Friday, April 30
Clovis, Calif.
Fresno State
vs
West Coast Relays
West Coast Relays return to Central Valley
4/28/2021 9:17:00 PM | Track & Field
FRESNO, Calif. – Ninety-four years since the first edition of the West Coast Relays, April 30, 2021 marks the return of the historic meet. It will be the 78th edition of the Fresno State held West Coast Relays, and first at Veterans Memorial Stadium.
Friday's meet will feature athletes from 24 programs stretching coast to coast. Also, in the meet are unattached and post-collegiate athletes.
Friday's events begin at 7:30 a.m. PT with the men's 10,000 meters and concludes with the women's 5,000 meters invitational at 10:45 p.m. The final two-and-a-half hours of the meet will feature seven invitational distance races.
Admission to the event is free. Capacity at Veterans Memorial Stadium is limited to 33 percent.
West Coast Relays
Host: Fresno State
Date: April 30
Time: 7:30 a.m. PT
Location: Clovis, Calif.
Venue: Veterans Memorial Stadium
Live Results | FloTrack ($)
Meet Schedule | Meet Program
Fresno State entries - Men
Ahmed Kirkland, Joey Turner, Raphael Adedigba, Michael McCabe, David Barajas, Austin Henschen, Nathan Burd, Mohamed Saleh, Ronaldo Delgado, Matthew Founds, Juanathan Reyes, Kelly Brewer, Sam Hawley, Garrett Ostrinski, Stephan Gelpi, Cameron Haynes, Isaiah Calvin, Andrew Remlinger,
Fresno State entries - Women
Queen Okoh, Nakyia Buckner, Daveion Robinson, Victoria Nardella, Brianna Sproles, Ceonna Pipion, Mia Jauregui, Hailey Fernandez, Kaitlynn Perez, De'ja Hudson, Kaja Bins, Taylor Hohenbrink, Haley Barham, Bailey Price, Jodeci Weems, Tijana Antic, Breanna Covington, Haley Abirached, Trinity Williams, Morgan Johnson, Amelia DiPaola, Margaret Vaughan, Samantha Chasteler, Tahj'nee Thurston, Hannah Chappell, Vanja Spaic
Hitting their stride
After 23 months without a hosting a track meet, Fresno State's first home meet was a success as the Bulldogs racked up 43 personal bests at the Fresno State Invitational, the first of three meets held at Veterans Memorial Stadium this season. The marks came just six days prior to the program reviving the West Coast Relays.
It's back
The West Coast Relays were first held on April 30, 1927 and grew into one of the premier track and field events in the United States. Originally held at Ratcliffe Stadium, it was the site of thirty-six world records and many national and collegiate records. Some of the Central Valley's best known track stars made their debuts there, athletes such as Bob Mathias, Dutch Warmerdam, Rafer Johnson, Tommie Smith and Henry Ellard. The meet also saw future starts of other sports such as Jackie Robinson, O.J. Simpson, Willie Gault and Bill Russell.
The meet was discontinued during the 80's but later revived as the Bob Mathias Fresno Relays and was held at Warmerdam Field. It's last edition of the meet was in 2005.
Triple Trio
With the addition of transfer Haley Abirached to the senior triple jump duo of Breanna Covington and Tijana Antic, the Bulldogs have the deepest group triple jumpers in the Mountain West. Led by Covington's 12.86m/42-2.25, the 'Dogs rank third, sixth and eighth in the conference.
- All three rank in the top seven all-time in Fresno State history (No. 2 - Covington, No. 6 - Antic, No. 7 - Abirached).
Hammer Crew
With Joe Riccio taking over as Fresno State's throws coach in 2019, the second-year coach has quickly built depth within the Bulldogs hammer group. Led by Hannah Chappell who ranks third in the Mountain West this season (59.82m/196-3), the Bulldogs have three of the six hammer throwers in the conference following big personal bests by Tahj'nee Thurston and Amelia DiPaola last weekend.
- The three 'Dogs rank in the top in program history (No. 5 – Chappell, No. 6 – Thurston, No. 8 – DiPaola).
- Florida State transfer Nadia Maffo (2021 redshirt) won the hammer at last week's Fresno State Invitational with a mark of 60.87m/199-8, a throw that would rank fourth all-time at Fresno State.
