STANFORD, Calif. – There is a perception that, come Big Meet time, Stanford dominates the distances and Cal the sprints.
That perception is wrong.
Stanford dominated the sprints Saturday as Stanford and California split the 121st dual meet at Cobb Track and Angell Field. The Stanford women routed the Bears, 111-40, and the Card men lost, 101-62.
Stanford won every individual sprinting event from 100 to 400 meters, captured both women’s hurdle races and swept the 4x400 relays to close out the meet. Clearly, Jody Stewart’s first true freshman class is making an impact. Stanford freshmen combined for three sprint victories, both hurdles triumphs and comprised Stanford’s entire women’s 4x100 team.
A year ago, Stanford had no men or women in the 100, and only one each – two total -- from the 100-400. On Saturday, Stanford had 11 total entries at those distances, including seven freshmen.
“This is just the beginning,” said Stewart, Stanford’s associate head coach now in his third year heading the team’s sprints and hurdles. “It’s exciting. We’re watching these young athletes developing and growing. Our big thing is trust the process, be patient, and they did that across the board. Give them two or three years and we’ll see how far we can take it.”
Isaiah Brandt-Sims, also a receiver for the Cardinal football team, captured the men’s 100 and 200 -- the latter in 20.93 to set a Stanford freshman record -- and established himself at No. 4 in school history. His 100 time of 10.53 makes him the No. 6 all-time performer at Stanford.
At Wenatchee High School, Brandt-Sims became the first in Washington history to win state championships in the 100 and 200 in the state’s highest classification all four years. He joined in late January and has trained exclusively with the track team this spring and has seen it pay off not only with the victories in only his second meet, but also with personal records in both races.
The 200 especially was a thing of beauty as Brandt-Sims reacted well, hugged the curve, and decisively broke away over the final 50 meters.
“What I love about Isaiah is he comes in with a football mentality,” said Chris Miltenberg, Stanford’s Franklin P. Johnson Director of Track and Field. “Every meet counts. He’s not thinking about next week, he just comes in and competes. That’s what we need to see a little bit more of that in the rest of our guys.
“It was disappointing for the men to get beat as badly as we did. We’re young and I think the dual meet format is challenging for us. We’re a better Pac-12 team and an even better NCAA team than a dual meet team. With that said, we still want to figure out a way to win this thing.”
Cal’s Thomas Joyce set a meet record in the men’s 1,500 by running 3:39.43 in race that was fast from the opening gun. Seven of the eight competitors in the field set personal records and Joyce, who doubled as the 3,000 winner, and Stanford’s Sean McGorty (3:40.62) were under the meet record of 3:42.14 jointly held by Grant Robison (2002) and Garrett Heat (2009).
Even with Cal’s big men’s victory, there were encouraging signs for the Cardinal. Last year, Stanford’s men and women combined for 114 points. This year, Stanford totaled 173.
Another meet record went down in the women’s 1,500 as Jessica Tonn ran 4:18.28 to lead Elise Cranny and Rebecca Mehra to a Stanford 1-2-3 finish, ahead of Cal freshman Bethan Knights among a top four of All-Americans. The previous mark of 4:19.4 by Regina Jacobs in 1983 was the oldest women’s Big Meet record in the book.
Kristyn Williams was a triple winner, capturing the 200 and 400, and running the second leg of the winning 4x400 relay. Other Stanford double individual winners were freshman Amber Lewis in both hurdles, and freshman Marisa Kwiatkowski in the long and triple jumps -- the latter in a personal best 41-5 ¼.
Four different Cardinal women won all four throwing events, highlighted by sophomore Valarie Allman’s personal best 188-7 in the discus – the No. 3 mark in school history and No. 2 among collegians this year. Rebecca Hammar, the most versatile of the group, won the shot put in a personal best 50-11 ½, Victoria Smith was the javelin winner (155-4), and Lena Giger won the hammer (186-4). Hammar moves to No. 9 on the Stanford all-time list, and Smith to No. 8 in the javelin.
In the jumps, reigning Pac-12 triple jump champion Darian Brooks, in his season outdoor debut, came within 1 1/4 inches of his personal record with a winning jump of 52-5 1/2. Jaak Uudmae proved to be versatile. He won the high jump (6-9) despite only beginning to practice the event on Friday, and also long-jumped (third), and was the anchor on Stanford's 4x100.
Garrett Starkey set a personal record of 17-3 to win the pole vault. It was the No. 5 effort in Stanford history.
The women’s 800 drew a confluence of disparate and rare talent among freshman Olivia Baker making her collegiate debut at that distance, 2014 NCAA outdoor runner-up Claudia Saunders, and the freshman Cranny, the top 1,500 recruit in the nation. Saunders led throughout, the but at the homestretch, Baker, a high school 400 star with the potential for a great future in the half, made her move and ran down her teammate from behind, winning in 2:06.50 to Saunders’ 2:06.59.
