Big West Conference Championships
Jordan, Frias Win Titles for Cal Poly at Big West Championships
5/17/2014 12:00:00 AM | Track and Field
DAVIS, Calif. — Jamison Jordan and Chris Frias won events for Cal Poly at the Big West Conference Championships on Saturday at Woody Wilson Track, helping the Mustangs finish in second place.
Jordan sprinted to top honors in the men's 200 meters at 21.49 seconds, for 10 points. It was a season best for the senior, despite going against a headwind of 2.1 meters per second. Behind him, junior teammate Walter Finney added a sixth-place finish, at 22.13, for three more points.
"Knowing that this was most likely the last 200 of my life, I used it as motivation to get the win," Jordan said. "I was on the outside in the race, so I made sure to get out fast and be quick around the turn to bring it home."
Before that, Jordan (pictured at right in a file photo from May 3) also ran the fastest 100 of his career, 10.41, to finish second in that event (earning eight points). Finney was eighth, at 10.76 (for a point).
Jordan and Finney actually started their day by contributing to the squad's best 400 relay time all season. They teamed with freshman Isaiah Gibson and junior Cliff Lekas to run a second-place 40.99.
Frias, coming back from a third-place showing in the 10,000 to close Friday night, topped a 5K field that was dominated by Cal Poly on Saturday evening.
"Last night the 10K was disheartening, so I wanted to come out and compete today," the senior said. "The key to winning was finding that last push."
Right behind Frias' 14:36.25, sophomore teammate Nick Woolf — fresh off his title in the steeplechase a night earlier — was the runner-up at 14:36.53.
Additionally, senior David Cardona (in fifth, at 14:57.46), sophomore Tyler Huntley (seventh, 15:02.57) and redshirt freshman Dimitri Voytilla (eighth, 15:05.25) also scored.
They combined to help boost Cal Poly to a final total of 144.5 points, trailing only the 218.5 of Long Beach State, the back-to-back champion among eight schools.
On the women's side, the Mustangs took sixth, with 69.33 points. UC Davis rallied on Day 2 to claim its third league title in a row, with 194, atop the nine-team list.
Meanwhile, within Toomey Field, redshirt freshman Ricky Strehlow placed third in the men's triple jump. He came down at 49 feet, 9 inches on his fourth attempt, good for six points.
Also earning an all-conference accolade was sophomore Rachel Bush, third in the women's 5,000 at 17:23.85.
Three Mustangs scored in the women's 800: sophomore Ashley Windsor (third place, at 2:09.08, a PR), junior Elaina Cromer (fourth, 2:10.57) and sophomore Kristen Narum (sixth, 2:12.01, also a career peak).
Competition started with the men's javelin throw, in which junior Devin Bennett finished fourth, with a mark of 193-2, on his sixth and final attempt. While adding five points, Bennett crushed his old PR by slightly more than 13 feet. He also moved to No. 11 on the program's post-1986 top-10 chart.
Sophomore Alex Ziebart also scored two points in the event, placing seventh at 178-6.
Freshman Amir Bradley had a standout time in the men's 400: a season-best 47.87, for fourth. Lekas followed in fifth at 48.20 (also his top time this spring).
Another fourth-place performance was clocked by senior David Williams, at 14.22 in the men's 110 hurdles.
In the women's triple jump, sophomore Kendal Nielsen was fifth at 39-7.
Two Mustangs contributed points in the women's 1,500: junior Hanna Edwards (fourth, 4:29.49) and redshirt freshman Holli Arrieta (sixth, 4:33.49). Then in the men's race, Cardona also had a sixth-place time (3:52.39).
John Guerrero, another senior, was fifth in the 800, at 1:51.41.
Cal Poly was also represented in the women's 100, when Daijah Joe-Smith — the only freshman to make it to the final — came in sixth at 11.81.
Two others scored in eighth place for the Mustangs: sophomore Danielle Bryan in the women's high jump (5-3.25) and freshman Arnie Sambel in the men's discus throw (160-5, another PR).
The upcoming West Prelims meet will be held at Arkansas from May 29-31.
