NCAA West First Round
Date: Wednesday-Saturday (May 28-31)
Location: E.B. Cushing Stadium - College Station, Texas
Meet Info

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine women's track & field is sending a program-record 10 student-athletes to the NCAA West First Round in College Station, Texas, May 28-31. All of the women's events will be contested on Thursday and Saturday at E.B. Cushing Stadium on the campus of Texas A&M.

QUICK HITS
• UC Irvine won the first Big West Women's Track & Field Championship in school history.
• The Anteaters (150.5) edged Cal Poly (149) by 1.5 points for the team title.
• Eight 'Eaters took home 12 All-Big West honors in the individual events at the conference meet.
• UCI's 4x100 relay also had a runner-up showing in a season-best 44.87.
• Jazzmine Davis was named the Big West Women's Track Athlete of the Meet.
• UC Irvine is among the top-10 in the high jump (5th) and long jump (9th) in the USTFCCCA Event Rankings.
• The 'Eaters also rank among the top-25 in the 100H, 400H, steeple and shot put.
• The Anteaters have three NCAA First Round qualifiers in both the high jump and long jump.

NYLA BAKER // Shot Put // Junior // 5-11 // Citrus Heights, Calif. // Major: Criminology, Law & Society
• Nyla Baker will be making her NCAA debut in the shot put this weekend.
• Baker qualified with a personal-record 15.53m (50-11.5), which she set at the Triton Invitational.
• Her mark ranks third in program history.
• Baker also reached 15 meters in an individual victory at the Vince O'Boyle Classic (15.48m/50-9.5).

DEANA DAVIS // Hammer Throw // Junior // 5-4 // Temecula, Calif. // Major: Education Sciences
• DeAna Davis qualified for her first NCAA regional in the hammer throw.
• Her top mark of the season came at the Vince O'Boyle Classic where she hit a personal-best 57.65m (189-1).
• Davis' PR moved her up to No. 2 in program history.
• Davis was the Big West runner-up at 57.50m (188-7), and had two event wins during the regular season.

JAZZMINE DAVIS // 100H & 400H // Senior // 5-4 // Sherman Oaks, Calif. // Major: Sociology
• Jazzmine Davis is a first-time NCAA qualifier in the 100m hurdles and 400m hurdles.
• Davis was named the Big West Women's Track Athlete of the Meet after three podium finishes.
• She was the Anteaters' first conference champion in the 400H since 2012 with a lifetime-best 58.14.
• Davis took third in the 100H with a wind-aided PR 13.42 and was a member of the second-place 4x100.
• She also scored in the heptathlon and 4x400, accounting for 20 individual points and 11 relay points.
• Davis ranks among UCI's all-time top three in the 100H (3rd), 400H (3rd), 4x100 (2nd) and heptathlon (3rd).
• In addition, she was part of the 4x4 that broke the school record with a time of 3:41.03 at the Mt. SAC Relays.
• Davis was the 2023 3C2A state champion in the heptathlon at Cerritos College.

ESMERAY DEMIRBAS // 400m Hurdles & High Jump // Junior // 5-9 // Surrey, B.C. // Major: Sociology
• Esmeray Demirbas qualified for the NCAA West First Round in the 400m hurdles and high jump.
• Demirbas clocked a PR 57.81 in the 400H at the Mt. SAC Relays to move up to No. 2 in program history.
• She also tied UCI's second-best high jump mark with a PR 1.79m (5-10.5) at the Challenge Cup.
• Demirbas placed third in both events at the Big West Championships.
• Earlier in the year, she was part of the 4x400 that ran a school-record 3:41.03 at the Mt. SAC Relays.
• Demirbas, who won the 3C2A state title in the high jump at Orange Coast College, is in her first year at UCI.
• She also played basketball at Westcliff University in Irvine prior to her time at OCC.

