It was another exciting conference championship weekend for the 'Cats, while competing in Turlock this past Friday and Saturday. The men's team captured their 14th CCAA crown in 15 years, while the women placed 3rd overall and just .5 points out of second. While fast times and big marks were produced by all areas of the team, the distance team enjoyed another outstanding weekend, capturing numerous CCAA titles and All Conference awards. In looking at the stats after the meet, the Wildcat men hogged 10 of the possible 15 podium spots between the 5 distance events, while the ladies accounted for 5. A Chico runner would stand atop the podium in 4 of the 5 men's distance races missing only the 800m, where Michael Good would place 2nd to Humboldt State's #2 All Time 800m guy Brayden Leach.

Personal highlights for the 'Cats were aplenty:

*RS Frosh Wyatt Baxter would emerge in this championship, winning the 10k and doubling back with a 14:50 5k while sealing the eventual 1-5 sweep.

*Kyle Medina would win his 3rd CCAA 1500m title in 4 years and for the second consecutive year would double back to finish 2nd (behind a teammate) in the 5k.

*Junior Eddie King has flown under the radar much of his career at CSUC, but on Saturday emerged as the Champ in the men's 5k, sealing our 17th straight victory in the men's 12.5 lapper.

*CCAA Record holder Alex Burkhart would win her 3rd barrier title in 4 years while earning her 4th title overall (she won the 5k as well as a freshman).

*RS Frosh Haley Boynton kept adding to her growing resume while placing 3rd in her first ever 3k steeple final, and would double back with a big 5k PR (17:30) while placing 5th in the second event.

*Connor Fisher would win his second consecutive CCAA Steeple title.

*Jack Johnson podiumed for his first time ever in the men's steeple (2nd behind his teammate) and then would double back to do the same in the 5k while placing 3rd.

*Perhaps the best race of the entire meet was the women's 5k where Chico's Hannah Dorman ran a relentless race, trying to crack San Marcos' star Natalie Rodriguez (who placed 3rd in the '17 XC NCAA Championships). Dorman led much of the final 3k before Rodriguez made her bid for the win with 800m to go. Dorman (who spent the 48 hours leading up to the race with the flu) hung tight and re-took the lead at the bell. By the 200m to go mark Dorman had several seconds of cushion and looked in control for the win. Alas with 50m remaining Rodriguez timed a last push perfectly to catch & pass Dorman just meters from the tape. Rodriguez had won by just a quarter of a second and the pair just missed the meet record by 5 seconds. Hannah's time (16:36) is a new PR and #4 on the CSUC All time list.

*Another emerging star on the 'Cats roster is Kayden Carpenter, who hung tough with the top 2 seeds in the field throughout the women's 10k final before passing San Marcos' sub 17 gal to eventually place 2nd overall. This was Carpenter's first taste of the podium, and certainly won't be her last.

Onward to the race recaps..

  Friday Finals:
Women's 10,000m final: Chico would send two young up and comers to the line in the women's 10k and yours truly felt well about our chances of placing both inside the Top-4 if not having both on the podium. RS frosh Alex Tucker opened the season with a very fine 16:57 5k, but soon after picked up a calf issue that has forced us to hold off on competition. With plenty of pool work under her and an improving calf Alex appeared prepped for her 10k debut at CCAA's, and then she was hit with a flu bug 2 days before the big race. She broke her fever the night before the race but didn't feel 100 percent starting the run on Friday. Teammate Kayden Carpenter (Soph) had a seed time just above 37 minutes, but had just recorded a 5k PR of 17:25 at Azusa and had been crushing recent workouts. She would surprise folks on Friday as she was ready in all ways.

You know it's going to be a tactical affair when the first lap of any race takes over 100 seconds. and that's exactly what happened on Friday. Pre race favorite Annie Roberts Humboldt's school record holder (35:30's PR) appeared content to allow the pace to dawdle, as did San Marcos' 36min/16:56 runner Salena Gallardo. Mercifully, lap two brought a surge in pace and both Chico women were happy to get to some true racing. Feeling as though a quicker tempo was to our benefit both Tucker and Carpenter were ready to do some leading if necessary to keep the pace at least under the 6 minute per 1600m threshold.

