Wednesday, May 28
College Station, Texas
12:30 PM PT
UC Irvine
at
NCAA West First Round
'Eaters Travel to Texas for NCAA West First Round
May 27, 2025 | Men's Track & Field
NCAA West First Round
Date: Wednesday-Saturday (May 28-31)
Location: E.B. Cushing Stadium - College Station, Texas
Meet Info
IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine men's track & field has seven student-athletes set to compete in the NCAA West First Round in College Station, Texas, May 28-31. All of the men's events will be contested on Wednesday and Friday at E.B. Cushing Stadium on the campus of Texas A&M.
QUICK HITS
• UC Irvine finished fifth at the Big West Championships two weekends ago.
• The Anteaters had four podium finishes, led by Liam Miksic who won his third-straight Big West javelin title.
• Miksic broke his own school record with a throw of 71.06m (233-1) at the conference meet.
• Two of UCI's seven regional qualifiers are true freshmen.
ANGEL CORDERO // 800m // Freshman // 6-2 // Chula Vista, Calif. // Major: Biological Sciences
• Angel Cordero was the 800m Big West runner-up, setting a personal-best 1:48.10 in the conference final.
• His time ranks fourth in school history and is a freshman school record.
• He is the Anteaters' first NCAA qualifier in the 800m since 2017.
• Cordero has four individual victories on the year and is unbeaten against other freshmen.
JACOB HAWKINS // Discus // Senior // 6-5 // Brentwood, Calif. // Major: Sociology
• Jacob Hawkins will be making his second-straight NCAA appearance in the discus.
• Hawkins finished second at the Big West Championships with a toss of 55.75m (182-11).
• He was just shy of his season-best 56.25m (184-6), which he set in a win at the Vince O'Boyle Classic.
• Hawkins also won the discus at the Ben Brown Invitational and UCR Spring Classic.
• Last year, Hawkins was an NCAA First Round qualifier in the discus (27th) and shot put (31st).
• In 2024, he broke a 41-year-old school record in the discus with a PR of 59.03m (193-8).
JUSTIN JOHNSON // 200m // Freshman // 6-0 // Sacramento, Calif. // Major: Undeclared
• Justin Johnson is UCI's first NCAA qualifier in the 200m since 2018.
• Johnson was a conference scorer with a fifth-place finish at the Big West Championships.
• He ran a wind-aided PR of 20.69 in the prelims and a wind-legal PR of 20.87 in the final.
• Johnson has placed among the top-six in all four of his 200m races this year.
• He ranks fourth in school history in the 200m and seventh in the 100m (10.56) in his first collegiate season.
• His older sister, Reyna, is also an NCAA qualifier in the long jump as a senior on the UCI women's team.
LIAM MIKSIC // Javelin // Senior // 5-11 // Spring Lake, N.J. // Major: Sociology
• Liam Miksic is a four-time NCAA West First Round qualifier and enters the meet seeded eighth.
• Miksic defended his Big West title in the javelin and broke his own school record in the process.
• With the victory already locked, up, he unleashed a final throw of 71.06m (233-1).
• He is the third Big West athlete to three-peat as the men's javelin conference champion, and first since 1989.
• Including the Big West Championships, Miksic has five individual victories this season.
• Last year, Miksic had a career-best 14th-place regional finish.
KENECHUKWU OKONKWO // Triple Jump // Junior // 6-3 // Colton, Calif. // Major: Biological Sciences
• Kenechukwu Okonkwo qualified for the NCAA First Round in the triple jump for the second year in a row.
• He is seeded 13th with a lifetime-best 15.83 meters (51-11.25).
• Okonkwo set his PR in an individual victory at the Challenge Cup.
• His mark moved him past Mike Powell for No. 2 in program history.
• Okonkwo was the Big West runner-up (15.62m/51-3), while he also won the event at the UCR Spring Classic.
LOGAN PEYTON // Javelin // Senior // 6-1 // Oregon City, Ore. // Major: Social Ecology
• Logan Peyton is set to make his second NCAA First Round appearance in the javelin.
• Peyton qualified with a season-best 65.16m (213-9) in an individual victory at the UCR Spring Classic.
• He was a conference scorer in the event, placing seventh at the Big West Championships.
• Peyton owns a lifetime-best of 65.93m (216-4), which ranks third in school history.
JOSHUA SCHULD // Steeplechase // Senior // 6-3 // Irvine, Calif. // Major: Business Analytics
• Joshua Schuld will be making his NCAA debut as he is the Anteaters' first qualifier in the steeple since 2008.
• Schuld set a PR three times this year with his best of 8:50.75 coming in a fourth-place Big West finish.
• He won the event at the Beach Opener (8:54.14) and Steve Scott Invitational (9:01.70).
• Schuld's second personal best of the season came at the Bryan Clay Invitational (8:51.28).
UP NEXT
The top-12 in each event will qualify for the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, June 11-14.
