasoned that the meet at CSUN was an ideal place to post a qualifying mark.

His hunch was right as two Northridge athletes broke stadium records and another three qualified for the Division II meet in Hampton, Va., May 24-27.

Juniors Darcy Arreola and Lolita Pile led the way, setting stadium records in the women’s 1,500 meters and triple jump, respectively.

Arreola won her race in 4 minutes, 16.55 seconds, and Pile produced the longest effort of her career to win the triple jump in a wind-aided 42 feet, 1 1/4 inches.

In addition, sophomore Sean Rapp, freshman Garrett Noel and junior Gena Jauregui all set personal bests to qualify for the national championships.

Rapp won the B section of the pole vault with a personal best of 16-3 1/2, Noel placed second in the javelin with a school freshman record of 209-7 and Jauregui placed sixth in the women’s 1,500 in 4:29.68.

With a lap to go in the 1,500, Arreola appeared to be on the verge of destroying her personal best (4:15.35 in 1987), but she slowed over the final 200 meters and had to settle for the third-fastest time of her career.

Arreola, the defending Division II champion in the 1,500 and 3,000, trailed Leslie Noll of USC for the first 880 yards (2:15.0), before taking control of the race with 600 meters left. After running 3:05 for the first 1,100 meters, Arreola needed a modest last lap of 70.3 seconds to lower her lifetime best, but the final 400 took her 71.5.

In other events, Mike McGee of Northridge won the 400 intermediate hurdles in 53.19 and freshman teammate Sasha Vujic placed third in the men’s 1,500 with a personal best of 3:53.73.