by Ketan Dhawan
Daily Lobo
This weekend UNM head track and field coach Matt Henry took his best athletes to the nation's biggest track meet of the year, the Mt. SAC (San Antonio College) relays in Walnut, Calif.
Henry took with him 11 of UNM's finest track athletes. Leading the pack was little big-man Matt Gonzales, who was hungry for a victory and hoped to earn an Olympic trials qualifying mark.
After a hectic weekend the team returned home, coming back from what coach Henry deemed an amusement park ride.
"It was like a roller coaster," Henry said. "There was a lot of good and bad."
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Friday began with four UNM men competing in the 5000-meter run. Gonzales stuck to his usual routine, crushing the competition and placing first with a time of 13:44.52. Shortly after, Cameron Clarke marked a 14:13.90, placing 37th - both were NCAA regional qualifying times. Henry said Gonzales' long-term goal this season is to qualify in the national championship in the 5,000-meter. Gonzales also secured a spot in the NCAA Midwest Regional Championship in the 10,000-meter run.
Teammates Nick Martinez and Sean Flaherty finished back to back at 43rd and 44th with times of 14:44.46 and 14:45.70 respectively, in the 5,000-meter.
Chris Garofola, Kimilia Davis, Jason Barkemeyer and Jamie Fishencord also performed well, making their first trip to the Mt. SAC relays an unforgettable one. Garofola ran both the 110 and the 400-meter hurdles, and did considerably well in both. Garofola ran in section 1 and clocked a 14.65.05 in the 110 hurdles, placing 16th overall. He went on to take 31st overall in the 400-meter hurdles, with a time of 53.67.
Davis, a sophomore, ran the 400-meter dash. She placed 4th in her section and 25th overall, with a time of 56.85.
Barkemeyer, who has already qualified for regionals, was looking to improve his mark. He placed 11th in discus, throwing a distance mark of 48.92 feet.
Fischencord, who has had an incredible season this year, continued to perform well. She placed 9th in the hammer throw, slinging a mark of 173-11 and surpassed the regional qualifying mark.
For the second time this season, junior Amanda Barnes broke her own school record in the shot put. Barnes marked a 48-10.75 to finish fifth in the top section of the event.
ˇOther notables were Jacquelyne Gallegos and Ben Ortega. Gallegos performed in the women's 1,500-meter run, finishing 81st overall with a record time of 4:41.83.
Ortega ran in the mens 10,000 meter run, finishing in a strong 21st with a time of 29:36.66.
Next weekend, the Lobos travel to San Diego for the UCSD Invitational.