Date: Wednesday-Saturday (May 28-31)
Location: E.B. Cushing Stadium - College Station, Texas
Meet Info
IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine men's track & field has seven student-athletes set to compete in the NCAA West First Round in College Station, Texas, May 28-31. All of the men's events will be contested on Wednesday and Friday at E.B. Cushing Stadium on the campus of Texas A&M.
QUICK HITS
• UC Irvine finished fifth at the Big West Championships two weekends ago.
• The Anteaters had four podium finishes, led by Liam Miksic who won his third-straight Big West javelin title.
• Miksic broke his own school record with a throw of 71.06m (233-1) at the conference meet.
• Two of UCI's seven regional qualifiers are true freshmen.
ANGEL CORDERO // 800m // Freshman // 6-2 // Chula Vista, Calif. // Major: Biological Sciences
• Angel Cordero was the 800m Big West runner-up, setting a personal-best 1:48.10 in the conference final.
• His time ranks fourth in school history and is a freshman school record.
• He is the Anteaters' first NCAA qualifier in the 800m since 2017.
• Cordero has four individual victories on the year and is unbeaten against other freshmen.
JACOB HAWKINS // Discus // Senior // 6-5 // Brentwood, Calif. // Major: Sociology
• Jacob Hawkins will be making his second-straight NCAA appearance in the discus.
• Hawkins finished second at the Big West Championships with a toss of 55.75m (182-11).
• He was just shy of his season-best 56.25m (184-6), which he set in a win at the Vince O'Boyle Classic.
• Hawkins also won the discus at the Ben Brown Invitational and UCR Spring Classic.
• Last year, Hawkins was an NCAA First Round qualifier in the discus (27th) and shot put (31st).
• In 2024, he broke a 41-year-old school record in the discus with a PR of 59.03m (193-8).
JUSTIN JOHNSON // 200m // Freshman // 6-0 // Sacramento, Calif. // Major: Undeclared
• Justin Johnson is UCI's first NCAA qualifier in the 200m since 2018.
• Johnson was a conference scorer with a fifth-place finish at the Big West Championships.
• He ran a wind-aided PR of 20.69 in the prelims and a wind-legal PR of 20.87 in the final.
• Johnson has placed among the top-six in all four of his 200m races this year.
• He ranks fourth in school history in the 200m and seventh in the 100m (10.56) in his first collegiate season.
• His older sister, Reyna, is also an NCAA qualifier in the long jump as a senior on the UCI women's team.
LIAM MIKSIC // Javelin // Senior // 5-11 // Spring Lake, N.J. // Major: Sociology
• Liam Miksic is a four-time NCAA West First Round qualifier and enters the meet seeded eighth.
• Miksic defended his Big West title in the javelin and broke his own school record in the process.
• With the victory already locked, up, he unleashed a final throw of 71.06m (233-1).
• He is the third Big West athlete to three-peat as the men's javelin conference champion, and first since 1989.
• Including the Big West Championships, Miksic has five individual victories this season.
• Last year, Miksic had a career-best 14th-place regional finish.
KENECHUKWU OKONKWO // Triple Jump // Junior // 6-3 // Colton, Calif. // Major: Biological Sciences
• Kenechukwu Okonkwo qualified for the NCAA First Round in the triple jump for the second year in a row.
• He is seeded 13th with a lifetime-best 15.83 meters (51-11.25).
• Okonkwo set his PR in an individual victory at the Challenge Cup.
• His mark moved him past Mike Powell for No. 2 in program history.
• Okonkwo was the Big West runner-up (15.62m/51-3), while he also won the event at the UCR Spring Classic.
LOGAN PEYTON // Javelin // Senior // 6-1 // Oregon City, Ore. // Major: Social Ecology
• Logan Peyton is set to make his second NCAA First Round appearance in the javelin.
• Peyton qualified with a season-best 65.16m (213-9) in an individual victory at the UCR Spring Classic.
• He was a conference scorer in the event, placing seventh at the Big West Championships.
• Peyton owns a lifetime-best of 65.93m (216-4), which ranks third in school history.
JOSHUA SCHULD // Steeplechase // Senior // 6-3 // Irvine, Calif. // Major: Business Analytics
• Joshua Schuld will be making his NCAA debut as he is the Anteaters' first qualifier in the steeple since 2008.
• Schuld set a PR three times this year with his best of 8:50.75 coming in a fourth-place Big West finish.
• He won the event at the Beach Opener (8:54.14) and Steve Scott Invitational (9:01.70).
• Schuld's second personal best of the season came at the Bryan Clay Invitational (8:51.28).
UP NEXT
The top-12 in each event will qualify for the NCAA Championships in Eugene, Oregon, June 11-14.
Players Mentioned
Middle Distance
/ Men's Track & Field
Throws
/ Men's Track & Field
Sprints
/ Men's Track & Field
Javelin
/ Men's Track & Field
Jumps
/ Men's Track & Field
Javelin
/ Men's Track & Field
Distance
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