Trojan men and women compete at regionals

Too wins 5000m

Nehemiah Too, front, and Wesley Banguria lead the pack in the 5000m May 4 at the Region VI track and field meet in El Dorado, Kan. Too went on the finish first with a time of 14:35.96.
Nehemiah Too, front, and Wesley Banguria lead the pack in the 5000m May 4 at the Region VI track and field meet in El Dorado, Kan. Too went on the finish first with a time of 14:35.96.
May 3, 2019

Nehemia Too was the 5000-meter champion and ran the tenth fastest 1500m time in NJCAA history, while several other Trojans had national-qualifying times in the men's and women's Region VI Track and Field Championships May 2-4 in El Dorado.

The 4x800m squad of Caleb Carrasco, Tito Gonzalez, Austin Russell and Mauro Arancibia grabbed fourth place with a national-qualifying time of 7:49.23.

Jesse Bebb competed in the 10k, placing ninth with a time of 33:48.86.

Wesley Banguria posted a third-place time of 9:36.31 in the steeplechase. Rihards Sergis followed with a ninth-place finish and a personal best time of 10:28.80.

Too's stellar performance of 3:47.99 in the 1500m was second to Hutchinson's Andrew Kibet (3:47.89). Colby's Arthur Berthelin and Carrasco finished in 15th and 21st respectively.

In the 800m, Mauro Arancibia led the Trojan men with a 13th place time of 1:57.28. He was followed by Carrasco in 14th at 1:58.59. Ian Baustert rounded out the Trojans scoring with a 2:06.53.

The men's 5k was won with a region-championship performance by Too (14:35.96). He was followed by Banguria, scoring in 6th and a time of 15:33.02. Gonzalez came in 13th with a16:36.25.

On the women's side, the 4x800m relay team of Emery Swan, Allison Hiatt, Brooke Navarro and Aileen Gurrola posted a second-place national-qualifying mark of 9:48.20.

Aileen Gurrola led the Trojan women in the 1500m with a second-place time of 4:49.65. Brooke Navarro missed the national-qualifying mark by a narrow .32 seconds, running a 5:00.71 and finishing in fourth. Kayla Minary was the next Trojan to finish, in eighth place and a personal best of 5:21.17.

In the women's 400m, Ascar Koech finished 12th with a run of 1:00.04.

Gurrola finished the 800m in fourth with a time of 2:20.78. She was followed by Swan in 13th at 2:29.24, and Hiatt in 16th with a career-best 2:31.51.

Erika Alvarado led the Trojans with a fifth-place finish in the 5k with a 20:45.01. Mya Navarro followed in sixth at 21:00.24. Emily Westeman rounded out the field in 22:09.64 and a 10th place finish.

The Trojan men and women now prepare to compete May 16-18 in Hobbs, N.M. at the National Outdoor Track & Field Championships.