Freshman Janelle Coulter won the high jump Saturday as the Long Beach State track and field team competed at the USC Invitational at Loker Stadium.
Coulter was the only overall champion of an event for the 49ers. Her jump of 5 1/2 feet moved her closer to NCAA Regional qualifying mark of 5-08.75.
The freshman isn’t shy when it comes to shining at big meets. In 2008, Coulter was the runner-up in the high jump at the California State high school championships.
Head coach Andy Sythe has big expectations for Coulter.
“She has so much potential not only to jump high but to be a national class athlete for our program,” Sythe said.
Another top jumper was sophomore Katelyn Beighton, who recorded a lifetime best and a regional qualifying jump in the pole vault with a mark of 12-01.50.
Beighton’s classmate Rajan Bains was the top performer for the men in the discus and shot put. Bains bettered his best throw by nine feet in the discus with a mark of 164-06. For the first time of his career, Bains also broke the 50-foot barrier in the shot put.
For the women’s throwers, Jennifer Onyeagbako recorded solid marks in the shot put (45-02) and discus (159-00).
Junior Kenneth Medwood, who was a 2008 Community College state champion, finished third in the 400-meter hurdles with a time of 53.61 seconds.
Christopher Lawson also had a good overall showing in the hurdles despite an injury. Lawson finished fourth in the 100 hurdles with a time of 14.57.
LBSU will continue their season next weekend with a split squad as some athletes will compete in the Cal-Nevada Championships in Westwood and others will travel to the Stanford Invitational in Palo Alto.