Caltech track & field heads to Claremont a fourth time this season for the SCIAC Championships this Friday and Saturday, Apr. 28-29, hosted by Pomona-Pitzer Colleges. SCIAC Championships Hub Schedule of Events Livestreaming Both the men’s and women’s programs have continued their steady growth this spring, as evidenced by five women and two men already […]
Caltech track & field heads to Claremont a fourth time this season for the SCIAC Championships this Friday and Saturday, Apr. 28-29, hosted by Pomona-Pitzer Colleges.
Both the men’s and women’s programs have continued their steady growth this spring, as evidenced by five women and two men already setting a combined total of 13 Top-10 marks in Caltech history. Several Beavers are well positioned to compete for points in myriad events at the Championships, while also, along with many others, shooting for additional Top-10 efforts.
Freshman Tim Krasnoperov (Pasadena, Calif. / Polytechnic) enters the weekend in the best position to score for Caltech. His seeding of fourth in the discus is the highest of any Beaver in a full field, while he also sits in striking distance of all three other throws at 10th, 12th and 14th. He already owns Top-10 marks in both the discus and hammer, while sophomore Rohan Choudhury (Cupertino, Calif. / Monta Vista) cracked his third career list in the 10,000-meter run and is also seeded fourth, although eight of the 17 entrants have not run the event officially this spring.
Sophomore Michelle Marasigan (Elk Grove Village, Ill. / James B. Conant), who already made three Top-10 lists last spring, significantly improved her position in the 800m and holds the top women’s billing two spots out of the finals at 10th. Rookies Jena Srikanth (Fresno, Calif. / Clovis North) and Alexa Lauinger (Ortonville, Mich. / Brandon) have paced the women’s squad with three Top-10 performances apiece this season; Srikanth in particular should challenge to score points among the top eight, as she is seeded 13th. Sophomores Melissa Gutierrez (Pico Rivera, Calif. /El Rancho) and Muskaan Goyal (Apple Valley, Minn. / Eastview) turned in the other three all-time efforts for the Beavers this spring, with the latter joining the hammer throw ranks while Gutierrez made both the 800m and 1500m lists and is seeded 15th in the 1500m, in which the fastest 12 qualify for finals.
Sophomore Ben Calvin (Shawnee, Kan. / Shawnee Mission Northwest) is another prominent member of the significant youth movement who enters the meet seeded 10th in the 110m hurdles and 13th in the 400m hurdles. Freshman Sam Blazes (Seattle, Wash. / Sidwell Friends) came up just .22 shy of the all-time list in the 3000m steeplechase and will have another opportunity to crack it as the 11th-seeded runner, while classmates Simon Ricci (Chicago, Ill. / Latin School of Chicago) and Jesse Cai (McLean, Va. / Thomas Jefferson Science & Tech.) are seeded 15th and 16th in the 1500m and 400m, respectively.
Head Coach Ben Raphelson and the Beavers begin competition on Friday at 2 p.m. (field events) and 2:30 p.m. (track events).