Much of the first half of the race was run at a pace that was slower than we had planned/hoped, but still fast enough to shed most pursuers, as by 5k (18:40) only the 4 previously mentioned women were left in the well-defined lead group. Much of the front running for the first 15 laps of the race had been done by Roberts, Tucker and Carpenter with Gallardo setting in the pack throughout.

By the metric 4 mile mark the flu had taken it's toll on Tucker and she fell from the pack, but thankfully a full 100m of open track separated her from her closest pursuer, helping her to save a 4th place finish. The race for the podium wasn't pretty or particularly fast, as Roberts, Carpenter and Gallardo seemed to match each other's modest surges at the front. Finally with 1200m remaining Roberts made a hard push for home in what would become the winning move of the race. Carpenter (in obvious pain) held on to Gallardo tight, but both were losing ground on the senior from Humboldt. Inside of two laps remaining yours truly encouraged Carpenter Not to be content with third and to make a push. Immediately she would swing around Gallardo, pressing the pace down a notch. The move proved a worthy one as Carpenter would build a several second cushion on the San Marcos senior and would hold it to the line, earning her first All CCAA award in the process.

Men's 10,000m final: The 'Cats would send three to the line in the men's 10k. Only Wyatt Baxter had contested the distance during the regular season, as teammates Arturo Arevalo (8th in the 10k a year ago) and Teddy Kassa, would join the RS Frosh. The plan for the 'Cats was to make an honest pace if someone else didn't. That someone else ended up coming in the form of San Marcos' Josh Litwiller. After a slowish initial 200m Litwiller took the front and held it for the next 20 laps.

Litwiller pulled the lead group through lap splits in metronomic fashion hovering around a 5 minute per 1600 clip throughout the run. In fact here are the first 5 1600 splits: (4:59, 9:56, 14:59, 20:02, 25:01). If anyone needs some 5 min mile pacing, Josh Litwiller is your man. As the eager San Marcos runner kept the pace relatively honest at the front, a 10 man lead pack soon became 9, and then 8, and then 6, and with just under 3k remaining the 'Cats had 3 of the 5 in the lead group. Somewhere before the 8k mark Teddy Kassa became unhitched from the group and now Chico's hopes for a potential title would lie in Baxter or Arevalo.

With around 1600m remaining Arturo took the lead and dropped the pace by just a few seconds per revolution. Welcoming the help at the front Litwiller rolled with the pace change, as did Baxter and Stanislaus' 5k school record holder Michael Mrgudic (14:32 PR). A 69 second penultimate lap was the straw that broke Litwiller's back and now it was a matter of who could close the best between Arevalo, Baxter and Mcgurdic. In just over a minute of running Chico's Baxter would answer this question emphatically as the youngster employed a 61 second final revolution that would leave both of his pursers fighting for second. Arevalo looked solid for second but Mcgurdic found a final gear running in front of his hometown fans and would rally for second (31:01). Arevalo would place third with a PR 31:03. Kassa would give the 'Cats 3 of the top 5 finishers with his 31:38 run. Also, it should be noted that Baxter's final time was 30:54, which was a PR and also his first time under the 31:00 threshold.

Saturday Finals:
Women's Steeplechase: The clear favorite going into Saturday's women's barrier final was Chico's Alex Burkhart. The senior had won the event as a true frosh, and has twice broken the meet record while winning 2 of her now 3 titles. On Saturday her plan was to help pace frosh teammate Haley Boynton at the front of the race near her PR pace. This should insure that the race would boil down to just a few at the front by the end, and perhaps a potential 1-2 finish. Boynton's PR (10:42) would also be an effort that would save Burkhart's legs a bit for the 5k final later in the day.

The race played out much as we'd hoped as Alex locked into 85 second laps and looked quite relaxed in doing so. Pomona's Araseli Servin the #3 seed with a 10:46 PR ran aggressively on the heels of Burkhart, while Boynton followed a few steps behind.

As Burkhart notched 85 laps, one after another, Servin began to fall from the pace, as did Boynton. Over the second half of the race Burkhart settled at the front with a 30m lead, while Servin held a similar lead over Boynton. The next closest pursuer was well behind, so the podium spots were clear by 1600m, minus an unexpected fall, or major failure.

