The GCC Track & Field teams opened its 2023 season in the Battle of the Regions at Bakersfield College. On the men's side, Xavier Rojas took 4th in the 100m in a time of 11.14. Others taking part in the 100m were Aaron Flores who took 14th in a time of 11.51, Sean Miller who finished 38th in a time of 12.09, and Sione Manu who finished in 12.35 for 41st place. In the 200m, Aaron Flores (23.59) took 6th, Sean Miller (24.24) took 15th, and Sione Manu (25.35) finished in 20th place. Renee Cedeno was the lone 400m runner, and he took 10th in a time of 52.84. Julius Largaespada won the 800m in a time of 1:57.73, as well as the 1500m in a time of 3:59.72. Others taking part in the 800m were Kevin Vasquez who took 5th place in a time of 2:04.29 and Alexander Ibarra who finished in 17th place with a time of 2:10.35. The 1500m also included Ezequiel Soto (4:09.15) who took 4th, Abdiel Quero (4:09.76) who finished in 5th place, Kevin Vasquez (4:17.66) who took 8th place, Jeremiah Galloway (4:27.22) who took 18th place, and Alexsander Morales (4:48.76) who finished in 36th place. The 3000m race included Ezequiel Soto who took 2nd in a time of 9:06.59, Abdiel Quero who came in 3rd in a time of 9:22.57, Brandon Rivas-Gramajo (10:11.29) who came across in 10th, and Alexsander Morales (10:23.10) who took 13th. The 4x100 relay team took 4th in a time of 44.36, while the 4x400 team took 12th in a time of 3:42.49. In the field events, Kevin Gomez won the hammer throw with a toss 45.49m and took 2nd in the shot put with a throw of 11.90m. Lincoln Guerrero took 2nd place in the hammer with a throw of 38.18m, 18th in discus with a throw of 28.92m, and 18th in shot put with a toss of 10.03m. John Westwood tied with Julius Dawoodtabar for 9th place in discus with throws of 32.78m. Westwood also took 23rd in shot put with a throw of 9.12m, while Dawoodtabar finished in 17th place with a throw of 10.19m. Sione Filihia took 21st place in shot put with a throw of 9.62m. Zaven Shakenians (8.40m) took 25th in shot put, 28th in discus with a throw of 14.38m, and 14th in javelin with a toss of 27.14m.

On the women's side, Daniela Ponce-Barban took 16th place in the 800m with a time of 3:09.77. She also finished in 22nd place in the 1500m with a time of 6:27.24. Samantha Medrano took 3rd in the 1500m with a time of 5:09.28, with Destiny Lopez coming in right behind her for 4th place in a time of 5:09.28. Lopez (10:50.67\) and Medrano (10:57.31) would also take part in the 3000m race for a 1st and 2nd place finish, respectively. Norma Martinez also took 11th place in the 1500m in a time of 5:36.57. She also finished in 9th place in the 3000m in a time of 12:32.73. In the field events, Kaylyn Guerra took 3rd in the hammer with a throw of 32.50m, 3rd in the shot put with a throw of 9.48m, 2nd in the javelin with a toss of 25.98m, and 2nd in the discus with a throw of 33.45m. The team will travel to Ventura College on Friday, Feb. 17 to take part in the Western Conference Relays.

Recap comnpiled by Track and Field Assistant Coach Matthew Osherow