Reece breaks 800m record in first meet of the season

ORANGE, Calif. - The Chapman University track and field team competed in its first meet of the season this past Saturday at the Pomona All-Comers, earning multiple personal bests. Freshman Arabella Reece led the way, setting another school record.

Reece ran a 2:25.74 in the 800 meter race to break the all-time school record previously set by Cathryne Ramirez in 2014. The rookie, who was the first female cross country athlete in Chapman history to reach NCAA Nationals last fall, was also the first SCIAC finisher in the 3000 meter race with a time of 10:23.42.

In the 400 meter race, freshman Angelica Kolar ran a personal best of 1:06.02, surpassing her high school time of 1:11.35 by five seconds.

Sophomores Gabi Siguenza and Emma Eglinton also hit personal bests in their respective races. Eglinton ran a 5:48.46 in the mile to place 22nd overall while Siquenza ran a 1:09.59 in the 400 meter hurdles to place 11th in the event.

The men's 4x400m "A" team, consisting of freshmen Zach Lietzke, Scott Fitzpatrick, junior Leithan Pulon, and sophomore Aki Shigeyama, ran a 3:28.44 to earn third place out of 10 teams. Fitzpatrick also placed 12th overall in the 800 meter race with a time of 2:03.39.

Other notable performances include a ninth place finish from junior Derek Ohara in the men's triple jump and an 11th place finish in the discus throw from senior Cedric Cole. Ohara jumped 11.76 meters to earn a personal best in the event while Cole threw for 38.49 meters.

Head Coach DeAndra'e Woods spoke with optimism about the team's performance. "Today we had a great start to the 2019 outdoor season. We came out and executed in our different event groups and left with a lot of positive results. Our student-athletes and staff are looking to carry this momentum throughout the season."

The Panthers return to action on Saturday, Feb. 23 as they travel to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps for the Rossi Relays.

by Molly Weber and Katie Bell
Sports Information Intern and Assistant

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