Tony Ciarelli enters his fifth year as an assistant throws coach with the UC Irvine track & field program in 2024-25.
Since Ciarelli joined the staff in 2021, the UCI throws squad has produced seven individual Big West titles, 18 all-conference awards and 13 NCAA West First Round qualifying marks.
Last season, the Anteater men’s throws squad had a banner season, winning three of the four throwing events and accounting for 48 of the team’s 89 points at the Big West Championships. They also established three school records in 2024. Liam Miksic defended his conference crown in the javelin before breaking the school record with a toss of 68.34 meters (224-2) at the NCAA West First Round. Justin Willingham set the program standard four times in the shot put with the last coming in an individual victory at the Big West Championships where he hit 18.74m (61-5.75). Jacob Hawkins was also the conference champion in the discus and broke a 41-year-old school record earlier in the year with a best of 59.03m (193-8) at the Challenge Cup.
On the women’s side, Deandra Tyler earned her third career All-Big West award with a runner-up finish in the shot put. Tyler tied for first but ended up taking second based on her next best throw. She was also the MPSF Indoor Champion in the shot put. Nyla Baker added an All-Big West performance during the outdoor season, placing third in the shot put at the conference meet.
Five student-athletes qualified for the 2024 NCAA West First Round - Hawkins (Shot Put & Discus), Mikisic (Javelin), Logan Peyton (Javelin), Tyler (Shot Put) and Willingham (Shot Put & Discus).
In 2023, Ciarelli helped mentor Liam Miksic, who won the program's first Big West championship in the men's javelin and qualified for the NCAA regional meet for the second year in a row.
In 2022, Ciarelli worked with Noah Holm, who was the Big West men's shot put champion and third-place finisher in the discus. Liam Miksic was also third in the men's javelin, while Kassidy Sani (Javelin) and Deandra Tyler (Shot Put) claimed runner-up honors in their respective events on the women's side. Holm, Miksic and Sani advanced to the NCAA West Prelims.
In 2021, Ciarelli helped coach the Anteater throwers to five All-Big West honors, including two individual conference titles. Kyle Tsu won the men's shot put, while Brianna Villanueva took home the women's discus crown. Villanueva, who was also an all-conference performer in the hammer, was named the Big West Women's Field Athlete of the Meet. In addition, Tsu and Jack Pickard (Javelin) qualified for the NCAA West Preliminary Championships.
Ciarelli is a seasoned and accomplished throws coach with over 40 years of experience, coaching both high school and professional athletes. He has helped individuals achieve their goals from high school championships to the Olympics.
Ciarelli was previously the throws coach at Newport Harbor High School, while he also served in the same capacity at Huntington Beach High School and Edison High School. He has mentored six California State Champions (4 discus, 2 shot put), 33 state medalists, and 52 state qualifiers.
Ciarelli is a USAW Level 4 International Strength Coach.