Crossing the line with a 10:39 time, Alex Burkhart would win her 3rd steeple title in 4 years, and her fourth overall CCAA title (she won the 5k as a true frosh as well!). Araseli Servin would hold on for second, while slicing 3 seconds off her PR. Chico's star frosh Boynton would close well holding on to a second best time ever 10:47 run for third. For the fourth straight year the 'Cats would enjoy two women on the podium in the women's steeple.

Men's Steeplechase: The 'Cats sent the #1 and 2 seeds to the line in the men's steeple in Connor Fisher (8:57) and Jack Johnson (9:01). Humboldt's Dustyn Solomon's PR (9:01) lined up within a second of Johnson's, so nothing was to be taken for granted as far as a potential 1-2 finish was concerned.

Conditions were a bit on the warm side with temps a touch over 80 degrees, but Fisher and Johnson agreed that an honest 9:00-ish pace at the front would give them their best chance at a positive outcome, while also pulling them clear of potential calamity that is sometimes caused by hurdling in groups.

The race evolved as well as a Chico fan (or coach) could hope, as Fisher led every step and Johnson followed quite close throughout. The honest pace quickly shed all pursuers (including Solomon) and the final half of the race looked like a hurdle practice with the two Chico stars. The 9:03/9:05 runs were perfect efforts to replicate the upcoming NCAA heats that each will need to run to hopefully advance to the finals. Before that, each would contest the 5k final later in the day!

Women's 1500m: Our conference has become VERY deep in the middle distances, and the women's 1500 was a good example of this throughout the season. Going into the Championships, senior Jacquie Adams had only the 25th fastest time in the CCAA with her 4:45 PR. Knowing that a number of those ranked ahead of her would choose to race in other events, Adams was entered in hopes that maybe she could make the 12 person final and then contend for points (earned by a top-8 finish). On paper it was a long-shot, but a strong prelim run with a 4:44 PR on Friday gave Adams a shot at Saturday's final's field.

With three sub 4:30 gals in the 1500 final, it would be important for Adams to recognize Her pace and not get pulled out too fast. The plan was to try to keep the 8th spot close and hopefully employ a strong kick to score a point or two, which would be a huge success on paper.

The race went out painfully slow for the initial 300m as the pre-race favorites appeared content to allow the pace to drift toward the very tactical side. Just as we thought the race might turn into a hard final 600m, or a big kickers affair, the pace quickened and the field began to split. Four runners covered the surge of the top 3 seeds, leaving a second group of 5 behind, and fighting one another for the 1 scoring spot among the group. In the third lap a runner began to make her way from the chasing group and knowing she was the final scoring spot, Jacquie surged to keep her close. With the leaders stepping on the gas even harder over the final 600m of the race, the once 7 strong lead pack was now completely blown apart, and a few were falling back from the aggressive mid race surge.

As Adams hit the bell she swung around the gal that Had been in 8th, and now ran alone in 8th and giving chase to the 7th position ahead. With 200m remaining Adams moved into 7th and looked great heading into the final turn. Although she was being chased closely by the 8th place runner Adams was focused on the runner ahead who ran in 6th. A blazing final 50m carried her past this runner and Adams would hit the finish 6th overall in a new PR of 4:42. Her final 400m was covered in 70 seconds!

Men's 1500m: On Friday the 'Cats managed to move all three 1500m runners into the finals via the prelim heats. Kyle Medina ran his first 1500 of the season in the prelim the day after running a steeple at the Payton Jordan meet. Medina, a 3:41 guy looked a bit tired and rusty in the prelim, but won his heat nonetheless. Teammate and 3:46 runner Derek Morton also looked sluggish in his prelim races, but managed to time qualify in both the 15 and 8 races thankfully.

