Big meets for BC, CSUB track; tennis individuals draw; Military Appreciation Night at Kern Raceway

Local collegiate track and field programs, Bakersfield College and Cal State Bakersfield, are preparing for big championship meets today and Saturday in Southern California.

There will be four Renegade athletes who compete in the 3C2A State Championships at Mt. San Antonio College in Walnut. Thirty-four athletes are expected to compete from CSUB’s men’s and women’s teams in the Big West Conference championships taking place at Long Beach State’s Jack Rose Track facility.

For BC, reaching the state meet is a big plus as all four qualifiers are freshmen. The four are Jacob Quezada in the 800 meters, Kai Wilkins in the men’s high jump, Sofia Moody in the women’s 3,000-meter steeplechase and Mason Level in the men’s hammer throw. Quezada, who also qualified for state in the men’s steeplechase, opted out of that event to just focus on the 800, BC head coach Pam Kelley said this week.

Of the four, Level is the only one who will compete today as the hammer throw will take place at 4:30 p.m. Saturday’s BC athlete schedule has Moody running in the steeplechase, the first track event of the day, at 3:30, then Wilkins in the high jump at 4:30 and Quezada’s 800 run is scheduled for 6:10.

For CSUB, the conference championships could be a jumping off point for NCAA postseason qualifying for a few athletes, such as shot put and hammer thrower Javier Toro, sprinter Makiah Parker, who is the defending Big West 200-meter champion, and the women’s 4x100 relay, which also includes Parker in an anchor role. The 4x100 relay team comes into the meet with a school-record time of 44.69 seconds. The Big West championship meet record is 44.43, set in 2013 by Cal State Northridge.

Field events start at 10:30 a.m. and track events at 12:45 p.m. today. Saturday’s field events begin at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. for track events.

Here’s a complete list of Roadrunner team members and their events, by day:

Today women — Hammer throw: Griselda Padron, Annie Amneus; 1,500 meters: Rain Gomez, Ava Leisenfelder; 100 hurdles: Emilia Mandela; 400 meters: Adeline Rangel, Julie Johnson; 100 meters: Amiera Hollis, Chizitere Okey-Dike, Makiah Parker, Ronna Wallace, Teague Marzetta; 800 meters: Rain Gomez; 400 hurdles: Ivy Miller; 200: Rionna Wallace, Chizitere Okey-Dike, Makiah Parker; triple jump: Skye Odom.

Today men — long jump: Ethan Lavina; hammer throw: Tyler Balgeman, Javier Toro, Daniel Hartman, Adam Torres; shot put: Adam Torres, Javier Toro; 1,500 meters: Jacob Yagers; 400: Hyun-Jin Beck; 100: Laurance Burston, Dylan Thompson, Jacob Mounmanivong, John Ware; 400 hurdles: Jaden Cutliff; 10,000 meters: Ishmael Nungaray, Fransico Felix.

Saturday women — 4x100 relay (Okey-Dike, Wallace, Marzetta, Parker); 4x400 relay (four of these five will run it: Rangel, Johnson, Miller, Wallace, Mackenzie Okonta).

Saturday men — pole vault: Alma Smith; Discus: Tyler Balgeman; triple jump Ethan Lavina; 4x100 relay (Cutliff, Burston, Mounmanivong, Ware); 5,000 meters: Fransico Felix; 4x400 relay (four of these five will run it: Mounmanivong, Burston, Thompson, Cutliff, Beck).