March 28, 2010
LOS ANGELES - Nicole Stone won the 400-meter dash and ran the leadoff leg in the winning 4x400-meter relay to move the San Diego State track and field team from third place into a tie for second on the final day of the Cal-Nevada Championships Sunday at UCLA. Stone also was a member of the fifth-place 4x100-meter relay team for the Aztecs, who tied Cal State Fullerton with 84 points.
Cal State Northridge won the 32-team meet (28 scoring teams) with 98 points. Sacramento State (68) and UCLA (66) rounded out the top-five.
Stone won Sunday's 400-meter final with a time of 52.89 seconds, which ranks as the second-fastest time in the nation, according to the website TFRRS.org. Stone finished 0.33 seconds faster than the runner-up, Cal State Fullerton's Ciara Short, a day after easing to a third-place showing in the preliminary heat. The time was just 0.08 seconds off her personal-best 52.81 that she ran last year (third best in school history) as she remained unbeaten in 400-meter final races.
Stone later teamed up with Alicia King, Kierstan Kirkland and AnSherae Devine to win the 4x400-meter relay in 3:46.33, a time which currently leads the Mountain West Conference (according to TFFRS.org). The quartet defeated 17 other relay teams in the day's final event.
Earlier in the day, Stone anchored the 4x100-meter relay team to a fifth-place finish with a 46.51 clocking. Stone was once again joined by King and Kirkland, in addition to Jessika Hornsby.
Alex Evans finished second in the triple jump with an outdoor collegiate best leap of 40 feet, 3 ½ inches. The jump goes down as the ninth-best leap in school history.
Meanwhile, Kirkland and Josefine Koskinen each took third in their respective event within roughly one second of an SDSU all-time top-10 mark. Kirkland bettered her 61.42 Saturday preliminary heat time in the 400-meter hurdles with a 60.62 clocking in the final, while Koskinen shaved over two full seconds of her prelim time (2:12.86) in the 800 to 2:10.78 in the Sunday final.
Jeannette McConnell (6th, 144-04) and Hornsby (9th, 24.75) each scored in the discus throw and 200, respectively.
San Diego State returns to action Wednesday (March 31) to compete in the prestigious four-day Texas Relays.
Cal-Nevada Championships March 27-28, 2010
Day Two Results Only Team Scores (Out of 32 overall teams, top five listed only) 1. Cal State Northridge - 98 2. San Diego State - 84 2t. Cal State Fullerton - 84 4. Sacramento State - 68 5. UCLA - 66
SDSU Individual Results 200 Meters: 9. Jessika Hornsby- 24.75
400 Meters: 1. Nicole Stone - 52.89
800 Meters: 3. Josefine Koskinen - 2:10.78
1,500 Meters: 20. Michelle Martinez - 4:52.45
400-Meter Hurdles: 3. Kierstan Kirkland - 1:00.62
4x100-Meter Relay: 5. Alicia King, Jessika Hornsby, Kierstan Kirkland, Nicole Stone - 46.51
4x400-Meter Relay: 1. Nicole Stone, Alicia King, Kierstan Kirkland, AnSherae Devine - 3:46.33
High Jump: 20. Sarah Kaster - 5-02.25
Triple Jump: 2. Alex Evans - 40-03.50; 18. Thoraya Maronsey - 37-11.25
Shot Put: 10. Maria Rodriguez - 40-11.75
Discus Throw: 6. Jeanette McConnell - 144-04; 10. Robyn Guzman - 136-07