IRVINE, Calif. - The 2020 UC Irvine women's indoor track & field team is young, but with that youth comes added depth and versatility that the Anteaters have not seen in recent years.
 
"We have a big rookie class coming in that we need to develop, and hopefully some of them will surprise us in all event areas," said UCI head coach Jeff Perkins. "It's just a matter of making sure we can gain some momentum heading into the MPSF Championships, and seeing what we can do as a team.
 
"I am excited about our potential in both the track and field events. We are making it much more event specific so that we can do well across the spectrum when we get to conference. There is a lot more depth in areas that we haven't had in the past, which is the focus and direction I want to move in with our team as a whole."
 
The 'Eaters will open the season at the UW Preview in Seattle (Jan. 18) for the first time since 2014. They will then head to Albuquerque for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Collegiate Invitational, Jan. 24-25, and the New Mexico Collegiate Classic, Feb. 7-8. That will be UCI's final preparation before making its way back to Seattle for the MPSF Championships, Feb. 28-29.
 
"Our schedule is a little different than in years past," said Perkins. "The Albuquerque meets will give us the ability to compete more individuals, and they were spread out the right way to get us ready for the conference meet."
 
THROWS
Despite graduating one of the most accomplished athletes in program history in Barbara Coward, UC Irvine will once again be strong in the throws. Leading the way is senior Brianna Villanueva, who ranks second in the weight throw at UCI with a lifetime-best 56-01. She finished 15th at the MPSF Championships a year ago.
 
"We are looking for a big year out of Brianna in the weight throw," said Perkins. "She has a chance to surpass Barbara's school record in that event; she has worked really hard for it."
 
Also returning in the shot put are fifth-year senior Elizabeth Akindele and sophomore Tayla Crenshaw. Akindele sits at No. 3 on UC Irvine's all-time charts, while Crenshaw will be making her indoor debut.
 
SPRINTS/HURDLES
The 'Eaters have two 400m runners who will be chasing the indoor school record. One of them is sophomore Zani Meaders, who is the current record holder after running a lifetime-best 55.78 at the 2019 MPSF Championships. Meaders was 10th out of 47 competitors and second among all freshmen at the conference meet. Junior Sha'Maya Flanagan is also expected to be in the mix after sitting out last year as a transfer from Arizona State. She established a personal-best 55.04 as a sophomore at ASU.
 
"We are expecting big things from Sha'Maya and Zani," said Perkins. "Both of them should push, if not break Zani's school record from last year. They have the talent so we're definitely looking forward to what they can do."
 
Junior Mikayla Scott is another one of the Anteaters' top returning sprinters as she ranks among the program's all-time top-five in the 200m (25.24) and 400m (57.03).
 
Senior Mychal Robinson will anchor the hurdles squad, while adding some depth in the short sprints. Robinson ran UCI's third-fastest 60m hurdle time last year at 8.61 seconds. She also matched her 60m lifetime-best (7.99) as a junior.
 
The 4x400 is shaping up to have a good year under the direction of first-year volunteer assistant coach Keith Chambers. Strong contenders for the relay are Flanagan, Meaders, senior Cecily Montanez, junior transfer Kayla Rodriguez and freshman Tess Mathes.
 
JUMPS
UC Irvine has continued to build its jumps squad with the addition of NCAA Division I transfers Je'Neal Ainsworth (San Diego State) and Crystal Washington (Eastern Michigan). Ainsworth, a graduate student who did not compete at SDSU last year, was an All-Mountain West performer in the triple jump during the 2016 outdoor season. She established indoor bests of 40-11.5 in the triple jump and 16-10.5 in the long jump.
 
Washington finished fourth in the triple jump at the 2019 Mid-American Conference Indoor Championships with a lifetime-best 40-05, which placed her among the top-10 in EMU history.
 
The two transfers join sophomore Lorraine Nance, who established the fourth-best mark in UC Irvine's indoor history at 38-01.25 in a runner-up finish at the 2019 Lumberjack Team Challenge.
 
"Lorraine was a scorer for us in the triple jump at the Big West Championships during the outdoor season," said Perkins. "She should continue to carry that event forward for us, along with Je'Neal and Crystal, who are both high-level triple jumpers."
 
Junior Natalie Koppel also returns in the long jump. She enters the season at No. 7 in school history with an indoor personal-record 17-11.75.
 
DISTANCE
The distance squad will be led by sophomore Hannah Chau, who is coming off an impressive fall where she became UC Irvine's first women's cross country All-Big West performer in 11 years with a fifth-place showing at the conference championships. Chau established the fourth-fastest 6K in school history at 20:44.5.
 
"We are looking forward to seeing what Hannah can do in the 3K and 5K," said Perkins. "She will be trying to establish some school records there and I expect her to push those boundaries."
 
The 'Eaters have solid senior leadership in Anastasia Karnaze, Brenda Dorantes and Mariah Theologidy.  Karnaze ranks among the top-10 in school history in the mile and 3000m, while Dorantes joins her on the 3K list. UCI also brings in an influx of talent with seven newcomers who all competed during the 2019 cross country season.