By J.P. Hoornstra
Daily Bruin Senior Staff
Walking confidently toward the practice field Monday, shot
putters Scott Weigand and Dan Ames were asked how they finished at
last weekend’s meet.
Weigand held up one finger; Ames held up two ““ their
domination summarized without a single word.
The two shot putters, along with three Bruin women, left Seattle
Saturday with a guaranteed spot in the NCAA Indoor Track and Field
Championships. For five other athletes, their provisional
qualifying marks at the University of Washington Quad Classic put
them in prime position to compete for the national title.
In their first meet of the season, the UCLA men dominated the
shot put, claiming four out of the top six spots in the event.
Weigand, a junior (63′ 7″) and Ames, a senior,
(62′ 5-3/4″) both had automatic qualifying marks.
“(Weigand’s) last throw came through and beat
Danny’s,” men’s coach Art Venegas said.
Senior Scott Moser finished fourth with a provisional qualifying
throw of 58′ 6-1/2.” Junior Jack Clamon (54′
8-3/4″) finished sixth.
Moser and Ames also finished 1-2 in the 35-pound weight throw.
Moser’s throw of 66′ 0-1/4″ was the provisional
qualifying mark in the field.
“I was very pleased with Moser in the weights,”
Venegas said.
Senior pole vaulter Tracy O’Hara provided the highlight of
the weekend, nailing a vault of 14′ 3-1/2.”
“That morning I wasn’t feeling that great, so I did
a really short warm-up,” she said. “I took two warm-up
jumps and kinda got fired up.”
It was the second highest pole vault in the world this year, and
it automatically qualified the American collegiate record holder
for the indoor finals March 8.
Junior Cari Soong also nailed an automatic bid with a
personal-best 20-pound weight throw of 66′ 8.” She
outdistanced her nearest opponent in the event, Boise State’s
Abbey Ellsberry, by over six feet.
“I knew I had it in me. I just went off the crowd,”
she said.
Sophomore Jessica Cosby placed third in the event with a
provisional qualifying mark of 60′ 1.”
Cosby’s mark in the shot put (55′ 7″) was
easily long enough to send her to the NCAA finals. The throw
eclipsed her fifth-place mark at last year’s finals by over
two feet. Teammates Chaniqua Ross (52′ 4-1/2″) and
Brionna Reynolds (51′ 7″) scored provisional qualifying
marks in the event.
UCLA took the first two spots in the women’s 800-meter
run, led by junior Lena Nilsson’s provisional qualifying time
of 2:07.72. Junior Tiffany Burgess placed second at 2:09.68.
The Bruins also took first place in six other events: sophomore
Valerie Flores in the 3000-meter run, sophomore Denye Versher in
the 400-meter dash, sophomore Nick Thornton in the 800-meter run,
senior Mike Lipscomb in the 200-meter dash, sophomore Juane Armon
in the long jump, and the men’s 4×400 meter relay team.
UCLA will split the squad for two meets this weekend: the
Cornhusker Invitational this Friday and Saturday in Lincoln, Neb.
and Saturday’s Northern Arizona Invitational in
Flagstaff.