CSUN Track Program Breaks Even

You win some, you lose some.

That saying might best sum up the feelings of Cal State Northridge track and field Coach Don Strametz, who in the past month has had two talented athletes transfer to other schools, one decathlete enroll at Northridge and a high-flying pole vaulter inform him of his intentions to become a Matador next year.

Junior Sean Rapp, who placed ninth in the pole vault in the NCAA Division II championships last season, and freshman Jorge Rodriguez, a highly regarded middle-distance runner, have transferred to Southeastern Conference schools Georgia and Tennessee, respectively.

But former Poly High standout Jeff La Monica has transferred from Cal State Los Angeles to Northridge and will be eligible to compete for CSUN next season as a junior.

In addition to La Monica, former Notre Dame High standout Tom Parker has left Tennessee and plans to attend Valley College for the next two semesters to earn his AA degree, then transfer to Northridge in January, when he will gain sophomore eligibility.

“Tennessee just wasn’t me,” said Parker, who placed second in the pole vault in the 1987 state high school meet and has a personal best of 17 feet. “I’m a California boy and they’re just on a different page down there. . . . Some people can’t live in L. A. and some people can’t live in small towns. And I’m one of those people.”

La Monica placed third behind Parker in the 1987 state meet but has concentrated on the decathlon in college.

He finished third in the 1988 California Collegiate Athletic Assn. championships and fifth in The Athletics Congress junior (age 19 and under) meet.

He redshirted last season at Cal State L. A. but did improve his personal best to 6,942 points.

He transfered to Northridge because assistant coach Mike Strong left Cal State L. A. and took a position with the women’s program at Cal.