Vince O'Boyle Classic
Date: Friday-Saturday (March 28-29)
Location: Anteater Stadium - Irvine, Calif.
Meet Info 

Mangrum Invitational
Date: Friday, March 28
Location: Cal State San Marcos - San Marcos, Calif.
Meet Info | Live Results

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's track & field is set to host the fourth annual Vince O'Boyle Classic, March 28-29, at Anteater Stadium. 

The long jump, hammer and javelin are scheduled for Friday with a 12 p.m. start. The remainder of the events will be held on Saturday, beginning at 10 a.m. Only Saturday will be ticketed with adults at $11 and youth at $8. Anteater Stadium has a clear bag policy.

UCI will also send a contingent of distance athletes to the Mangrum Invitational in San Marcos on Friday, March 28.

THE LEGEND
Vince O'Boyle spent 32 years at the helm of the Anteater cross country/track & field program. The 20-time Big West Coach of the Year mentored an NCAA individual champion, 27 All-Americans and 23 Big West Athletes of the Year during his tenure. O'Boyle also led the 'Eaters to 12 conference titles in women's cross country and seven in men's cross country. He elevated the women's program to national prominence with four trips to the NCAA Championships where they had three top-10 finishes. O'Boyle has been inducted into the UCI Athletics Hall of Fame and the Mt. SAC Relays Hall of Fame.

LAST TIME OUT
The Anteaters won five of their 10 events last Saturday at the UCR Spring Classic. DeAna Davis set the tone in the first event of the meet as she opened the hammer competition with a personal-record 57.32 meters (188-0). Through six rounds, Davis' mark stood as the best of the day by over 43 feet for her second individual victory of the season. Jolie Robinson took top honors in the long jump with a lifetime-best 6.19m (20-3.75). Robinson led wire-to-wire in an impressive series where she surpassed 19 feet on all six attempts. Nyla Baker remained undefeated in the discus with a personal-best 49.85m (163-5). Pinkie Schnayer placed first in the shot put (14.32m/46-11.75) for the second week in a row, while Jazzmine Davis finished ahead of the pack in the 400m hurdles (60.86).

THE BIG THREE
In the long jump, sophomore Kailah McKenzie, senior Reyna Johnson and senior Jolie Robinson rank 1-2-3 in The Big West as they are the only athletes in the conference to surpass 20 feet. McKenzie leads the way with a personal-record 6.33 meters (20-9.25), which she established at the Challenge Cup on March 15. Johnson also kicked off the season with a wind-aided PR 6.23m (20-5.25) at the Beach Opener on March 7, while Robinson registered a lifetime-best 6.19m (20-3.75) in her first long jump competition of the outdoor campaign last weekend at the UCR Spring Classic. The trio are among the top-10 in the nation this season and among the top-five in school history.

BACK-TO-BACK
Kailah McKenzie won back-to-back Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Week honors on March 11 and March 18. McKenzie earned her first award of the season following a high jump victory where she cleared 1.76 meters (5-9.25) at the Beach Opener. That height was just a half-inch shy of her PR and is tied for 11th in the nation this season. The following week, the 2024 Big West Women's Freshman of the Year was recognized for her winning long jump mark of 6.33m (20-9.25) at the Challenge Cup. McKenzie's distance is second in all of NCAA Division I and was the Anteaters' best leap since 1983, moving her up to No. 2 in program history.

THROWING IT OUT THERE
Juniors Nyla Baker and DeAna Davis are unbeaten in their respective events this season. Baker took first in the discus at the Ben Brown Invitational, Challenge Cup and UCR Spring Classic. Last weekend in Riverside, she established a personal-record 49.85m (163-6) to rank second in The Big West and seventh in school history. Davis picked up individual victories in the hammer throw at the Ben Brown Invite and UCR Spring Classic. She notched a PR 57.32m (188-0) at UCR, which puts her third in the conference and third on UCI's all-time charts. Freshman Pinkie Schnayer added two wins in the shot put including at the Challenge Cup where she hit a lifetime-best 14.74m (48-4.5) to rank second in The Big West and fourth in program history.

DOUBLE TROUBLE
Juniors Zharia Taylor and Esmeray Demirbas both cleared a personal-record 1.79 meters (5-10.5) in the high jump at the Challenge Cup on March 15. Taylor did not miss at her first five heights to finish first, while Demirbas claimed runner-up honors. The UCI duo lead the Big West and are tied for fifth in the nation this season, while they are also tied for second among the Anteaters' all-time leaders.

GOING THE DISTANCE
Seniors Malia Gay and Luz Mercado went 1-2 in the 800m at the Challenge Cup. Gay clocked a lifetime-best and then NCAA-leading 2:06.90, while Mercado registered a season-best 2:09.87. In her first career steeplechase, sophomore Kaia Schmidt finished ahead of the pack in 10:50.78 at the Beach Opener. Schmidt's time ranks sixth in school history.

ANTEATER SPEEDSTERS
Sophomore Halle Sutherland won the 100m in a wind-legal personal-best 11.63 seconds at the Challenge Cup. Sutherland's time is tops in the Big West this season. She also moved up one spot to No. 3 in program history. In her NCAA Division I outdoor debut, Esmeray Demirbas ran a lifetime-best 60.22 to take first in the 400m hurdles at the Beach Opener. Demirbas' time ranks eighth among the Anteaters' all-time leaders, and puts her second in the conference in 2025.

AT A GLANCE
UC Irvine has placed among the top four at the Big West Championships in each of the last four seasons. In 2024, the 'Eaters had their best showing in 28 years as they claimed runner-up honors, finishing only 12 points shy of the program's first conference title. UCI returns 34 members from last year's squad, including 13 conference scorers and five All-Big West performers, while bringing in 26 newcomers.
 
UP NEXT
UC Irvine makes its way to La Jolla for the Triton Invitational, April 4-5.