“With a veteran like Claudia, we knew that Olivia could learn and get a lot of great experience following her and working together,” Miltenberg said. “It was exciting to see those two coming at it. The pace wasn’t that fast early, but it was a great sign of what’s to come this year.”
As dramatic as the individual events can be, the Big Meet is at its best in the 4x400 relay. Athletes from both teams gather along the track and form a tunnel of noise and chaos that drives the runners to even greater efforts.
The women’s 4x400 was settled early. Baker hoisted Stanford into the lead and Williams put it away on the second leg with a 52.9 split. Saunders and freshman Michaela Crunkleton Wilson finished the task.
The men’s race was anything but settled. Jackson Shumway, the 400 winner in a personal best 47.71, and freshman Daniel Brady gave Stanford a narrow lead. Scott Buttinger was passed on the third lap and passed to Luke Lefebure on the anchor.
Lefebure was running the 4x400 in the Big Meet for the fourth consecutive year, and had never lost. However, he had never run anchor in a meet or relay with such high stakes. The past two years, he had passed the baton for Olympian Steven Solomon to victory.
This time, he had ground to make up, and he was racing against Cal’s Eugene Hamilton III, the runner who kicked past Lefebure to win the 800 earlier in the meet. Hamilton tried to break away on the final lap, but Lefebure kept within range on the backstretch, closed on the turn with Solomon yelling encouragement from the infield, and made his move down the stretch.
“With 100 to go, just seeing all my teammates there and knowing I had a chance to win … I was just thinking to myself, I can’t lose this,” he said.
With 20 meters left, there was no denying Lefebure. And as he crossed the finish line, the normally stoic Lefebure raised his arms in triumph and screamed all the while. It was one of those moments that make a Big Meet, and a lifetime memory.
Minutes later, Lefebure still couldn’t believe it.
“It’s incredible,” he said.
He was still holding the baton. It seemed he would never let it go.
* * *
121st Big Meet
Top three and Stanford competitorsMenTeam scores – California 101, Stanford 62.
100 – 1, Isaiah Brandt-Sims (Stanford) 10.53 (No. 6 Stanford all-time; No. 3 Stanford frosh all-time; personal best); 2, Khalfani Muhammad (Cal) 10.62; 3, Karsten Wetherington (Cal) 10.84; 5, Miguel Shaw (Stanford) 11.35 (PB).
200 – 1, Isaiah Brandt-Sims (Stanford) 20.93 (No. 4 Stanford all-time; Stanford frosh record; PB); 2, Khalfani Muhammad (Cal) 21.53; 3, Ashtyn Davis (Cal) 22.58; 4, Miguel Shaw (Stanford) 22.64 (PB)..
400 – 1, Jackson Shumway (Stanford) 47.71 (PB); 2, Jalen Doss (Cal) 48.38; 3, Ben Greenwald (Cal) 49.09; 4, Frank Kurtz (Stanford) 49.48; 5, Harrison Williams (Stanford) 50.91.
800 – 1, Eugene Hamilton III (Cal) 1:48.98; 2, Luke Lefebure (Stanford) 1:49.77; 3, Ellis Newton (Cal) 1:50.31; 4, Scott Buttinger (Stanford) 1:50.49; 7, Will Drinkwater (Stanford) 1:55.23; 9, Tom Coyle (Stanford) 1:55.51.
1,500 – 1, Thomas Joyce (Cal) 3:39.43 (meet record); 2, Sean McGorty (Stanford) 3:40.62 (PB); 3, Erik Olson (Stanford) 3:42.31 (PB); 5, Justin Brinkley (Stanford) 3:43.56 (PB); 6, Tom Coyle (Stanford) 3:45.54 (PB); 8, Will Drinkwater (Stanford) 3:51.37.
3,000 – 1, Thomas Joyce (Cal) 8:00.50; 2, Jack Keelan (Stanford) 8:01.03 (PB); 3, Maksim Korolev (Stanford) 8:13.22; 4, Sam Wharton (Stanford) 8:18.81; 7, Kevin Bishop (Stanford) 8:43.36.
110 hurdles – 1, Ashtyn Davis (Cal) 14.32w (2.4); 2, Harrison Williams (Stanford) 15.13w; 3, Ja’Vion Robinson (Cal) 15.56w.
400 hurdles – 1, Jonte Turner (Cal) 53.62; 2, Jalen Doss (Cal) 54.16; 3, Daniel Brady (Stanford) 54.52; 4, Colin Dolese (Stanford) 55.01 (PB).
