Stanford Invitational Results
Mike Fanelli Track Classic Results

The final day of both the Stanford Invitational and Mike Fanelli Track Classic featured numerous impressive performances from Academy of Art track & field including upward movement toward NCAA Division II Outdoor Nationals in the 4x100m relays, 200m dashes, triple jumps, 800m, and a new program record in the women's mile.

STANFORD, Calif. – From the fastest women's 4x100m the country has seen this season to top-two national marks in both triple jumps to the program's 10th Outdoor Nationals provisional qualification at the meet in the women's 4x400m to close the day, the Stanford Invitational was loaded with standout efforts. 

Beginning the day by nearly knocking off Stanford's own 4x100m relay team, the quartet of Britney Clark, Darria Matthias, Alicia Thomas, and Selena Arjona-Alcazar ascended to the top position in the country at 44.82. The time was more than a second faster than ART U's outdoor debut mark and was nearly two seconds faster than the cutoff for Outdoor Nationals provisional qualification while also fourth in program history, making it the fastest mark run by Academy of Art in almost 10 years.

The men's 4x100m relay team of Emmanuel Ajiroba, Robin Black, Ajani Ince, and Duncan Agyemang ended up ever so slightly outside of the program's top five times at 40.51 as the Urban Knights took more than 0.30 seconds off their outdoor debut effort with another Outdoor Nationals provisional. Their four names can now be found inside the top 15 in the nation.

Both the men's and women's 200m dash events featured pairs of Urban Knights with Outdoor Nationals provisional marks. The men were led by Black whose 21.15 performance was followed closely by Ince's 21.20 for third and fourth respectively of 33 competitors on the day. The duo assumed the third and fourth spots in Academy of Art history as well as the eighth and 11th rankings nationally.

In her lone individual event outside of two relays, Arjona-Alcazar excelled in the 200m, going 24.02 to place sixth of 63 on the day while Clark picked up her first Outdoor Nationals provisional qualification in the event at 24.22, good for 16th in the country as well as 11th in the competition featuring numerous NCAA DI talent. Matthias (24.65) and Alisha Wilson (24.76) were each just beyond the provisional standard though both in the event's upper tier.

Posting their best jumps of the young outdoor season, Mathieu Tshani and Yacouba Gnacko packed quite the one-two punch in the triple jump invitational event that pit them against seven other NCAA DI competitors. Tshani bounced back from a pair of fouls on his first two attempts with strong marks until he delivered a 51-10 (15.80m) on his final try, effectively winning the event with a thrilling ending. He moved up to second in the country as an Outdoor Nationals provisional qualifier while Gnacko was not far behind at 51-1.75 (15.59m), taking third as ART U sandwiched Arkansas' Ryan Brown as well as fourth in NCAA DII.

Marie-Jeanne Ourega found herself representing the lone NCAA DII competitor in the women's triple jump invitational as nine NCAA DI jumpers mixed with two others including Guatemala's three-time National Champion Thelma Fuentes. Ourega put herself second in the event on her initial attempt then had her best come on her third time down the runway at 42-0.5 (12.81m). The Communications & Media Technologies major would finish third overall and kept herself in strong position nationally, sitting second in the country.

The full day of competition also had Clark, Wilson, Anna Belles Gallen, and Arjona-Alcazar match the Outdoor Nationals provisional standard of 3:49.58 exactly, putting them 18th in the country.

SAN FRANCISCO – The third and final day of the Mike Fanelli Track Classic concluded with Lisa Redlinger once again breaking an Academy of Art record, this time in the mile, as well as Lina Hanich returning to the country's top 10 in the 800m.

Redlinger made it a memorable second week on the track as she followed up her 10,000m ART U record with another, going 5:10.34 in the mile. The mark was more than four seconds faster than the previous best which had been held by Audrey Rosencrans, however, a new outdoor best by Rosencrans came in the same event on Saturday as she closed the gap with a time of 5:12.27.

Dropping from her first 800m, Hanich saw NCAA DI talent all around her Saturday as she crossed the finish line with a time of 2:11.55 for a new outdoor best. She remains fifth in program history and now holds onto the nation's 10th spot as an Outdoor Nationals provisional qualifier.

Prior to a busy week of action in Southern California (Apr. 13-15), the Urban Knights will remain local for Cal's Brutus Hamilton Invitational on Apr. 8.