May 8, 2012
Complete Cal Release 
Pac-12 Championships Website
THIS WEEK IN CAL TRACK & FIELD: The Golden Bears head to Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore., for the inaugural Pac-12 Championships Saturday and Sunday, partaking in a field that includes four ranked teams on the men's and women's sides of the ledger.
Cal enters the meet with its greatest depth in the jumps, especially in the men's long jump where the Bears hold four spots in the conference's top 10. Hammed Suleman's 25-5.25 from the Jim Click Shootout in late March ties for the best effort in the Pac-12 so far this year, while Jonte Grant (4th, 25-0.50), Taylor Kientzel (7th, 24-4.25) and Chase Wheeler (10th, 24-1.75) are all among the league leaders. Malaina Payton, owner of the Cal freshman record from the 2010 season, is second in the Pac-12 in the women's long jump with a wind-aided 21-6.25 from the Big Meet.
Two Bears are ranked in the men's and women's triple jump - men: Suleman (3rd, 52-1.25) and Chad Jones (10th, 50-2.50); women: Amanda Hunter (5th, 41-9.25) and Aziza Baker (6th, 41-8.75). In the high jump, Cal boasts three athletes with seven-foot clearances in Brian Carmichael (7-2.25), Nick Ridge (7-0.50) and Harrison Steed (7-0.25).
Deborah Maier leads the Pac-12 in the women's 10,000m (32:12.47), but she will more likely run the 5000m, where her 15:29.24 from the indoor season rates No. 2 on the league list. Other Bears in the top five are: Collin Jarvis (3rd, men's 3000m steeplechase, 8:54.06); Taylor Bryson (3rd, women's 3000m steeplechase, 10:19.73) and Derek White (4th, men's discus, 180-8).
Fox Sports Net will air a two-hour tape delayed broadcast of the meet. In the Bay Area, it will be on CSN Bay Area on Saturday, May 19 at 8 p.m. and again on Wednesday, May 23 at 6:30 p.m.
MAIER SETS PAC-12 RECORD IN 10,000: Junior Deborah Maier, an All-American in both cross country and indoor track this season, waited until the Payton Jordan Invitational April 29 to make her outdoor debut. And just over 30 minutes after stepping onto the surface at Stanford, she completed the 10,000 meters in record-setting fashion. Maier's time of 32:12.47 not only made her the No. 3 10K runner in NCAA history, but she broke both the Pac-12 mark and a 27-year-old Cal record in the event.
Competing in a field full of experienced national and international runners, Maier placed 12th overall, but was the top collegian in her first attempt at the distance. Kirsten O'Hara set the old Cal mark of 32:40.76 in 1985, while the previous conference record was 32:19.97 by Stanford's Alicia Craig in 2004. As a result, Maier was tabbed the Pac-12 Female Outdoor Athlete of the Week.
Top 10,000-meter Runners in NCAA History
1. Lisa Koll (Iowa State) 31:18.07 2010
2. Sally Kipyego (Texas Tech) 31:25.45 2008
3. Deborah Maier (California) 32:12.47 2012
BRUTUS HAMILTON INVITATIONAL RECAP: Two near-perfect days greeted competitors at Edwards Stadium for the annual Brutus Hamilton Invitational April 27-28, and several Golden Bears posted notable achievements during the two-day meet. In particular, Angelica Weaver ran a lifetime-best 58.37 in the 400m hurdles to move to third on Cal's all-time performer list, and Harrison Steed showed off his return from hip surgery in clearing 7-0.25 in the high jump. In addition, Taylor Bryson had a 20-second improvement in the women's 1500m, winning in 4:20.81, and Charnell Price became the school's No. 4 all-time performer in the 100m (11.67).
MORE FROM THE PAYTON JORDAN: In addition to Maier's performance, several other Golden Bears had impressive showings at the Payton Jordan Invitational. Chelsea Reilly, Cal's record-holder in the indoor mile and 3000m, ran the No. 3 5000m time in school history (15:57.53) in her first outdoor race of the year; Scott Esparza set a PR in the men's hammer (197-10); Alima Kamara ran her fastest 400m in two years (53.87), which was nearly a second ahead of her time at the Brutus Hamilton meet a day earlier; and Taylor Bryson improved on her 1500m time to 4:20.35.
BEARS IN THE TOP 25: The Bears have several individual ranked among the top 25 nationally in their specialties, including Hammed Suleman, who is 10th in the men's long jump (25-5.25) and 16th in the men's triple jump (52-1.25). Others in the top 25 are: Deborah Maier (1st, women's 10,000m, 32:12.47), Malaina Payton (6th, women's long jump, 21-6.25), Brian Carmichael (10th, men's high jump, 7-2.25), Collin Jarvis (16th, men's 5000m, 13:42.31) and Chelsea Reilly (18th, women's 5000m, 15:57.53).
