Fresno State Athletics
Ayala Headed to the NCAAs
3/10/2009 12:00:00 AM | Track & Field
March 10, 2009
FRESNO, Calif. - Sharon Ayala is headed to the NCAA Indoor Championship this weekend.
A stellar performance at the UW Last Chance Meet Saturday rocketed Ayala from No. 18 to the 10th spot nationally and earned her a bid to the NCAAs.
"It's quite an accomplishment when you go to a Last Chance Meet, knowing what you have to do," said head coach Scott Winsor. "There's a lot of pressure to perform and she did exactly what she needed to do."
Ayala threw the 20-pound weight 65-feet, 6.75 inches (19.98 meters), at the meet in Seattle, to setting a new Fresno State record.
She will be the Fresno State's first female athlete in to the NCAA Indoor Championship in this century. The last Bulldogs at the meet were Melissa Price, who won the national title in the pole vault, and Angela Daigle in 1999. Ayala is the first Fresno State athlete to compete in the weight throw at the NCAAs.
"I'm very proud of Sharon and all her hard work," said Winsor. "It's a great thing for Sharon and for Fresno State track and field, with our first representative in ten years. But she's going in with a `the job's not done yet' attitude, so now she just needs to finish strong."
Ayala leaves for the championships at Texas A&M in College Station, Texas, on Wednesday. The weight throw is set to begin at 2 p.m. PST on Friday.
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