AREA COLLEGE NOTEBOOK

Junior Frances Santin, sophomore Leianna Mathews and freshmen Malinda Malone and Georgia Wilkins of Northridge broke a 23-year-old school record Sunday when they won the women’s 1,600-meter relay in 3:39.05 in the California-Nevada track and field championships at UC Irvine.

Their time cut .05 seconds off the previous Northridge record set in 1978 and broke the previous Big Sky Conference record of 3:40.53 set by a Matador foursome last year. However, assistant Jeff McAuley doesn’t expect the school record to last through the end of the season.

“I wanted [us] to break [the school record],” he said about Sunday’s race. “I wanted to run about 3:37. . . . I definitely think we can this season.”

A 3:37 clocking would exceed the provisional qualifying standard of 3:39.00 for the NCAA championships in June, but McAuley says Northridge could run substantially faster next year when Annetta Wells, LaShaunda Fowler and Kassaundra Perkins return from redshirt seasons.

Wells is the school-record holder in the 400 at 53.65, Fowler has run 54.82 and Perkins turned in a 55-second relay leg during the indoor season.

*

Santin, formerly of Taft High, had a big day Sunday, winning the 800 in a career-best 2:05.82 before running the second leg on the 1,600 relay.

The 2:05.82 clocking exceeded the provisional qualifying standard of 2:07.50 for the NCAA championships and moved her to sixth on the all-time Northridge performer list.

*

Clinte Motley has a bruised left heel and a sore left knee, but the Northridge senior turned in one of the best triples of his career in the California-Nevada championships.

Motley won the triple jump at 52-2, placed second in the high jump at 7-1 1/2 and finished third in the long jump at 24-9. His mark in the long jump was a career best and moved him to sixth on Northridge’s all-time outdoor list.

His mark in the high jump was the best outdoor performance of his career.

“He’s a little beat up,” McAuley said. “But he’s as healthy as he’s ever been in the outdoor season.”