2014 Pacific West Conference Championships Results (Day 2)

Fresno, CA – Showing their dominance in the sport of track & field, the Academy of Art University women's team captured its first Pacific West Conference Championship out at host Fresno Pacific's FPU Track. Led by PacWest Most Valuable Athlete Dinesha Bean, the Urban Knights claimed first place in six event finals on Saturday and had 16 individuals contribute to the title they captured by more than 20 points. The men's squad had eight first place finishes including three by PacWest Most Valuable Athlete Jordan Edwards on the concluding day and took third overall in the team results.

"Winning a conference meet with only 16 athletes is almost impossible; it requires a total team effort and a lot of sacrifice from everyone," head coach Charles Ryan said. "Today, that's exactly what we got. Every woman scored points, every woman performed duties they otherwise would never attempt, and in the end, our talent was just head and shoulders above the other teams. The ladies decided that they wanted to go out and make a run at this title and when this group is focused on a goal they can accomplish anything."

In a great position for success already with eight of nine qualifiers to compete in the 100m dash finals, ART U went one through three with Racquel Jones (12.16) taking first followed by Bean and Keanna Moody. Also adding points were Amanda Odesjo, Jasmin Guinn, Kayla Pritchett, and Amira Barnett.

It was almost déjà vu in the 200m dash where Bean grabbed first overall with a time of 24.49 and was followed immediately by six other Urban Knights including Jones, Mistic Scott, Dierra Haven, Moody, Odesjo, and Pritchett.

The 400m saw another first place result for Bean who went 56.72 to lead the pack of nine and only barely edged Scott's 56.73. Haven and Omotoyosi Oniru also scored in the event finals.

Bean also claimed first place in the eight-person field in the 100m hurdles. She posted a 13.63 for the individual title. In the 400mH, Moody finished second overall with her first NCAA provisional qualifying time of 1:02.63 coming as well.

The sprint crew also displayed their talents in the relays as Bean teamed with Moody, Jones, and Haven for first place in the 4x100m with a 46.99 mark. Then in the 4x400m, it was Oniru, Pritchett, Odesjo, and Haven who snagged first of the five squads, going 3:51.37.

Truly versatile, Bean also scored points for ART U in the high jump where she rose to a 5-0.25 (1.53m) for third place of nine competitors.

"Dinesha Bean really stepped up and acted like a leader this weekend," Coach Ryan said. "She was given the most difficult schedule of events and scored 36 points by herself. She is an incredible athlete and she will need to continue to lead this group as we get ready for the NCAAs."

Kaelyn Harbison led the Urban Knights distance crew, finishing second in the 5000m (18:15.38) with McKaela Christenson in third. Harbison also took fourth in the 800m with a time of 2:17.42 and sixth in the 13-runner 1500m, posting a 4:46.53.

"The distance crew really came through and delivered when we needed them to their performance in the 5000m officially wrapped up the meet; I'm very proud of them," Coach Ryan said.

Jessica Kinssies also made strong contributions in the throws, launching the shot put 38-0.25 (11.59m) for third of 11 and discus 121-2 (36.93m) for fourth of 10.

"Jessica Kinssies was our unsung hero of the meet," Coach Ryan said. "She PR'ed in three events and scored double-digit points by herself. I know she was excited to be such a big part of what we accomplished this weekend. It was fun to see her do her thing."

After taking the individual title in the long jump on Friday, Guinn came back to finish fourth in the triple jump.

The Academy of Art men's team had Jordan Edwards pave the way in all three sprint events. He finished first in the 100m with a 10.61 time just ahead of Ronald Spears, Jr. , Marlon Britton, and Shaquille Howard. Then, in the 200m, he blew away the competition with a 21.38 to lead eight others including Spears, Jr., Alexander McNally, and Howard. Finally, in the 400m, he proved himself worth of the highest individual honor after going 47.93 for another top finish.

Edwards also joined Spears, Jr., Britton, and McNally in pushing the 4x100m relay squad to first (41.61) despite disqualifications for the two other teams competing. He then teamed with Howard, Spears, Jr., and Quinlan Wright for first out of four (3:17.81) in the 4x400m.

"The men overall gave really great effort and put on a good showing, " Coach Ryan said. "Jordan, as he has all year, led the way and did all he could to put the team in a position to win the meet. In the end, we just didn't have enough bullets to fire in the competition."

Wright also added a pair of second place finishes in the hurdle events. He was second of six in the 110mH, posting a 14.70 mark and backed that up with a 53.73 in the 400mH for runner-up in a seven-man competition.

For the second consecutive season, ART U claimed the horizontal jumps champion at the PacWest Championships as Edgar Panford provided an encore to his long jump title by becoming the triple jump champion. He finished first of seven with a 49-10 (15.19m) distance.

Nicolas Rifflard was as dominant as ever in both the 1500m and 5000m, finishing first of 11 in the former (3:55.55) and first of 18 in the latter (15:12.77). Jack Nevins supported his teammate with points contributed in both races as well. Then, Rifflard also showed his ability in his first collegiate 3000m steeplechase where he took second of six with a 9:43.64 time.

"I'm very proud of the efforts from all the fellas this weekend, however, Jordan, Quinlan, Edgar, and Nico really stood out as the leaders. They all rose to the occasion, took on unusual challenges, and outperformed expectations," Coach Ryan said.

 Logan Means followed up his prelim qualifier in the 800m by taking fourth of nine in the finals.

In the overall team competition, the Academy of Art men finished third with 190 points. Host Fresno Pacific (256) won the title and Azusa Pacific (222) came in second.

As the home stretch toward NCAA Division II Nationals begins in May, the Urban Knights will next have the Oxy Invitational to look forward to on May 10.

"Now that we are past the PacWest meet, it's time to really zero in on the true focus of our program which is and will always be the NCAA Championships," Coach Ryan said. "We have a quality group on both genders already qualified and we still have some athletes ready to take their performances to the next level. It's back to work next week, but for today we can celebrate as champions of the PacWest!"