Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
WAC Indoor Championships
Bulldogs Conclude WAC Indoor Championships
2/28/2009 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
Feb. 28, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State ended the 2009 Indoor Track and Field season Saturday with six personal-bests for the Bulldogs at the Western Athletic Conference Championships in Boise, Idaho.
The Bulldogs finished the meet in seventh with 48 points. Louisiana Tech took the title with 120 points, ahead of Idaho with 114 and Boise State with 112.
"We came into this meet knowing it would be an uphill battle," said head coach Scott Winsor. "We didn't have some of our key athletes such as Rosario Sanchez and Andrea Greenman."
Despite Sharon Ayala's win in the weight throw on Friday, the Bulldogs found themselves having to fight back on Saturday.
"Yesterday wasn't the start we wanted," said Winsor. "But I am very proud of the way we came back today and battled."
Roxanne Sellick ran two finals Saturday, the one mile and the 3,000-meter races. In the first race of the day, the mile run, Sellick ran an indoor personal-best, clocking a 4:58.08 to take third. Just two hours later, she returned to the track to run another distance race, the 3,000. Running the event for the first time this season, Sellick stepped up for the Bulldogs, timing another personal-best mark of 10:10.65 to take fourth. Sellick topped her former best time in the event by nearly 25 seconds. Sellick amassed ten points for Fresno State.
"Roxanne came back in the 3,000 and came through for us," said Winsor. "To run a solid prelim in the mile and then come back a day later to run in both the mile and the 3,000 makes for a long weekend for a runner."
After a clutch performance in the weight throw on Friday, Kayla Xavier had another pivotal point-gaining performance for the Bulldogs on Saturday in her strongest event, the shot put. Xavier came through for Fresno State on her final throw of the day, tossing the shot a personal-best of 48-feet, 8 inches (14.83 meters) to take second place and pick up six points for the Dogs. Between the shot put and the weight throw, Xavier contributed nine points to Fresno State's finish.
"Kayla did a great job," said Winsor. "When you see someone step up and throw a PR in their final throw of the day and move from eighth place to third, it's really amazing. She really gave us a shot in the arm which seemed to spread to the 4x400 team."
In the sprints, senior Rayna White and freshman Shanelle Stephens paired up to take fifth and seventh in the 60, combining to earn the Dogs six points. White ran a season-best 7.72 in the race, while Stephens picked up a personal-best 7.82.
Latrisha Jordan was another freshman with solid performances Saturday. Jordan ran in two finals on Saturday, the 400 and 200, beginning with the longer of the two. In the quarter mile, Jordan pushed herself to a personal-best 55.37 to take fifth place. The freshman got back into the blocks for the 200 after less than 40 minutes rest, timing a 25.07 in the race for eighth.
Senior Vanessa Sautebin improved on her personal-best in the 60 hurdles en route to a seventh place finish in the event. Sautebin clocked an 8.75 time in the only hurdle event of the meet to pick up another two points for the Bulldogs.
Invigorated by the Fresno State cheers from Xavier's shot put, the 4x400 relay team of Sautebin, Tiera Hilliard, Janev Morris and Jordan stepped up to answer the call for the Bulldogs. The four ran a season-best 3:49.54 to take fourth and move the Bulldogs into seventh in the final standings at the meet.
"We've got a long way to go, but we have the potential to do it," said Winsor. "We can be so much better than we are and the team knows it, which is something we can really build on. We're going into the outdoor season with high expectations."
While the indoor season is over for the team, Ayala awaits the final rankings to see if she will qualify for the NCAA Indoor Championships set for March 13-14 at College Station, Texas.
Both the men's and women's outdoor teams will take the track on March 7 at the Cal Quadrangular in Berkeley, Calif.
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