The men's 4x400m relay team on the awards podium.
Photo by Larry Newman

4x400 Relay, Track & Field

Sophomore Aki Shigeyama, junior Cody Epstein and freshmen Zach Lietzke and Scott Fotzpatrick made up the four legs of Chapman University’s men’s track and field 4x400 relay team. Those four men made history this past weekend at the SCIAC Championship, becoming the first relay in school history to finish on the podium to end the meet.

They finished just a half of a second behind the winning team with a time of 3:19.90. Shigeyama led off the relay and handed the baton to Epstein, who put the Panthers in the lead. Lietzke handed off to Fitzpatrick in a tight cluster of the top three teams. Fitzpatrick came around the final curve in third place but overtook the Occidental team. He was closing in on CMS as he crossed the finish line to secure a second-place finish.