Predictably the 15 final was a tactical affair, which is what we had hoped for given Morton's impending 800m final, and Medina's tired legs, and 5k final. Medina ran at the front controlling the tempo more or less in the early going as the pack hit 800m in just under 2:15. The third lap brought a quickening of the pace and Medina covered the surges that began to occur from behind. At the bell the senior from Ventura enjoyed the lead with all 11 other finalists running within a second or two behind. A 57 flat final revolution allowed Medina's to pull away for his 3rd 1500m victory in 4 years. Teammate Morton fought hard, but lost a kick to Humboldt's 3:52 guy Daniel Tull for second. RS frosh Matthew Herrera had a relatively disappointing outing while finishing 9th overall, but gained valuable championship racing experience.

Women's 800m: No Wildcat runners, much less any qualifiers for the finals.

Men's 800m: A year ago RS soph Michael Good of Chico was the surprise winner with teammate Derek Morton placing 3rd after doubling back from the 1500m final. This year both Good and Morton would return, but Humboldt soph Brayden Leach would enter the weekend undefeated at 800m against college competition. Chico's Morton entered the weekend with a CCAA best 1:50.00, but of course was running his fourth race in two days after prelims in both 8/15 and the earlier 15 final. Leach had run the second fastest time in the CCAA to date with a 1:50.5, while Good trailed on the charts with a 1:50.54.

With Leach being a great closer the plan was to hopefully put him on his heels with Good taking the front from the gun. A hoped first lap of 53-54 was planned, but unfortunately Good settled a bit and hit 400m in 55.0. With Leach following on his heels the Humboldt runner surged around Good at the 450 mark, and no response was given by the tall Chico runner. Leach would run a 55 flat final lap to win the race with a 1:50.14 PR. Good would stay engaged enough to hold on for second with a 1:51.9 clocking. Morton fought hard over the final 150 trying in vain to grab the final podium spot. San Diego's frosh Jake Selstad would barely hold off the hard charging Morton, who would finish 4th and just .09 off his second podium of the day. Women's 5,000m:
The women's 5,000m was one of my all time favorites to watch play out. San Marcos' #1 runner Natalie Rodriguez has enjoyed an amazing senior year that included a 3rd place finish at the most recent NCAA XC Championships, and a 1500m title earlier in the day. Her 1500m PR (4:25) is a full 10 seconds faster than Chico's top threat Hannah Dorman who recently crushed our school's 10k record, while running the final 5k in 16:51. Add steeple champ Alex Burkhart and you had the makings of one heck of a race.

The plan for the 'Cats was to Try to create as tough of an early pace as we could, knowing that Rodriguez had superior speed, and was doubling back from the 1500m earlier. To make matters a bit worse for the 'Cats chances, Dorman had spent the previous two days battling flu symptoms, and had just broken her fever the night before. Those who know Hannah, know that she's as tough as they come, so flu or not, she would go down swinging. The same could be said for Burkhart who ranks as one of the toughest competitors yours truly has had the pleasure of working with in my 22 years on the job.

From the gun Chico youngsters Kayden Carpenter (2nd in the 10k the evening before) and Haley Boynton (3rd in the steeple earlier in the day) were solicited to create a low 80 second clip per lap, to limit the number of laps that Burkhart and Dorman would need to lead, given that Rodriguez would certainly Not be offering any help at the front. Carpenter took the front pack through early splits of 79 and 81 seconds, but lap 3 was an 83, and now the lead group grew as Rodriguez and 6-7 others joined the front pack. Sensing the slowing pace Burkhart took the lead and dropped a 78 second lap heading into the 1600m mark. Dorman quickly swung around Carpenter and Boynton, as did Rodriguez and now the race was on.

Burkhart held the lead for two laps, but steeple legs proved to be too heavy to keep an 80 second per lap clip going, so Hannah Dorman took to the front dropping a 77 for the 7th lap of the race. Rodriguez made her way around Burkhart and now it was a two person race for the title. Dorman would record a 78 second 8th lap dragging Rodriguez through 3200m in 10:43. Laps 9 and 10 were 80 and 79 second efforts and at times Rodriguez appeared to be allowing separation between herself and Dorman.