Linda Oseso'S 3 MEETS IN 2 DAYS: While the rest of her teammates were taking last week off from competition the third week of April, senior Linda Oseso stayed plenty busy with a full weekend that included appearances in three meets in three different cities. She began by posting a distance of 182-3 in the hammer at the Brian Clay Invitational held at Azusa Pacific on Thursday, April 19. Oseso then started her Friday with a PR 189-10 during a fourth-place finish at the Beach Invitational in Long Beach. Later that same day, she improved her lifetime best in the hammer to 193-8 at Mt. SAC, which extended her own Kenyan national record in the event.
TRACK & FIELD RECOGNIZED AT ACADEMIC HONORS LUNCHEON: Several members of the Cal track & field team were lauded at Cal's annual Student-Athlete Academic Honors Luncheon held May 3. Dan Davis (men's track & field), Chelsea Reilly (women's cross country) and Nicole Larson (women's track & field) all earned Golden Bear Achievement Awards for having the highest cumulative GPA on their respective teams.
LOOKING BACK AT THE 2011 PAC-10 MEET: Ray Stewart won the men's 110m hurdles and Cal posted six top-three finishes at the 2011 Pac-10 Championships held in Tucson, Ariz. The Cal men placed ninth at the meet, with the Golden Bear women eighth. Stewart prevailed in the hurdles in a PR 13.48 to give the Bears their lone win. In addition, Brian Carmichael took second in the men's long jump in a then-PR 7-1.50, while Tracey Stewart was runner-up in the women's triple jump (42-4.25). In addition, Alison Greggor (36:00.24, 10,000m), Kristen Meister (5-10.75, HJ) and the 4x100m relay (Emani Truluck, Alima Kamara, Kayla Dixon and Cherrelle Garrett, 45.02) each took their in their respective events. Of that group, only Truluck and Kamara are back in 2012, as Stewart is redshirting this season due to a knee injury suffered during the indoor campaign, with the others having graduated.
ALL-AMERICAN BEARS: Six Golden Bears earned a total of nine All-America certificates for their performances at the NCAA Indoor Championships March 9-10 - the most ever for the school at the national indoor meet. Junior Deborah Maier, who posted runner-up finishes in both the 3000m and 5000m, received two first-team honors, while the other Cal competitors earned second-team status - Chelsea Reilly (3000m, distance medley relay), Sofia Oberg (800m, DMR), Angelica Weaver (DMR), Taylor Bryson (DMR) and Malaina Payton (long jump).
ALL-TIME PERFORMER UPDATES: A number Golden Bears have recorded marks this spring that have either placed them among Cal's all-time top-10 performers or improved their standing on the lists:
Men Event Mark Rank Women Event Mark Rank
Matt Miller 3000m 8:13.43 10th Charnell Price 100m 11.67 4th
Collin Jarvis 5000m 13:42.31 4th Carisma Lyday 100m 11.73 6th
Matt Miller 10,000m 29:30.92 5th Charnell Price 200m 23.85 8th
Collin Jarvis 3000m SC 8:54.06 9th Alima Kamara 200m 23.91 9th
Brian Carmichael High Jump 7-2.25 T9th Chelsea Reilly 5000m 15:57.53 3rd
Hammed Suleman Long Jump 25-5.25 7th Taylor Bryson 5000m 16:05.72 5th
Scott Esparza Hammer 197-10 9th Deborah Maier 10,000m 32:12.47 1st
Emani Truluck 100m Hurdles 13.62 4th
Angelica Weaver 400m Hurdles 58.37 3rd
Taylor Bryson 3000m SC 10:19.73 2nd
Juliana Green 3000m SC 11:37.62 7th
Nicole Larson Pole Vault 12-9.50 8th
Mackenzi Landry Pole Vault 11-11.75 9th
Malaina Payton Long Jump 20-7.75 5th
Aziza Baker Triple Jump 41-8.75 7th
Amanda Hunter Triple Jump 41-1.50 9th
Linda Oseso Hammer 193-8 3rd
Katie Bruzzone Javelin 135-2 9th
Cheri Chan Javelin 131-4 10th
GOLDEN BEAR NOTES: The Cal women are ranked 10th in the USTFCCCA Program of the Year rankings after taking 18th at the NCAA cross country meet and 15th at the NCAA indoor meet ... both the men's and women's cross country teams earned All-Academic recognition for having GPAs above 3.0 in the fall; in addition,
Deborah Maier and
Chelsea Reilly received individual academic honors ... former Cal distance runners
Magdalena Lewy Boulet (10th) and
Brooke Wells (19th) placed in the top 20 at the U.S. Olympic Marathon Trials in January ... over the summer,
Angelica Weaver captured the USA junior title in the 400m hurdles with a time of 59.83, while
Monte Corley won the 400mH crown at the Pan Am Junior Championships in a Cal freshman-record 51.21 ... Cal graduate
Alysia Montano, the three-time USA 800m champion who placed fourth at the World Championships last summer, cruised to a meet-record 52.16 at the Brutus Hamilton Invitational in Berkeley April 28 ...
Deborah Maier's 15:29.24 in the 5000 meters run during the indoor season is more than 17 seconds lower than the Cal outdoor record of 15:46.80 set by Kirsten O'Hara in 1985.