MALIA GAY // 800m // Senior // 5-5 // Sacramento, Calif. // Major: Public Health Policy
• Malia Gay will be making her NCAA debut this week, qualifying in the 800m.
• She ran a personal record and won the event in her first two meets of the season.
• At the Triton Invitational, Gay clocked her qualifying time of 2:06.21, which ranks third in school history.
• Gay earned her third career 800m All-Big West honor with a second-straight runner-up finish at the conference championships.
• She was also the Big West runner-up in the 1500m where she ranks fifth all-time at UCI with a PR 4:19.74.

REYNA JOHNSON // Long Jump // Senior // 5-6 // Sacramento, Calif. // Major: Sociology 
• Reyna Johnson will be making her second NCAA appearance in the long jump (2023, 2025).
• She is seeded 18th in the field with a wind-aided personal-record 6.34m (20-9.75).
• Johnson surpassed the six-meter mark in five of her six competitions this season.
• She was named the Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Week on April 1.
• She was also part of the Big West runner-up 4x100 relay that ran the second-fastest time in school history (44.87).
• Johnson scored as a conference finalist in the 100H (4th) where she clocked a wind-aided PR 13.57.
• Reyna's younger brother, Justin, is an NCAA qualifier in the 200m as a freshman on the UCI men's team.

KAILAH MCKENZIE // Long Jump & High Jump // Sophomore // 5-5 // Moreno Valley, Calif. // Major: Psychological Science
• Kailah McKenzie will be making her second-straight trip to the NCAA West First Round in the high jump and first in the long jump.
• McKenzie won the long jump at the Challenge Cup with a personal-record 6.33m (20-9.25).
• She also took first in the high jump with a season-best 1.76m (5-9.25) at the Beach Opener.
• McKenzie ranks second in school history in the long jump and fifth in the high jump.
• She earned her second and third career Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Week awards earlier this season.
• McKenzie was the 2024 Big West Women's Freshman of the Year.

LUZ MERCADO // 800m // Graduate Student // 5-6 // Chula Vista, Calif. // Major: Business Data & Analytics
• Luz Mercado qualified for the NCAA West First Round in her first year as an Anteater.
• Mercado made her move on the outside of the pack over the final 100 meters to win the 800m at the Big West Championships.
• She is UCI's fourth conference champion in the women's 800m, and first since 1998.
• Mercado ran a personal-record and NCAA qualifying time of 2:06.96 in a runner-up showing at the Triton Invitational.
• It was the fifth-fastest 800m time in school history.
• She also anchored UC Irvine's 4x400 relay that locked up the Anteaters' first Big West Championship team title.
• Mercado was a 2023 NCAA Division II Championship qualifier in the 800m at Cal State San Marcos.

JOLIE ROBINSON // Long Jump // Senior // 5-9 // Mission Viejo, Calif. // Major: Education Sciences
• Jolie Robinson is a first-time NCAA qualifier in the long jump.
• Robinson established a personal-record 6.19m (20-3.75), which ranks fourth in program history, at the UCR Spring Classic.
• She had her third-straight podium finish in the heptathlon at the Big West Championships.
• Robinson was the runner-up after winning back-to-back titles in 2023 and 2024.
• She compiled a lifetime-best 5,524 points at the conference meet, which is just 25 points off the school record.
• Robinson added a podium finish in the javelin, placing third at the Big West Championships.
• Robinson was part of the Anteaters' school-record breaking 4x400 (3:41.03) at the Mt. SAC Relays.
• She also ranks among UCI's all-time top-10 in the javelin (3rd) and shot put (10th).
• She was tabbed the Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Week on April 15.
• Robinson was the 2023 Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Year, while she earned Field Athlete of the Meet honors in 2023 and 2024.

ZHARIA TAYLOR // High Jump // Junior // 5-8 // Long Beach, Calif. // Major: Urban Studies
• Zharia Taylor is in her first year at UC Irvine after transferring from Cerritos College where she was an All-American in the heptathlon.
• Taylor cleared a personal-record 1.79m (5-10.5) to win the high jump at the Challenge Cup.
• She was also the Big West runner-up with a height of 1.78m (5-10) at the conference championships.
• Taylor has finished fifth or better in all four of her high jump competitions with two individual victories this season.

UP NEXT
The top-12 finishers in each event will qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Oregon, June 11-14.