San Diego State track and field coach Shelia Burrell didn’t really know what to expect last week, when the Aztecs headed to a two-day meet at UCLA.
Afternoon practices in unseasonable 90-degree heat on the Aztec Sports Deck had been brutal.
“All sun, no shade,” said long/triple jumper Xiamara Young. “Everyone was feeling it. Brutal.”
Added Burrell: “We were suffering in the heat.”
And the Aztecs were relatively young and untested heading into a challenging early-season test.
How would SDSU’s team react? Would the results be favorable?
“For us to open that strong bodes well for where we are and what we might accomplish,” Burrell said Monday as she reviewed the results from UCLA. “We have some exciting possibilities.”
The Aztecs won two events at UCLA. Seven Aztecs turned in personal bests. The young sprint team lived up to expectations. And the improving distance program performed beyond expectations.
Senior Jada Pierre won the 100-meter hurdles with a time of 13.25 seconds. And senior Samantha Wood won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in a personal-best time of 10 minutes, 43.63 seconds — a time that doubles as the third fastest in Aztec history.
Freshmen Shari Hurdman and Kelia Bentham placed in the top five in the 400 meters. Both the Aztec 4×100 and 4×400 relay teams finished fourth despite running without their optimum alignment. And heptathlete Jenna Fee Feyerabend scored in two individual events of her specialty.
And that’s just scratching the surface.
“We definitely have some people to watch,” said Young, who didn’t compete last weekend after completing a strong indoor season. “I think some great days are ahead for Aztec track.”
The Aztecs will stay active. They’ll travel to UC San Diego for a two-day meet this weekend. Then they host the Aztec Invitational and Combined Event on the Sports Deck April 8-10. And then it’s off to the Mt. SAC Relays in Walnut, where Young will make her 2026 outdoor debut.
Friday’s portion of the UCLA event was the Bob Larsen Distance Carnival.
Sophomore Sara Jones ran the 10th-fastest 1,500 in Aztec history with a personal-best time of 4:29.63. Freshman Alexis Wolfinger finished 11th in the 5,000 with a personal-best 17:51.26. Then Wood won the steeplechase, an event she had never run before last year.
“My specialty was the 1,500 and other distance races,” said Wood. “But I was losing some concentration just running. The steeplechase, with its (seven) water barriers and (28) hurdles, changed all that. As soon as you clear one barrier, you have to start thinking about getting set up for the next one. I like that. Right now, I prefer running the steeplechase.
“But I was just as excited for what Sara and the other distance runners did at UCLA. Coach (Robert) Lusitana is building the distance program.” Lusitana is also the Aztecs’ cross country coach.
Saturday’s program at UCLA was the Jim Bush Legends meet featuring sprinters and field events.
“We had a very strong showing across the board,” said Burrell.
Pierre led the way. Not only did she win the 100-meter hurdles, she finished seventh in the 200 (23.79 seconds) and ran the first leg of the 4×100 relay.
Hurdman (53.63) finished third in the 400 with Bentham (54.24) fifth and Aji Mbye (55.38) 10th.
Pierre opened the 4×100 relay (44.61) with Bentham and Mbye running the final two legs after Laraigh Allen. Hurdman and Bentham ran the final two legs on the 4×400 relay (3:40.16), following Lidia Major and Anna Mager.
Olivia Hicks placed fifth in the 200 with a personal-best of 23.73 seconds. She was two spots ahead of Pierre.
With no heptathlon at UCLA, Feyerabend competed in the shot put (fifth; 46 feet, 3 ½ inches) and high jump (eighth; 5-foot-6) and ran a leg in a 4×400 relay.
Five Aztec pole vaulters finished among the top 12. Sydney Ash and Isabella Nilsen tied for fourth at 13-0 ¾. Emily Manship was 11th at 12-6 ¾, and Peyton Bedrosian and Jordan Leveque tied for 12th at 12-1.
“Our goal this year is to qualify as many as we can for the NCAA finals,” said Burrell.
San Diego State’s Xiamara Young competes in the Mountain West Indoor Track and Field Championships in Reno. (Tanner Pearson/MW Photos)
Leading that charge will be Young, who goes into her senior season with a best of 44-2.7 in the triple jump and 21-3.9 in the long jump. Both were NCAA qualifying marks last year.
“The NCAA championships are my favorite time of the year,” said Young, a psychology major who is headed to medical school. “I’m confident I’ll be one of the best. And I think this team has a lot of sprinters and jumpers to watch.”
Every week, U-T contributor Bill Center highlights one San Diego college team that’s making strides on and off the field. To nominate a team, email wcenter27@gmail.com.