Posted: Apr 22, 2017

Aztecs track & field sets four outdoor national qualifiers at UCSD Triton Invitational

Freshman Alyssa Watkins improved on her national qualifier in the hammer throw for the second time during the outdoor season. She set her new mark at 48.66 meters (159-feet, 6-inches). Photo by Ben Carbajal.

The Pima Community College men's and women's track & field teams competed at the University of California, San Diego Triton Invitational on Friday and Saturday.

The Aztecs set four new outdoor season national qualifiers which puts their total at 15 for the season.

Sophomore David Fernandez (Ironwood Ridge HS) set his national qualifier in the 5,000 meter race as he also set a personal record in the process with a time of 15 minutes, 19.14 seconds. He also has a qualifier in the 10,000 meters event.

Sophomore Alex Palacios (Mountain View HS)) set a national qualifier in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 54.41.

Freshman Dahrian Harris-Mesa (Rincon HS) set his qualifier in the discus. His mark was set at 45.66 meters (149-feet, 9.50-inches).

The 4x800 relay team of freshmen Collin Dylla (Ironwood Ridge HS), Victor Bustamanate (Flowing Wells HS), Gabe Atchley and Andy Trinh (Catalina HS) set a qualifying time at 7:52.62.

In women's competition, freshman Alyssa Watkins (Camp Verde HS) improved on her qualifying mark in the hammer throw for the second time this season. She hit a mark of 48.66 meters (159-6) which broke her previous throw of 47.97 meters (157-4).

The Aztecs will begin post-season competition at the Region I Multi-Events on Monday and Tuesday at Mesa Community College. Competition begins at 3:00 p.m. on both days.

See complete results of the Triton Invitational on the UCSD website