May 28, 2004
SAN DIEGO - The San Diego State track and field team qualified three individuals and one relay for Saturday's finals after the first day of competition Friday at the NCAA West Regional meet at Cal State Northridge's Matador Track Facility in Northridge, Calif.
The Aztecs opened the day by running the fourth-fastest qualifying time of 44.56 in the 4x100-meter relay. The team of sophomore Larnie Boyd (Vallejo, Calif.), senior Tonette Dyer (Shreveport, La.), junior Heather Heron (Yakima, Wash.) and senior Nicole Ireland (Las Vegas, Nev.) came in second in its heat behind California (44.52), but edged out UCLA, which finished in 44.81.
Individually, Dyer will compete in the finals of both the 100 and 200 meters Saturday, after running the fastest qualifying time of the day of 23.60 in the 200. The All-American automatically advanced in the 100-meter race as only nine student-athletes entered the event.
Ireland won her heat of the 400 hurdles with the second-fastest time of the day of 57.39 to move on to the regional finals for the second straight year, while Boyd was ninth in the prelims of the 400 with a season-best effort of 54.01.
Heron came in 13th in the 100 hurdles (13.88), but still has hopes of an at-large selection to the NCAAs, entering the weekend ranked 22nd (13.26) nationally.
In the field event finals, Aztec junior Shayla Balentine (Los Osos, Calif.) gave herself a chance of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA meet with her seventh-place finish (12-10.00) in the pole vault. Balentine, an NCAA participant as a freshman in 2002, was an alternate for the 2003 national meet after clearing a then school record 13-02.25 at the NCAA regionals a year ago.
Balentine was joined in the pole vault by junior Erin Asay (San Diego, Calif.), who placed 14th (12-04.00), and freshman Cara Walker (Huntington Beach, Calif.), who took 23rd by clearing 11-10.00.
SDSU senior Candace Hill (San Diego, Calif.), competing in her first of two events, finished 12th in a field of 29 in the discus with a throw of 157-08.
More NCAA championship bids will be on the line Saturday in the second and final day of the regional meet, which is scheduled to kick off on the women's side at 10:30 a.m. (field events) and 3:30 p.m. (track events), respectively.
This is the second year that the NCAA is holding regionals as the means of qualifying for the national championship meet, slated for June 9-12 in Austin, Texas. The top-five finishers in each individual event and the top three relays will earn automatic entries to the NCAA meet.
2004 NCAA West Regional Track & Field Championships
Northridge, Calif. - Matador Track Facility - Cal State Northridge
Finals
Pole Vault
7. Shayla Balentine 12-10.00
14. Erin Asay 12-04.00
23. Cara Walker 11-10.00
Discus
12. Candace Hill 157-08.00
Preliminary Heats
200 Meters
1. Tonette Dyer 23.60*
400 Meters
9. Larnie Boyd 54.01*
4x100 Relay
4. San Diego State (Boyd, Dyer, Heron, Ireland) 44.56*
100 Hurdles
13. Heather Heron 13.88
400 Hurdles
2. Nicole Ireland 57.39*
* = Advanced to Saturday's finals