by Matthew Kappus
Daily Lobo
If last weekend's meet is any indication, the UNM track and field team has a chance to perform well at the Mountain West Conference Championships.
The men placed second while the women finished fifth at the TCR Invitational on Saturday at the Albuquerque Convention Center.
The meet featured a number of MWC teams, including Air Force, Brigham Young, San Diego State and Utah.
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UNM head coach Matt Henry said this meet was a tune-up for the MWC Championships, held at the Convention Center from
Feb. 22-24.
The Lobos have hosted every meet they have competed in this season, which is a distinct advantage,
Henry said.
"We get to sleep in our own beds, eat our own food," Henry said. "And most importantly, our athletes don't have to miss class."
The Lobos turned in some solid performances this weekend, including a new school record set by Kristan Matison in the women's 60-meter dash. Matison's father, Rene, a two-time All-American runner for UNM in the 1960s, was on hand to see his daughter's record-setting performance.
Matison said it was encouraging to have her father in attendance.
"My dad has always been there for me," Matison said. "It was nice."
It was also a special weekend for Lobos Brian Vallie and Jason Petty. The two freshmen scored the first victories of their college careers. Vallie won the 800-meter run, and Petty was victorious in the 3,000-meter run.
Petty said he recovered from a sluggish start.
"I started the race off slow, but I picked it up and was able to get away from the pack," he said.
Meanwhile, Taylor Siemon, Randle McCain, Kurt Henry and Jarrin Solomon won the men's 4x400-meter relay in a time of 3:14.65.
It is the second week in a row the all-New Mexican foursome won
the event.
Freshman Christina Zarrella placed third in the women's 800. Her time of 2:17.62 is a personal
record.
Zarrella, normally a 400-meter runner, has impressed her coaches not only by volunteering to run longer races, but also by the amount of success she is having in them.
"I think she has scored personal records in every race she has been in," Henry said. "You don't do that, but she has."
Ariel Burr continued her winning ways, placing first in the 400 for her second win in a row. She edged out Patricia Mayers from Wayland Baptist by less than half a second. Burr's time, 55.23 seconds, is a
season-best.
Senior Mark Lamb punctuated his regular-season indoor track career with an exclamation point. Along with a third-place finish in the men's 60-meter hurtles, Lamb had a career-best time of 22.36 seconds in the 200-meter dash.
In the women's triple jump, sophomore Hagit Salamon cracked the 40-foot mark to finish second. Teammate Deanna Young also had the best weekend of her Lobo career, placing fourth with a distance of 39.5 feet.
Juan Ortega had another solid weekend, gliding to victories in the one mile and 5,000-meter. The junior earned 20 points for the Lobos while achieving personal records in the two distance races.
Running a variety of races helps in his primary events, Ortega said.
"I don't train for the mile, but it helps me with the three and five," he said.
Henry said Ortega decided early he was going to win the race.
"He got those victories the hard way because he never trailed," Henry said. "He demolished the field."
Track and field hosts Mountain West Conference Championships
Feb. 22, all day
Albuquerque Convention Center
