May 13, 2004

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - Gaucho women own the top entry mark in five events heading into the Big West Track & Field Championships at UC Irvine. The first field event final will be the women's hammer at 1:00pm on Friday May 14th, while the first running event final for women is the 3,000m steeplechase scheduled to go off at 3:15pm. The only other track final contested Friday will be the 10,000m, which starts at 8:05pm. Field event finals for women on Friday include the high jump, long jump and discus, while trials for the rest of the running events take place between 3:50pm and 7:05pm. The rest of the running event finals will take place Saturday beginning at 3:00pm and the women's shot put, triple jump, pole vault, and javelin finals get started at noon.

Competition for the team title is already underway with the women's heptathlon. The seven event competition began Wednesday and will conclude today. No Gauchos are entered in the event. Sophomore Amy Haapanen will get things started for the Gauchos in the hammer throw on Thursday. Haapanen leads the event, with her Big West record setting throw of 196' 2". Haapanen also has the top entry mark in the shot put at 52' but is followed closely by three other athletes who have surpassed 51' this season. Haapanen has the fourth best mark in the discus as well.

Senior Jasmine Washington is ranked first in the 200m (24.22) and the 400m (53.58) and will run legs on both relays. Washington, the school record holder in the 100m, 200m, and 400m, was the runner-up for 400m at the 2002 Big West Championship.

Junior Cosette Smith has the top entry time in the 5,000m at 16:33.13. Smith, the runner-up at 1,500m and 5,000m at last year's Big West meet, will be moving up in distance in 2004, taking on the defending champion at 10,000m, Letiwe Marakurwa of Idaho, on Friday night, and then doubling back in the 5k on Saturday.

The University of Idaho is the defending team champion, and is one of the favorites again this year along with CS Northridge. The Gauchos appear to be third on paper going into the meet, but are not out of reach from upsetting the Vandals and Matadors for their first ever Big West Track & Field Championship. UCSB should also receive some stiff competition from rival Cal Poly.

While Head Coach Pete Dolan is counting on big points from Haapanen, Washington and Smith, the Gauchos will need solid performances from several other key members of the team to be successful. Distance runners will tap into their experience from last fall, of dethroning Idaho for the Big West cross country title. Senior Desiree DeJesus is ranked fifth going into the steeplechase, and will also compete at 10,000m. Junior Desiree Leek has the #3 time at 1,500m and #2 mark behind Smith in the 5,000m. Sophomore Lauren Christman, is 4th going into the 1,500m and will also run the 800m, an event she is ranked 3rd in at 2:11.19. Twin sister Lindsay Christman is 5th in the 800m. Sophomore Roseann Peters will also be looking to make the finals of the 1,500m and 800m.

Sophomore sprinter Kylie McCuen has the third best time in the 400m at 55.02, and sits at 6th on the entry list in the 200m. McCuen will also run both relays. Sophomore Elise Geiger will run both relays and look for a spot in the finals of the 100m and 200m. Geiger finished 8th in the 200m in 2003. Freshmen Stellamarie Hall and Lauri Schakett both have a shot at the finals of the 400mH, as they have posted the 8th and 10th best entry marks.

On the field, the Gauchos have the most opportunity to impact the team score in the high jump. Six ladies will represent UCSB in the event, including freshmen Devon Tracy (5' 8"), Jennifer Kitzmann (5' 7") and Heather Hernandez (5' 7"). Sophomore Heather Quinn and freshman Charlene Heaston could help out with top 8 finishes in the hammer, discus or shot put. Sophomore Rebecca Richey has the 3rd best mark in the javelin at 146' 11".

A top three finish in the team standings for UCSB would be a tremendous improvement over last year's 7th place effort of just 63 points. Based on their entry marks the Gauchos are likely to double that score in 2004.