Final go around
June 2018. NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene. That was the last time Vanja Spaic had competed for Fresno State prior March 2021. Following the championships, the javelin thrower injured her elbow during the summer which required surgery and subsequently knocked her out of the 2019 season. She has competed twice this spring, winning both competitions.
- Spaic's throw of 51.85m/170-1 at the UNLV Invitational tops the Mountain West, is seventh in the West and 19th nationally.
- Since 2017, Spaic has competed at 18 meets, finishing first 11 times and twice coming in second. Since the start of her sophomore year, she has only finished outside the top two at one non-NCAA meet.
Leaping up the charts
On April 24, in front of her home crowd, Fresno native Breanna Covington moved from No. 5 to No. 2 all-time in Fresno State history during her the best series of her career in the triple jump. Though she finished with a top mark of 12.86m/42-2.25, three of the senior's jumps would have put her in the No. 2 spot.
Throwing toward the top
After nearly two years since her last hammer throw competition for Fresno State following last year's shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic, Hannah Chappell made the most of that time away. Since returning to the cage, the senior has won the event in all three meets she has competed in this spring. During her second meet she launched a personal best throw of 59.82m/196-3 on her final throw to win the event at the UNLV Invitational and move to fifth on the all-time list at Fresno State.
- That throw in Las Vegas was more than 45 feet further than what she had thrown in 2019.
A long time coming
After having to sit for a full year following her arrival from Latvia in 2019, and then watching the 2020 spring season get canceled, and the fall cross country season pushed to the 2021, it's been a long wait for Elena Miezava. The anticipation ended on March 5 as the sophomore made her debut at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships, running the sixth-fastest 6k in program history at 21:06.0.
- Miezava has competed twice on the track this spring, her latest coming on April 3. Running her first 1500 for the 'Dogs, she posted the eighth-fastest time in program history at 4:31.73.
"Fresno State Athletics: The Pride of the Valley" – The Bulldog Foundation creates championship experiences for Fresno State student-athletes as they strive for excellence in the classroom, in competition, and in life. To become a BDF member, please call 559-278-7160.
Follow us on:
Twitter: @FS_TracknField
Instagram: FS_TracknField
Friday's meet will feature athletes from 24 programs stretching coast to coast. Also, in the meet are unattached and post-collegiate athletes.
Friday's events begin at 7:30 a.m. PT with the men's 10,000 meters and concludes with the women's 5,000 meters invitational at 10:45 p.m. The final two-and-a-half hours of the meet will feature seven invitational distance races.
Admission to the event is free. Capacity at Veterans Memorial Stadium is limited to 33 percent.
West Coast Relays
Host: Fresno State
Date: April 30
Time: 7:30 a.m. PT
Location: Clovis, Calif.
Venue: Veterans Memorial Stadium
Live Results | FloTrack ($)
Meet Schedule | Meet Program
Fresno State entries - Men
Ahmed Kirkland, Joey Turner, Raphael Adedigba, Michael McCabe, David Barajas, Austin Henschen, Nathan Burd, Mohamed Saleh, Ronaldo Delgado, Matthew Founds, Juanathan Reyes, Kelly Brewer, Sam Hawley, Garrett Ostrinski, Stephan Gelpi, Cameron Haynes, Isaiah Calvin, Andrew Remlinger,
Fresno State entries - Women
Queen Okoh, Nakyia Buckner, Daveion Robinson, Victoria Nardella, Brianna Sproles, Ceonna Pipion, Mia Jauregui, Hailey Fernandez, Kaitlynn Perez, De'ja Hudson, Kaja Bins, Taylor Hohenbrink, Haley Barham, Bailey Price, Jodeci Weems, Tijana Antic, Breanna Covington, Haley Abirached, Trinity Williams, Morgan Johnson, Amelia DiPaola, Margaret Vaughan, Samantha Chasteler, Tahj'nee Thurston, Hannah Chappell, Vanja Spaic
Hitting their stride
After 23 months without a hosting a track meet, Fresno State's first home meet was a success as the Bulldogs racked up 43 personal bests at the Fresno State Invitational, the first of three meets held at Veterans Memorial Stadium this season. The marks came just six days prior to the program reviving the West Coast Relays.
