UC Irvine Heads to Santa Barbara for UCSB Invite

Wednesday, March 9

Santa Barbara, Calif.

12:30 PM

UC Irvine

UCSB Invitational

kayla-rodriguez-wtrack-2022-jav-beach-opener

UC Irvine Heads to Santa Barbara for UCSB Invite

March 08, 2022 | Women's Track & Field

at UCSB Invitational
Dates: March 9-11 (Wednesday-Friday)
Location: Pauley Track - Santa Barbara, Calif.
Live Results // Meet Schedule

Notes (PDF)

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Irvine women's track & field team continues the outdoor season this week at the UC Santa Barbara Invitational, March 9-11.

Three Anteaters will be in action at Pauley Track on Wednesday and Thursday as Chaselyn Amos, Shaelyn Amos and Kayla Rodriguez are slated to make their heptathlon debuts. The rest of the team will compete on Friday.

QUICK HITS
• UC Irvine has 27 returning letterwinners, 15 newcomers and seven redshirt freshmen.
• Reyna Johnson made a statement in her outdoor collegiate debut last week, winning the LJ with a PR 19-01.25.
• Johnson is just the ninth Anteater in school history to surpass 19 feet.
• Montgomery Allison made her way into UCI's all-time top-10 in the steeplechase in her first collegiate meet.
• Allison won the event at the Beach Opener in a lifetime-best 11:13.28.
• Hannah Chau is the defending Big West women's 10K champion and is a two-time All-Big West XC performer.
• Chau ranks fourth in school history in the 10,000-meter and seventh in the 5,000-meter.
• Zani Meaders competed in the team's first two meets last year before utilizing a redshirt season.
• As a true freshman in 2019, Meaders had a third-place finish in the 400m at the Big West Championships.
• She ranks third in outdoor school history (55.00) and holds the indoor school record (54.81).
• Lorraine Nance is also back after competing in only two meets last season.
• Nance is a conference scorer in the triple jump and ranks sixth all-time at UCI (39-03).
• Both Deandra Tyler and Kassidy Sani cracked the Anteaters' all-time top-10 as true freshmen last season.
• Tyler is seventh in the shot put (44-00.5), while Sani is ninth in the discus (153-00).
• UCI will host two meets in April as it starts the month with the inaugural Vince O'Boyle T&F Classic, April 1-2.
• The 'Eaters will then bring back the Steve Scott Invitational, April 29-30, in their final tune-up before conference.

LAST TIME OUT
UC Irvine had a strong start to the season with 17 top-10 finishes, including three event wins, at the Beach Opener, March 4-5. Reyna Johnson led the way with an individual victory in the long jump. In her first outdoor collegiate meet, Johnson finished first in a field of 35 with a personal-record 19-01.25. Her mark ranks eighth in school history. Montgomery Allison also made her way into the Anteaters' top-10 in her outdoor debut. She won the steeplechase with a time of 11:13.28, which puts her ninth all-time at UCI. Emma McCarthy came in nearly two seconds ahead of the pack in an 800m race that featured 39 athletes. She crossed the finish line in a lifetime-best 2:14.73. Zani Meaders led five 'Eaters in the 400m, clocking in at 56.29 to claim runner-up honors, while Lorraine Nance took third in the triple jump with a leap of 37-05.75. Mia Marquez, Amari Fraser, Meaders and Jennifer Daly also ran the third-fastest 4x400 relay of the meet at 3:52.74.

NOW THAT'S A DEBUT
UC Irvine had a pair of true freshmen win their events with marks that rank among the nation's best after the first week of the season. Reyna Johnson claimed the long jump title at the Beach Opener with a personal-record 19-01.25. That was the top distance in all of NCAA Division I and put her at No. 8 in school history. Montgomery Allison was also first to cross the finish line in the steeplechase at 11:13.28, which is No. 3 in the nation and ninth all-time at UCI.

ALL-CONFERENCE RETURNERS
UC Irvine is coming off one of its best Big West Championship performances in recent years. In 2021, the Anteaters, who had 10 podium finishes and five event wins, placed fourth in the team standings with 123 points, marking their best conference showing since 2014 and their highest point total since 1996. Back from that squad are defending 10K champion Hannah Chau, who won UCI's first title in that event in 19 years, along with Mia Marquez (400m, 4x100, 4x400), Aryel Coats (4x100, 4x400) and Amari Fraser (4x400).

HEPTATHLON TRIO
Chaselyn Amos, Shaelyn Amos and Kayla Rodriguez will all get their first taste of the heptathlon this week. The trio competed in the high jump, long jump and javelin last weekend at the Beach Opener, and also took part in the pentathlon during the indoor season. Chaselyn Amos led the way with 2,639 points as she scored with a seventh-place finish at the MPSF Championships on Feb. 18.

UP NEXT
The Anteaters will take a short break for finals before returning to action at UCLA's Jim Bush Legends Invitational and Bob Larsen Invitational (March 23 & 25), the Texas Relays (March 24-26) and the UCR Spring Track Classic (March 25-26).