Caltech Track & Field earned multiple placing finishes and shattered numerous personal bests during the SCIAC championships at the University of Redlands this past weekend.
Junior Tyler Gatewood (Corpus Christi, Texas / W.B. Ray) emerged as the SCIAC champion in the high jump, clearing 2.03 meters for a personal best. He now ranks No. 24 nationally in the event. Senior Luke Lamitina (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Winchester Thurston) won a SCIAC championship of his own in the Javelin with a throw of 63.42 meters. He will compete at nationals as the third-ranked Division-III athlete in the Javelin.
The Caltech men earned two points finishes in the 3000-meter steeplechase. Sophomore Stephen Goehringer (Wellesley, Mass. / Wellesley) placed third overall with a time of 9:31.50. First-year Rafael Castro (Briarcliff Manor, N.Y. / Hackley School) placed eighth, legging out a 10:06.08 time.
The Caltech men had three points finishers in the 10K race. Junior Ryan Fortin (Londonderry, N.H. / Londonderry) finished second overall in the race with a personal-best time of 31:55.84. Senior Jacob Wolmer (Tenafly, N.J. / Tenafly) came in fourth place overall with a time of 32:09.29. Senior Sean Corman (Waterford, Conn. / Waterford High School / Worcester Polytechnic Institute) finished seventh place with a 32:45.63 time.
On the women's side, sophomore multi-sport athlete Kyra Phaychanpheng (Chino Hills, Calif. / Chino Hills) supplied the Beavers with another top-three finish. She placed third overall in the Discus with a personal-best throw of 40.63 meters, extending her own program record in the event. Phaychanpheng also achieved a personal best of 9.86 meters in the Shot Put.
Caltech senior Aaban Syed (Laurel, Md. / North County) finished fourth overall in the men's Pole Vault with a mark of 4.57 meters. Sophomore Brendan Rudberg (Shoreline, Wash. / Shorecrest) cleared 4.42 meters for fifth place and fellow sophomore Lucas Smith (Hailey, Idaho / Wood River) cleared 4.12 meters for seventh place overall.
The Beavers also placed in the 4x100 relay as Gatewood, Sophomore Brady Akau (Kapolei, Hawaii / Kamehameha Schools Kapalama), First-year Isaac Thompson (New Castle, Colo. / Coal Ridge High School) and first-year Ryan Rodrigue (San Diego, Calif. / Santa Fe Christian) combined to place seventh with a time of 44.26.
In the Men's 4x400 relay, Akau, first-year Earnest Ting (Brookings, S.D. Brookings High School), Gatewood and Thompson combined for a sixth-place finish in 3:24.81.
Sophomore Maxwell Braithwaite (Webster, N.Y. / Webster Thomas) finished fourth overall in the Hammer Throw with a 48.55m mark. Lamitina placed seventh in the event with a throw of 46.15 meters.
On the women's side, Sophomore Hypatia Hamkins (New York, N.Y. / The Brearley School) finished fifth overall in the 800-meter race with a personal-best 2:20.99. Junior Isha Goswami (Saratoga, Calif. / Saratoga) placed eighth overall in the 400-meter with a 1:02.07 time.
Goswami, Junior Ivy Brainard (Charlotte, N.C. / Providence Day), sophomore Katelyn Sadorf (Boca Raton, Fla. / Spanish River) and Hamkins combined to finish sixth overall in the 4 x 400 Relay with a combined time of 4:10.84. Senior Lauren Pryor (Wellesley, Mass. / Wellesley) Brainard, Goswami and first-year Emily Snyder (Port Jefferson, N.Y. / Earl L. Vanderumeulen HS) combined for sixth place in the 4 x 100 Relay with a combined time of 51.72.
Senior Gigi Pistilli (Portola Valley, Calif. / Woodside) placed sixth overall in the 10K race with a time of 38:56.02.
In the field events, senior Sophia Steven (Broomfield, Colo. / Peak to Peak Charter) placed fifth in the women's Shot Put with a throw of 11.47 meters. Steven placed eighth in Discus with a mark of 34.56 meters. She also achieved a personal best in the hammer throw with a 35.57-meter toss.
First-year Katherin Austrian (Minneapolis, Minn. / Blake School) placed seventh in the Pole Vault, clearing 2.73 meters.
In addition to placing finishes, Caltech athletes also earned multiple personal bests. First-year Benjamin Porosoff (West Haven, Conn. / Hopkins School) ran a personal-best 24.15 in the men's 200-meter race.
Akau ran the 400-meter in 50.51, a personal best for him. Caltech multi-sport athlete Rodrigue ran the same distance in a personal-best 53.24.
First-year Jadon Lam (Sacramento, Calif. / Pleasant Grove) ran the 1500-meter race a full five seconds faster than he ever has before, finishing in 5:14.94
First-year Aiden Cope (Mapleton, Utah / Maple Mountain High School) registered his personal best in the 5K, finishing in 16:04.78.
Numerous Caltech women achieved personal bests as well. Junior Aurelia Kuester (San Diego, Calif. / Canyon Crest Academy) achieved a personal best in both the 100-meter (14.85) and 200-meter (30.85) races.
Pryor ran the 200-meter race in a personal-best 29.08.
Sophomore Raquel "Rocky" Lample (Encino, Calif. / Notre Dame HS) beat her personal best in the 1500-meter by nearly six full seconds, finishing in 5:17.25. Also on the distance side, First-year Annabelle Eisner (Boulder, Colo. / Fairview High School) ran the 5k in a personal-best 19:39.83.
In the women's field events, Snyder achieved a personal best in the Triple Jump with a mark of 9.80 meters. First-year Aurea Slimak (DuBois, Pa. / DuBois Central Catholic High School) set her personal best in both the Discus (22.25 meters) and the Hammer Throw (25.07 meters).
The Beavers will see action at the Azusa Pacific Last Chance meet May 8-9 in Azusa, Calif.
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