By Ricardo Garcia (@Rickygdeportes) – Spear Reporter
“History” and “hardware” are just two words to describe the weekend SJSU track and field just had.
The Spartans traveled to Albuquerque for the third time in three weeks to compete in the Mountain West Indoor Championships. The final trip to the Land Of Enrichment came with plenty of first-place finishes and personal records.
Kicking things off men’s side, freshman sprinter Christopher Coats made history by winning the men’s 400-meter dash with a time of 46.27 surpassing the old record of 46.44 set by none other than the legendary Tommie Smith.
On the with the women’s side, sophomore jumper Emilia Sjostrand took first in the women’s triple jump with a record distance of 13.64 meters. Sjostrand also captured first in the women’s long jump securing Performer of the Meet honors.
Additionally, Freshman jumper Cameron Tarver followed up with a first-place finish of his own in the 200m dash with a record time of 20.87. Coats joined his teammate in the winner’s circle in the same event with a second-place finish.
The Spartans were not done yet, as senior sprinter Roman Johnson claimed first in the men’s 60m dash, and freshman sprinter/hurdler Demaris Waters took the top spot in the men’s 60m hurdles.
After three days of action, both the men and women came in fourth place overall in the competition. Despite not coming in first both sides showed that they are capable of performing at a high level.
It will be interesting to see how the squad will continue to build off this weekend’s performance for the NCAA Indoor championships as they also prepare to transition to the outdoor season.
SJSU track and field will return back home to prepare for the Cal opener which is scheduled for March 4 in Berkley, Calif.