With 2 laps remaining Rodriguez made her push for the win surging around Dorman and increasing the tempo. Thankfully Hannah had the will and the legs to respond and matched every stride as the two raced by lapped runners in the penultimate lap. As Dorman hit the bell she made her move for the win going around the noticeably tired Rodriguez. As Hannah ran by yours truly at the metric 3 mile mark (15:59) she was grimacing with pain but had a lead that looked sizeable enough to get the job done. As the pair ran down the final straight toward the finish each Rodriguez appeared to be taking a stride or two out of Dorman's lead with every 10-15 meters covered. With 50m remaining the San Marcos runner went all in and hit a final gear. This gear would be just enough to catch and pass Dorman in the final 20 meters of the run, giving her a quarter of a second victory over the devastated Chico runner.

The duel helped the pair to impressive 16:30's marks which missed the meet record by just 5 seconds. Hannah's 16:36 final time was a PR, an NCAA qualifier and the fourth fastest 5k ever run by a Wildcat. She will take one final crack at our school record this weekend in Portland, before turning her attention to the NCAA 10k/5k double.

Men's 5,000m: To say that we have a strong tradition in the men's CCAA 5k would be an understatement, as a Chico man has won each of the 12.5 lappers since Tyler Graff and Co swept the podium in 2002. With Pomona graduating one of their sub 14:05 guys and red shirting the other, we were able to take a deep breath this year and enjoy a rare opportunity to potentially sweep the podium.and perhaps more.

The goal from the outset was to use our 10k crew from the evening before to do some pacework at the front, trying to keep the tempo around 71-72 seconds per lap, which should be fast enough to put our closest competition on their heels, but not too fast to wreck our own tired legs (only Eddie King and Jason Intravaia would run fresh).

Teddy Kassa (5th in the 10k the evening before) did a masterful job of guiding the leaders through an initial 3200m split of 9:35, which did exactly what it was intended to do. As Kassa stepped off the track the lead group behind was 8 strong, and in this 8 were 6 Wildcats. The 'Cats biggest competition among the group was Pomona's senior Christian Rodriguez who was doubling back from the 1500 earlier in the day. Rodriguez is notorious for running in lead groups for as long as he can, and then he switches to major damage control as he grows tired in the later stages. Knowing his past racing history and having discussed it previous to the race, the guys kept the pressure on in the final mile, and true to form Rodriguez would indeed crack.

Chico's Kyle Medina would take over the lead as Kassa left the track, running a 72 second 9th lap, and then a 70 second 10th. The surge in pace separated the front pack and Eddie King latched on to Medina, while Rodriguez tried hard to keep the pair within reach. Chico's Jack Johnson (doubling back from the steeple) made a move around Rodriguez with 800m remaining and now at least a 1-3 sweep looked to be in the works.

Knowing he had the freshest legs in the lead group Eddie King upped the ante in a big way recording a 66.8 11th lap, which was covered by no one in the field. The Junior who barely scored in this race a year ago was now looking like the 2018 champ. Medina, running his fourth race in 3 days (1 steeple, 2 X 1500's, 1 X 5k) was content to hang tight in second, now working with Johnson to ensure the 1-3 sweep. In the final 300m of the race Pomona's Rodriguez appeared determined to tip the cart on the 'Cats sweep as he surged hard to try to catch Medina and Johnson. The only problem for Rodriguez was that Chico's Jason Intravaia and Wyatt Baxter (10k champ) were Rolling Him up from behind. With 150m remaining Intravaia and Baxter flew by the Pomona runner and now the sweep was even sweeter. King would hit the line first in 14:44, followed by his 4 teammates, all within the next 6 seconds. To add to the 'Cats points haul Connor Fisher held on for a 7th place finish.. The streak lives to see another year!

Up Next: A handful of 'Cats will head North to Portland for a last chance Invitational at Lewis and Clark College on Saturday. Watch for: Kyle Medina trying to get his 5k Q for NCAA's. Also watch for Alex Burkhart to do the same. Senior Hannah Dorman will take a shot at Katie Lee's 16:25 5k school mark. Jack Johnson will take a crack at the 9:00 barrier in the steeple.. Also, Derek Morton and Michael Good will take aim at sub 1:50 800m's.

