Three Key Matador Women Out for the Indoor Season

Cal State Northridge, defending Big Sky Conference women’s outdoor track and field champion, will be understaffed today when the Matadors open the indoor season with a meet against New Mexico, Southern Utah and Northern Arizona at the Walkup Skydome in Flagstaff, Ariz.

Sophomores Cheree Hicks, Christina Tolson and Brandi Prieto, and juniors Mickey Rogers and Erika Bowling return from Northridge’s championship team, but the Matadors will be without senior Beth Burton, junior Nancy James and freshman LaShaunda Fowler until the outdoor season.

Burton, the 1997 Big Sky indoor champion in the 20-pound weight throw, has no indoor eligibility remaining.

James, defending indoor 800-meter champion, is recovering from an injury suffered during cross-country.

Fowler, who clocked 11.79 seconds in the 100 for Foster High in Seattle last year, is playing basketball for Northridge.

“We won’t be at full strength until the outdoor season,” Northridge Coach Don Strametz said. “But I can’t wait to see what some of [our] people do this weekend.”

Hicks set a Northridge record of 180 feet 2 inches in the discus during the last outdoor season and was the bronze medalist in the shotput in the Pan American Junior Games in Havana last summer.

Tolson set a school mark of 179-2 in the hammer throw last year and Prieto is defending Big Sky champion in the indoor and outdoor triple jump.

Rogers was second in the 100 hurdles and Bowling placed second in the 400 in the conference outdoor championships.

Juniors Joe Criner and Clinton Lane and sophomore Jason Hammond are the top returning performers for the Matador men, who placed fourth in the Big Sky indoor and outdoor meets last year.

Criner won the 100 and 200 in the outdoor meet and Lane took the 400.

Hammond is defending conference champion in the indoor shotput.