TRACK / NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS : UCI’s Goodrich Impressive; James Is Last in Heat

UC Irvine sophomore Traci Goodrich placed fifth in the 10,000 meters at the NCAA track and field championships Wednesday at Austin, Tex.

Goodrich, competing in the NCAA 10,000 for the second time in her two-year career, finished in 34 minutes 58.76 seconds.

Kim Saddic of George Mason won in 34:39.92. Saddic and the other runners who finished ahead of Goodrich are all seniors. Donna Levy of Oklahoma State (34:46.61) was second, Jennifer Brower of Iowa (34:52.36) was third and Kari McKay of Eastern Washington (34:56.38) was fourth.

Goodrich, who earned All-American status with her finish, placed 12th in 34:44.16 in last year’s championships at Eugene, Ore.

Two other Irvine athletes competed Wednesday, including sophomore sprinter Dustin James, who ran what is presumed to be the last race for the Anteater men’s team, whose program was discontinued last week.

James finished last in his six-man heat in the 400 meter preliminaries and did not advance to the semifinals. His time of 47 seconds was slightly slower than his qualifying time of 46.02. Quincy Watts of USC was the top qualifier in the 400, finishing in 44.77.

Irvine junior Marieke Veltman, competing in the heptathlon and the long jump, qualified for the long jump finals, and was in 10th place among 14 competitors after the first day of the heptathlon.

Veltman, who has jumped 21 feet 1/2 inch this season, jumped 19-8 3/4 to reach the 12-woman final.

In the heptathlon, Veltman has 3,170 points after four events. Cris Hall of Nebraska leads with 3,717.

Veltman’s best showing in the heptathlon events was in the 200, in which she placed second in 24.37 seconds, trailing Louisiana State’s Jovennie McDuffie, who finished in 24.28. Veltman was fifth in the hurdles, 12th in the high jump and 14th in the shot.