Challenge Cup
Date: Saturday, March 15
Location: Anteater Stadium - Irvine, Calif.
Meet Info

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine men's track & field is set to make its home debut on Saturday, March 15, when it welcomes Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State and UC Santa Barbara to Anteater Stadium for the 30th annual Challenge Cup. The four Big West members will square off in a one-day, scored meet with field events starting at 1 p.m. and action on the track getting underway at 3 p.m.

QUICK HITS
• The Challenge Cup was originally scheduled for Friday but got pushed back one day due to inclement weather.
• Twenty-seven Anteaters are entered in 17 events.
• The 'Eaters have won the Challenge Cup twice with team victories in 2004 and 2005.
• UCI kicked off the 2025 campaign with four event wins and three top-10 marks last weekend.

AT A GLANCE
The Anteaters are coming off a 2024 season in which they had four Big West individual champions and six NCAA West First Round qualifiers. UCI welcomes back four student-athletes from that group, including Jacob Hawkins (Discus) and Liam Miksic (Javelin) who broke the school record in their respective events last year. The 'Eaters also bring in 10 newcomers with five junior college transfers and five true freshmen.

"The expectation is always to be better than the previous year and we are on track to do that," head coach Jeff Perkins said. "That is very exciting for all involved with the program."
 
WINNING WAYS
Seniors Liam Miksic (Javelin) and Jacob Hawkins (Discus), who were the 2024 Big West champions in their respective events, both continued their winning ways last weekend. Miksic kicked off the 2025 campaign with an impressive javelin series at the Beach Opener. He went for over 200 feet on all six of his throws and hit a best of 67.09 meters (220-1) on his third attempt of the day. Miksic is a three-time NCAA West First Round qualifier and two-time Big West champion in the javelin. Hawkins led wire-to-wire in his discus win at the Ben Brown Invitational. His top mark of the afternoon came in the opening round where he had a toss of 55.39m (181-8). 

HEAD START
Joshua Schuld started his senior season with a statement in the steeplechase at the Beach Opener. Schuld clocked a personal-record 8:54.14 to win the event by over 29 seconds. His nearly 12-second PR ranks sixth in program history. Freshman Angel Cordero also had an impressive collegiate debut with an individual victory in the 800m at the Ben Brown Invitational. His time of 1:52.18 was the best in a field of 45 athletes. Both Schuld and Cordero rank first in the Big West in their respective events this season.

OUT OF THE BLOCKS
Senior Bryce Bushnell and freshman Justin Johnson both cracked UCI's all-time top-10 in their first races of the 2025 campaign. In his collegiate debut, Johnson led the Anteaters and placed fifth overall in the 200m at the Ben Brown Invitational. His time of 21.04 seconds is tied for fifth in school history. Bushnell was also UC Irvine's top finisher in the 200m, clocking in at 10.61 seconds to tie for eighth in program history. Junior Jake Jensen wasn't far behind at 10.62, while junior Brandon Burns (10.68) and sophomore Alex Skalmowski (10.70) clocked collegiate personal records. 

MAKING THE LEAP
Junior Kenechukwu Okonkwo took third in the triple jump at the Beach Opener with a best of 14.91 meters (48-11). Junior Jerry Roberts also led a trio of 'Eaters in the long jump as he placed fourth in his NCAA Division I debut at 7.12m (23-4.5). Senior Garren Haynes was fifth in both the long jump (7.11m/23-4) and triple jump (14.54m/47-8.5), while sophomore Alan Vuong added a fifth-place showing in the high jump with a clearance of 2.01m (6-7).

READY FOR MORE
UC Irvine welcomes back All-Big West performer Max Daniels in the decathlon. Daniels, who trained with three-time All-American and 2024 UCI graduate Josh Farmer over the last two years, has his eyes set on qualifying for the NCAA Championships. Daniels enters his senior season ranked among the top-10 in program history in the 100m, long jump and decathlon.

UP NEXT
UC Irvine heads to the Inland Empire for the UCR Spring Classic next Saturday, March 22.