LONG BEACH, Calif. – Senior Lloyd Sicard and sophomore Isaiah Jewett continued their dominance on the track with top performances at the 25th annual Big West Challenge Friday in Long Beach.
Sicard claimed his fourth consecutive Big West Challenge title in the 110m hurdles. He also broke the meet record for the third time in his career, running a season-best 13.74. Sicard remained unbeaten in the 110H this year and has set a season best in each outing. The two-time defending Big West champion ranks first in the conference, fifth in the West Region and ninth in the NCAA.
Jewett earned his second individual victory of the season in the 800m, crossing the finish line in 1:50.22. He beat the runner-up by over three seconds. Freshman Michelangelo Zavala chipped in a lifetime-best 1:56.63 (9th).
Sicard and Jewett then teamed up with sophomore Paul Resong and senior Brandon Howard to win the 4x400 relay. The quartet kept their No. 1 ranking in the Big West this year with a season-best 3:11.20.
Howard also took third in the 400m hurdles (53.49), while Resong was fourth in the 400m (48.58).
Junior Michael Hamill notched a personal-record 10.95 to come in 10th in the 100m. Hamill (22.08) and senior Antwon Parker (22.17) added lifetime bests in the 200m where they were eighth and 10th, respectively.
Junior Izzak Mireles snagged runner-up honors in the 3000m, establishing a lifetime-best 8:34.17. Freshman Hector Garcia contributed another strong outing in the 1500m where he came in third overall at 3:57.00. Sophomore Ashton Garcia wasn't far behind in fourth (4:00.74). Sophomores Branden Randall (9:38.33) and Jon Rodriguez (9:55.94) were third and fifth in the steeplechase, respectively.
In the field events, senior Matt Seawright registered a personal-best 204-04 in the hammer throw for a third-place finish. He is just the fourth athlete in the conference to surpass 200 feet this season and remained at No. 3 in the school record book.
Junior Jon Dickinson also set a lifetime best for the second weekend in a row with a toss of 169-09, which puts him at No. 10 on UCI's all-time charts.
In the discus, Seawright (162-04) and sophomore Omar Valenzuela (151-07) placed seventh and eighth.
UC Irvine returns to action next week with four different meets on the docket – Bryan Clay Invitational (April 13-14), Pacific Coast Intercollegiate (April 13), Mt. SAC Relays (April 14-15) and Beach Invitational (April 15).
Big West Challenge Men's Team Results
1. Long Beach State – 197
2. Cal State Fullerton – 183
3. UC Santa Barbara – 178
4. UC Irvine - 100