Luke Reid - Chico State Sports Information Director (women) & Joseph Shufelberger - Sports Information Assistant (men)

TURLOCK - Appropriately enough, the crowning victory went to a King. Already assured of the men's team title with two events remaining, the Chico State Wildcats seemingly took several victory laps en masse that happened to double as the 5,000 meters, an event that epitomizes their dominance in track & field during a run where they've now claimed 14 of the past 15 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) championships including three straight. For the 17th straight year, a Wildcat won the men's 5K, the title this time belonging to Eddie King as the junior crossed the finish line in 14 minutes, 44.05 seconds. The next four finishers all had "Chico" across their chests, making for a top-five performance fit for King and the Wildcats. Kyle Medina took second in 14:48.41, Jack Johnson joined in third at 14:48.60, Jason Intravaia placed fourth in 14:49.59, and Wyatt Baxter-a freshman fresh off his victory Friday night in the 10,000-was fifth in 14:50.17. For good measure, Connor Fisher grabbed seventh in 14:57.79.

The team title wasn't a surprise. Chico State was ranked No. 1 in the West Region and No. 12 nationally by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA). The Wildcats then brought a 50-point lead into the final day of the CCAA Championships. They left with something far more valuable-the title. And they have more where that came from. King's victory was the ninth by a Wildcat among the 21 events that included six on Saturday.

Earlier in the day, Fisher won the 3,000-meter steeplechase as part of a 1-2 finish with Johnson, Medina became a three-time CCAA champion in the 1,500 while Domo Mosley won the 400. Two 'Cats claimed field events with Sefa Ilaoa winning the discus and Tyler Arroyo continuing his own dominance in the high jump with yet another triumph after starting the season with six titles. By the time the CCAA Championships wrapped up with the final event, which included a second-place finish in the 4x400-meter relay, the Wildcats had won by 89.5 points. They had 252.5 with UC San Diego second with 163. Cal Poly Pomona was third at 117.5. Cal State LA finished fourth with 93, and host Stanislaus State finished fifth at 76.

The top-eight finishers in each event score points for their teams on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis with the top three earning All-CCAA honors. With 21 events, that meant 63 All-CCAA honors were to be decided over the meet's three days at Stanislaus State. Twenty-two, or a little more than a third of them, were claimed by Wildcats with nine firsts, seven second-place finishes, and six thirds. The high jump contributed to all three finishes for Chico State as Chris Jaeger took second at 2.01 and Sethan Miller took third at the same height, equaling his personal record, as they joined Arroyo on the podium after the junior cleared 2.15 meters for a CCAA Championship record, one that had previously been shared by Chico State's Ryan Bertucci (2.14) in 2010. Arroyo still has the season's top mark in the nation at 2.17, an automatic mark that guaranteed his NCAA Championship berth. Alec Dronen added a fifth-place finish in the event at 1.96, a personal record.

Ilaoa's discus title came with a personal record at 49.74, which was also good for an NCAA Provisional in the process. Lance Huber led three Wildcats in the pole vault while finishing third. Clearing 4.85 was a PR for him and an NCAA Provisional, too. Dylan Smith finished fifth at 4.70 and Randall LeBlanc placed sixth with both ending up at 4.70 for a pair of PRs.

Fisher's 9:03.18 and Johnson's 9:05.65 in the steeplechase surpassed the provisional threshold, but the two standouts already have better times on their resumes. Their performances, though, led the CCAA race to put two more Wildcats on the podium. Medina became a three-time conference champion in the 1,500 after winning it in 2015 and 2017. His time Saturday was 3:57.77 while Derek Morton took third in 3:58.98.

Mosley improved his PR by .01 as part of his winning 400 effort in 48.50. The junior beat the 400 field to the finish line by .52 seconds. The Wildcats kept adding to their haul. Michael Good's second-place finish in the 800 would have secured an NCAA Provisional in 1:51.97 if not for the 1:50.00 he already ran this year. Morton finished fourth in 1:53.28. Derrick Shepherd's PR of 21.95 got him sixth in the 200. The 4x400 relay team of Windsor Jamison, Good, Bryan Montes, and Mosley combined to take second place in 3:16.83 while the 4x100 relay team of Shepherd, Hasani Barrett, Eric Richard, and Isaiah Roybal finished fourth in 42.22. In the javelin, Alex Davlia led six Wildcats with a fifth-place finish (49.48). Gideon Halpin (48.16) and Lane Andrews were seventh and eighth, respectively. One more award went to a Wildcat before the evening concluded. Head Coach Oliver Hanf was named the Coach of the Year. That's the third straight year Hanf has won the award and fourth overall in his six seasons since taking over the men's program (2014, 2016-18). Hanf might get a chance to add more. Out of the team's nine individual titles, only three went to seniors with Nolan Nagle winning the shot put on Friday, Fisher finishing first in the steeplechase, and Medina taking the 1,500 for the third time