It's back
The West Coast Relays were first held on April 30, 1927 and grew into one of the premier track and field events in the United States. Originally held at Ratcliffe Stadium, it was the site of thirty-six world records and many national and collegiate records. Some of the Central Valley's best known track stars made their debuts there, athletes such as Bob Mathias, Dutch Warmerdam, Rafer Johnson, Tommie Smith and Henry Ellard. The meet also saw future starts of other sports such as Jackie Robinson, O.J. Simpson, Willie Gault and Bill Russell.
The meet was discontinued during the 80's but later revived as the Bob Mathias Fresno Relays and was held at Warmerdam Field. It's last edition of the meet was in 2005.
Triple Trio
With the addition of transfer Haley Abirached to the senior triple jump duo of Breanna Covington and Tijana Antic, the Bulldogs have the deepest group triple jumpers in the Mountain West. Led by Covington's 12.86m/42-2.25, the 'Dogs rank third, sixth and eighth in the conference.
- All three rank in the top seven all-time in Fresno State history (No. 2 - Covington, No. 6 - Antic, No. 7 - Abirached).
Hammer Crew
With Joe Riccio taking over as Fresno State's throws coach in 2019, the second-year coach has quickly built depth within the Bulldogs hammer group. Led by Hannah Chappell who ranks third in the Mountain West this season (59.82m/196-3), the Bulldogs have three of the six hammer throwers in the conference following big personal bests by Tahj'nee Thurston and Amelia DiPaola last weekend.
- The three 'Dogs rank in the top in program history (No. 5 – Chappell, No. 6 – Thurston, No. 8 – DiPaola).
- Florida State transfer Nadia Maffo (2021 redshirt) won the hammer at last week's Fresno State Invitational with a mark of 60.87m/199-8, a throw that would rank fourth all-time at Fresno State.
Final go around
June 2018. NCAA Outdoor Championships in Eugene. That was the last time Vanja Spaic had competed for Fresno State prior March 2021. Following the championships, the javelin thrower injured her elbow during the summer which required surgery and subsequently knocked her out of the 2019 season. She has competed twice this spring, winning both competitions.
- Spaic's throw of 51.85m/170-1 at the UNLV Invitational tops the Mountain West, is seventh in the West and 19th nationally.
- Since 2017, Spaic has competed at 18 meets, finishing first 11 times and twice coming in second. Since the start of her sophomore year, she has only finished outside the top two at one non-NCAA meet.
Leaping up the charts
On April 24, in front of her home crowd, Fresno native Breanna Covington moved from No. 5 to No. 2 all-time in Fresno State history during her the best series of her career in the triple jump. Though she finished with a top mark of 12.86m/42-2.25, three of the senior's jumps would have put her in the No. 2 spot.
Throwing toward the top
After nearly two years since her last hammer throw competition for Fresno State following last year's shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic, Hannah Chappell made the most of that time away. Since returning to the cage, the senior has won the event in all three meets she has competed in this spring. During her second meet she launched a personal best throw of 59.82m/196-3 on her final throw to win the event at the UNLV Invitational and move to fifth on the all-time list at Fresno State.
- That throw in Las Vegas was more than 45 feet further than what she had thrown in 2019.
A long time coming
After having to sit for a full year following her arrival from Latvia in 2019, and then watching the 2020 spring season get canceled, and the fall cross country season pushed to the 2021, it's been a long wait for Elena Miezava. The anticipation ended on March 5 as the sophomore made her debut at the Mountain West Cross Country Championships, running the sixth-fastest 6k in program history at 21:06.0.
- Miezava has competed twice on the track this spring, her latest coming on April 3. Running her first 1500 for the 'Dogs, she posted the eighth-fastest time in program history at 4:31.73.
"Fresno State Athletics: The Pride of the Valley" – The Bulldog Foundation creates championship experiences for Fresno State student-athletes as they strive for excellence in the classroom, in competition, and in life. To become a BDF member, please call 559-278-7160.
Follow us on:
Twitter: @FS_TracknField
Instagram: FS_TracknField
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