The season may be young, but the Long Beach State track and field team has been re-writing history with each and every meet.
Senior track and field Athlete Matt Maldonado broke barriers this past Saturday at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Indoor Championship Finals at Dempsey Indoor.
Maldonado finished the men’s mile in first place, clocking in at 3:59.08 — the first sub-four minute mile by an athlete in LBSU history.
The senior beat his school record for the third time this season clocking in at 3:59.08 being just one of two competitors to finish in under four minutes.
At about the .355-meter mark, it was Maldonado and Stanford’s Chris Derrick racing for the win. Derrick came in close behind Maldonado at 3:59:13.
“Coming down the stretch it was just me and him,” Maldonado said. “I had to ask myself how bad I wanted it and keep that momentum up and luckily I came out on top.”
Derrick was the American Collegiate record holder for the .355-mile leg. Stanford’s Tyler Stuzman finished in third at 4:01.23 and Michael Atchoo, another sub-four miler finished in fourth clocking in at 4:03.29
The win places Maldonado on the bubble of advancing to the NCAA Indoor Championship, a meet that he has dreamed of competing in since he started running in high school eight years ago.
“If I go [to the NCAA championship] I know I will run great,” Maldonado said. ” I just hope I get picked.”
Maldonado broke his own school record two-weeks ago at the three-day University of Washington Husky Classic when he finished the mile at 4:00.07 a time that he once again beat on Saturday.
“I am still in shock,” Maldonado said. “It hasn’t really sinked in yet, but it is definitely a huge confidence booster and I am super excited for LBSU”.
LBSU’s track and field coach Andy Sythe pointed out that this team is no stranger to breaking school records this season.
“We have had a successful indoor season, setting five indoor school records so far,” he said.
Senior Rosa Del Toro also established a school record at the U.W. Invitational with a mile-time of 4:50.75, and was also part of the women’s distance medley relay team to cross the finish line with an LBSU best 11:48:81 placing third overall.
LBSU’s Kristen Kiefer also set another school record by collecting 3,585 points in the pentathlon placing third in the 60-meter hurdles (8.78), fourth in the long-jump (18-01.50) and fifth in the 800-meter finishing at 2:24:64. Her time on the hurdles was her personal best.
Garret Demirjian took second in the high-jump (6-foot-7) eighth in the shot-put (40-03.50) 12th in the 60-meter dash (7.30) and 14th in the long jump.
Another record breaker, Koree Hines, completed his personal best in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.09, breaking a nine-year-old school record while finishing in fourth place.
LBSU finishes up its indoor season with the NCAA Indoor Championships in Nampa Idaho on March 9-10. The team’s outdoor season opens up next weekend with The Beach Classic at Cerritos College.