TURLOCK - Its streak of eight straight California Collegiate Athletic Association titles was broken Saturday, but the Chico State women's track & field team's spirit remained as strong as ever. The Wildcats rallied out of fourth place and nearly took second with a feisty final day, eventually finishing third, just a half point out of second place in third. "I am so proud of the fight we showed today," said Wildcats Head Coach Robert Nooney. "We scrapped and clawed for every point. This was the deepest field we've ever faced at the CCAA Championships and we gave it all we had. I am as proud as ever of this group."

The Wildcats finished the weekend with 22 personal records and six NCAA Championship Provisional Qualifying Marks. Alex Burkhart won the 3,000-meter steeplechase and placed third in the 5,000 meters to help lead the charge Saturday. Michelle Holt was the runner-up in the 100 and 200 meters to earn a pair of All-CCAA honors. Hannah Dorman (second in the 5k), Haley Boynton (third in the steeplechase), and Sheena Blackwell (third in the 400-meter hurdles) also earned All-CCAA accolades.

Megan Farrell won the pole vault title on Friday, while Kayden Carpenter (second in the 10,000 meters) and Lia Burrell (third in the long jump) put together All-CCAA performances as well. Burkhart won the CCAA steeplechase title for the second straight season and third time in four years with an NCAA Provisional Qualifying time of 10:39.77, beating Cal Poly Pomona's Araseli Servin by a little more than three seconds. She was All-CCAA (top three) four years in a row. Boynton, a freshman, finished third in 10:47.50. Burkhart will be on the line at the NCAA Championships May 24-26 in Charlotte, North Carolina thanks to hear automatic qualifying mark in the steeplechase notched earlier this season. Boynton may be joining her.

It looks like Holt will be there as well. The sophomore matched the ninth fastest 100-meter time in the nation entering the weekend with a huge PR of 11.75 seconds to finish second. Her time is the third fastest in school history. The Laguna Hills High School product also PR'd during her runner-up finish in the 200 meters, despite a disasterous start, but recovered amazingly well to break the Chico State record with a time of 24.17 seconds. Dorman, already headed to the NCAA Championships in the 10,000 meters, may have earned a spot in the 5,000 meters as well. Her runner-up, personal-record time of 16:36.12 is the fourth fastest in school history, and only nine athletes in the nation had run faster heading into the weekend. Burkhart, who won the 5K title as a freshman, earned her second All-CCAA award in that event with her third-place finish. Boynton finished fifth and her time of 17:30.18 is a new PR.

Blackwell's 1:01.90 third-place time in the 400 meters is an NCAA provisional and PR and moved her into third place in Chico State history. She sits right behind Jenavieve Turner, who finished fifth Saturday in her final CCAA Championships. Burrell followed up Friday's third-place finish in the long jump with a fourth-place finish in the triple jump on Saturday. She cleared 11.42 meters. Taylor Nevitt placed fourth in the discus with a PR of 42.44 meters, wrapping up a strong weekend in which she moved to within a meter of the school's all-time top 10 in three different events. Melanie O'Brien and freshman Michelle Flint scored for the Wildcats in the javelin. O'Brien placed fifth with a throw of 36.48 meters, and Flint PR'd with an eighth-place effort of 34.75.

Jacquie Adams PR'd in the 1,500 meters, placing sixth with a time of 4:42.25. Heather Pendleton and Nadia Torkman tied for seventh in the high jump. Both cleared 1.58 meters. That is a PR for Pendleton. And the 4x400-meter relay team of Blackwell, Claire Chappell, Adelae Fredeen, and Bianca Nicastro finished fourth with a season-best time of 3:54.59.