Regular season ends for track

Sac State Freshman Charles Amey competes in the 110 hurdles during the Sacramento Spring Fesitval last Saturday at Hornet Stadium Sarah Sieber/State Hornet

For some members of the Sac State track team the season may be over, but for some, the real competition is just beginning.

The Spring Festival on May 1 was the final opportunity for the Hornets to qualify athletes for the Big Sky Conference championship meet and the final home meet of the year.

“For about half our team this was the season’s end, but we’re real happy with how many people qualified,” head coach Joe Neff said.

The athletes who have qualified for the conference meet will compete this weekend at the Modesto Invitational.

“Only our top athletes will go to Modesto and will see some of the best competition in the country,” Neff said.

The Spring Festival was a tune-up meet, with many of the athletes running events that they had not run all season.

“This was a reward-type meet,” assistant coach Marcus Jones said. “We did some experimentation in other events and let the kids have some fun.”

Junior Africa Eldridge competed in four different events. She won the 400-meter hurdles, placed third in the 1,500 meters, and also ran the 400 and 200-meter dashes.

The Hornet women swept the 400-meter hurdles by placing the top four times of the meet. Eldridge won the event with a time of 64.45 seconds, followed by Mykesha Kirtman, Nikkita Moorer and Hilary Herndon.

The women’s squad also won the 400-meter relay by a three-second margin.

“We really ran away with this one,” Neff said of the event.

Other highlights for the women included a lifetime best time of two minutes, 15.21 seconds in the 800 meters by Missy Carter. The time was good enough to qualify her for the conference meet in the event. Junior Jackie Hotchkiss placed second in the discus with a lifetime-best throw of 148 feet, one inch – a 10-foot improvement over her previous best.

The men’s team was led by junior Jimmithee Banks, who placed second in the long jump with a jump of 24 feet, six and one-half inch. The leap was a season’s best and ranks him second in the conference going into the conference meet.

Other highlights for the men included Mike Kenyon’s victory in the 200 meters and third-place finish in the 100 meters. Dustin Diaz won the 800 meters with a season’s best time of one minute, 52.41 seconds. Rokeen Osby and James Sumner tied for first in the high jump, clearing a height of six feet, six inches.

The Hornets will send 16 women to the conference meet in 25 different events. The men have qualified 12 athletes in 16 events, including four conference leaders.

“We are definitely looking to improve on both sides at this year’s conference meet,” Jones said.

Last year the Hornets had only three all-conference athletes – those who finish in the top three at the conference championship meet.

“This year we should have a minimum of 10 athletes make all-conference,” Jones said.

The Hornets are also looking to improve on their eighth- and sixth-place rankings for the men’s and women’s teams respectively.

“Our men may finish eighth again but they will definitely improve in points,” Jones said. “Hopefully our women can go top five.”

The remaining Hornets have this weekend’s meet to make their final preparations for the conference meet, which begins on May 19 in Northridge, Calif.