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Tiffany Dinh
Sophomore Business Major
Norwalk, Calif.
Writing on Day Two - May 6, 2011
After many months of training and racing, the time has come when the Broncos show everyone what we have really been preparing for. What we, as track and field athletes, want to do is to represent Cal Poly Pomona with successful marks and times. These results of what both the athletes and coaches have sacrificed their effort and time for are meaningful in the sense that people will realize how hard working and dedicated the students of Cal Poly Pomona are.
Day two is basically the day where everyone attempts to qualify for finals the next day... with the exception of several Field events. I am proud to say that our Broncos got off to a good start. Nicole Warden got second place in pole vault.
Another great Cal Poly Pomona performance was Tramieka Thomas' long jump. She too got second and increased her chances of participating in the National Championships. When I saw her, tears of happiness were rolling down her cheeks and I am glad to see that she got what she deserved.
As for the running events, I ran the 1500m with Lauren Parr. The distance events are much more different from the sprints and hurdles because the distance events require smart tactics. My race started extremely slow and the pace picked up instantly once we were finishing up our third lap. Thankfully, I was able to respond and qualified for the Finals. The second heat had both Diana Zapata and Fabiola Lugo, where Diana also qualified for finals. Kyle Wolff was able to advance to the 800M Finals and defend her title as the CCAA Champion.
Overall, today was a successful day but today is not the end of it. Tomorrow, we must work harder and raise the bar for ourselves. We must test our limits and make our teammates proud. Because track and field consists of so many events and athletes, it is hard to get everyone together and get the feeling that we are one team. Today was the first time this season that everyone was working together as a team and supporting one another.
As I was watching the men's 10,000-meter finals, I saw the team come together and cheer for 25 straight laps and it made me realize that each athlete should compete for every point possible because teammates believe in one another and expect nothing less than the best. I know that I can speak for my teammates when I say that tomorrow is the day to win not just for ourselves, but for our team.
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Carter Griffin
Senior Chemical Engineering Major
Placentia, Calif.
Writing on Day Two - May 6, 2011
Friday was the day to fight and compete to get into finals, and our team did just that. On the men's side, me, Corey Arnold and Brian Crane qualified for the men's 200-meter dash. Going into the race we had huge Cal Poly numbers, seven of us were competing, and we were confident that we would dominate.
In the men's 400-meter dash, the Broncos have half the field. We have four out of the eight finalists, including Corey, Brian, Greg Starkey, and myself. In the men's 10,000, Gustavo Cruz finished fifth, and Matthew Prentice finished ninth respectively. We had our whole team was on the track cheering them on to get them through that grueling race.
In the men's 110 hurdles we have the top three qualifiers, Jake Deavers, Matt Boudreau, and Neil Macrorie. Jake and Matt were the top qualifiers in the 400-meter hurdles as well. In the men's pole vault, Derek Wong and Derek Green finished ninth and 10th respectively.
In the men's long Oliver Santiago and James Cooper finished 15th and 16th. In the discus Vincent Huitt had a fifth place performance, and Shane Cioni had an eigth place performance, which scored big points for us. And for the men's hammer Vincent, Nathan Schultz, and James Cox finished 9th, 16th, and 17th.
Everyone just tried to stay hydrated and motivate their fellow teammates. We all had a late night and we are going to get our rest to get ready for the big day tomorrow.
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Sarah Garcia
Senior Physics Major
Placentia, Calif.
Writing on Day One - May 5, 2011
Today we left for Turlock in the morning and we were all really excited to finally get on the road. Throughout the trip, we all had fun on the bus talking and hanging out and watching movies, with of course some people sleeping. We watched Toy Story 3, Major Payne, and Inception.
When we reached the track, it was hot. There was a slight breeze, but you could still feel the 94 degree weather. We all got in the necessary workouts needed to prepare for competition tomorrow and had some fun at the end taking pictures. It was great being at the track and seeing the heptathlon and decathlon day one events still going on. It really emphasized the competition atmosphere and made me really excited to get the rest of the championships going.
After checking in to the hotel, we all got ready to go eat at Vito's Italian Restaurant. The food was really good. We had bread sticks, salad, and three different kinds of pasta. In between eating, Coach Troy Johnson gave us a pep talk about competition. He's always good at making speeches to motivate you right before a big meet. He just really emphasized how important it is to go out there and work hard and give it all we got. He believes in us and knows we have the potential to do great things. I always find myself feeling a little more confident after he talks to me because I feel like he says the things I need to hear. The seniors also made speeches about championships this weekend. It was nice to hear everyone talk and encourage each other to do well. There were a lot of great words said and you could hear the emotion in the seniors' voices.
I myself gave some words of encouragement to my teammates. I basically said to remember to compete with their hearts and have some fun. One of my favorite quotes is “Never underestimate the heart of a champion.” When I step on the line to race, I put my heart into each race I do. I know that when I step on the line for the last time on Saturday, my whole heart will compete not only for myself but for my teammates. They mean everything to me and it has been an amazing four years being a part of the cross country and track team. I believe in my teammates and I know they can achieve greatness this weekend. No matter what happens, I am proud of them and it has been a privilege being their teammate.
While hanging out in the hotel tonight, we are all just having fun and relaxing. Even though we have a busy day tomorrow, it's nice to just relax and be at ease before it's time to focus and work hard. I am rooming with Fabiola Lugo and Lauren Parr. They are always my roommates and I love being with them because they make me feel calm before I race. No matter how nervous I am, they always make me laugh. I am so excited for my final CCAA Championships. It's going to be a great weekend. I hope you all enjoyed hearing about our first day here in Turlock and stay tuned to hear about results.
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