Challenge Cup
Date: Friday, April 10
Location: Titan Track Complex - Fullerton, Calif.
Meet Info | Meet Schedule

IRVINE, Calif. - UC Irvine men's track & field makes the short trip to Fullerton for the Challenge Cup on Friday, April 10. The one-day meet gets underway at noon at Titan Track Complex.

LAST TIME OUT
The Anteaters competed at the Triton Invitational last Friday and Saturday. Brandon Burns had a runner-up showing in the 100m where he clocked a personal-record 10.49. Burns' time ranks second in school history. Joe Duggan finished first out of 43 competitors in the discus with a PR 54.15m (177-8), which puts him 10th on UCI's all-time charts. Brendan Clark also established a lifetime-best 47.33 to take second in the 400m. In the 1500m, Jacob Bustamante (3:51.23) and Juan Chantaca (3:51.65) both ran personal bests. Jake Reed cleared a personal-record 4.90m (16-0.75) in the pole vault. Logan Lyght (110H) and Joshua Schuld (Steeple) added individual victories in their respective events.

RECORD BREAKERS
Brandon Burns, Justin Johnson, Logan Lyght, and Brendan Clark combined to run the first sub-40 second 4x100 relay in program history. The quartet clocked in at 39.84 seconds at the Vince O'Boyle Classic to take down the 45-year-old school-record of 40.08. The Anteaters' time ranks 16th in the West Region this season.

INSTANT IMPACT
In addition to contributing to the school-record 4x100 relay, junior transfer Logan Lyght, who spent the last two seasons at Houston, has made an immediate impact in the 110m hurdles where he has three event wins. In his UC Irvine debut on March 7, Lyght picked up his first individual victory in a wind-legal personal-record 13.96 to rank fifth in program history. He was named the Big West Men's Track Athlete of the Week for his effort. Despite running into a slight headwind at the Vince O'Boyle Classic (March 28), Lyght picked up his second 110H win with a meet-record 13.99. He also finished first at the Triton Invitational last weekend. The Orange, California, native currently ranks second in the Big West and 28th in the West Region.

OUT OF THE BLOCKS
Sophomore Justin Johnson has the Anteaters' top 100m (10.42) and 200m (21.08) times this season. His 100m, which he ran at the Beach Opener, was a wind-aided personal record. As a true freshman last year, Johnson was an NCAA West First Round qualifier and Big West scorer in the 200m. He clocked a lifetime-best 20.69 at the regional meet to move up to No. 2 in school history, while his wind-legal PR of 10.56 in the 100m is eighth. Last weekend at the Triton Invitational, senior Brandon Burns notched a 100m personal-record 10.49 to rank second in program history. Junior transfer Brendan Clark also leads the 'Eaters in the 400m where he established a PR 47.33 in La Jolla.

SETTING THE STANDARD
Newcomers Darrin Campbell, Duke Pascoe, Griffin Cole, and Joe Duggan have all made their way into the program's top-10 in the throws. Campbell hit a season-best 64.24 meters (210-9) in the javelin at the Beach Opener to rank fourth in school history (since 1986). Pascoe also registered a PR 55.29m (181-4) in the hammer, before topping that mark at the Ben Brown Invitational with a toss of 57.33m (188-1) to sit at No. 6 among UCI's leaders. Cole joined Campbell in the javelin top-10 with a season-best 61.17m (200-8) on March 12. Duggan cracked the all-time charts in the discus last weekend with a personal-record 54.15m (177-8).

MAKING THE LEAP
Senior Kenechukwu Okonkwo is a two-time NCAA West First Round qualifier in the triple jump, and claimed runner-up honors at the Big West Championships last year. The Colton, California, native ranks second in school history with a lifetime-best 15.83 meters (51-11.25). At the Vince O'Boyle Classic, freshman Colin Green joined Okonkwo among UCI's top-10, coming in at No. 8 with a PR 14.92m (48-11.5). In the high jump, Alan Vuong is coming off a breakout season in which he was a conference scorer with a personal-best 2.06m (6-9). Senior Jake Reed, who was a Big West scorer in the pole vault last year, recently cleared a lifetime-best 4.90m (16-0.75) at the Triton Invitational.

GOING THE DISTANCE
Angel Cordero was named the 2025 Big West Freshman of the Year after qualifying for the NCAA West First Round and claiming runner-up honors at the conference meet in the 800m. He ran a personal-record 1:48.10 at the Big West Championships to rank fourth in program history. Graduate student Joshua Schuld also advanced to the NCAA West First Round and finished fourth in the steeplechase at last year's Big West meet. 

UP NEXT
UC Irvine has a busy week ahead as it is set to compete in four local meets from April 15-18.