3,000 steeplechase – 1, Collin Jarvis (Cal) 9:19.08; 2, Yohaness Estifanos (Cal) 9:20.79; 3, Seamus Land (Cal) 9:25.25; 4, Ryan Silva (Stanford) 9:20.79; 5, Garrett Sweatt (Stanford) 9:40.54.
4x100 relay – 1, California (Carsten Wethington, Jalen Doss, Ashtyn Davis, Khalfani Muhammad) 41.45; 2, Stanford (Darian Brooks, Isaiah Brandt-Sims, Frank Kurtz, Jaak Uudmae) 41.99.
4x400 relay – 1, Stanford (Jackson Shumway, Daniel Brady, Scott Buttinger, Luke Lefebure) 3:14.04; 2, California 3:14.32.
High jump – 1, Jaak Uudmae (Stanford) 6-9 (2.06m) (PB); 2, David Chukwu (Cal) 6-6 (1.98m); 3, Alex Wilde (Cal) 6-0 ½ (1.84m).
Pole vault – 1, Garrett Starkey (Stanford) 17-3 (5.26m) (No. 5 Stanford all-time; PB); 2, Matthew Schwartz (Cal) 15-7 ¼ (4.76m); 3, Dan Emery (Stanford) 15-1 ½ (4.61m); Dylan Duvio (Stanford) NH; Dalton Duvio (Stanford) NH.
Long jump – 1, Jonte Grant (Cal) 24-7 (7.49m); 2, Walter Jones (Cal) 24-0 ¾ (7.33m); 3, Jaak Uudmae (Stanford) 23-2 ½ (7.07m); 4, Charles Kerr (Stanford) 21-6 ¼ (6.56m).
Triple jump – 1, Darian Brooks (Stanford) 52-5 ½ (15.99m); 2, Jonte Grant (Cal) 51-0 (15.54m); 3, Karsten Wethington (Cal) 48-7 ½ (14.82m).
Shot put – 1, Ethan Cochran (Cal) 61-0 ¾ (18.61m); 2, Peter Simon (Cal) 59-9 ½ (18.22m); 3, Tristen Newman (Stanford) 54-1 ¾ (16.50m).
Discus – 1, Ethan Cochran (Cal) 181-6 (55.33m); 2, Brenden Song (Cal) 176-7 (53.83m); 3, Nick Budincich (Stanford) 164-4 (50.09m).
Javelin – 1, Andrew Rondema (Stanford) 217-8 (66.34m) (No. 5 Stanford all-time; PB); 2, Charles Kerr (Stanford) 202-2 (61.52m) (No. 7 Stanford all-time; PB); 3, Andrew Scholnick (Cal) 181-7 (55.35m).
Hammer – 1, Scott Esparza (Cal) 204-1 (62.20m); 2, Peter Simon (Cal) 188-3 (57.37m); 3, Brenden Song (Cal) 170-1 (51.84m); 4, Tristen Newman (Stanford) 168-9 (51.43m) (PB).
WomenTeam scores – Stanford 111, California 40.
100 – 1, Michaela Crunkleton Wilson (Stanford) 11.99; 2, Jayla Scholis (Cal) 12.08; 3, Jasiri Blake (Cal) 12.21.
200 – 1, Kristyn Williams (Stanford) 24.08 (PB); 2, Michaela Crunkleton Wilson (Stanford) 24.39 (PB); 3, Jasiri Blake (Cal) 24.97.
400 – 1, Kristyn Williams (Stanford) 53.54; 2, Gaby Gayles (Stanford) 55.82; 3, Khala Taylor (Cal) 56.70; 4, Kaitlyn Williams (Stanford) 56.84.
800 – 1, Olivia Baker (Stanford) 2:06.50; 2, Claudia Saunders (Stanford) 2:06.59; 3, Elise Cranny (Stanford) 2:08.26; 4, Malika Waschmann (Stanford) 2:09.11; 5, Anna Laman (Stanford) 2:10.53.
1,500 – 1, Jessica Tonn (Stanford) 4:18.28 (meet record; PB); 2, Elise Cranny (Stanford) 4:18.36 (No. 4 Stanford frosh all-time); 3, Rebecca Mehra (Stanford) 4:18.45; 4, Bethan Knights (Cal) 4:19.60; 5, Molly McNamara (Stanford) 4:21.45 (PB); 6, Maddy Berkson (Stanford) 4:27.75.
3,000 – 1, Vanessa Fraser (Stanford) 9:25.04; 2, Jessica Tonn (Stanford) 9:27.85; 3, Leanne Jarvis (Cal) 9:39.30; 4, Sophie Chase (Stanford) 9:45.80; 5, Molly McNamara (Stanford) 9:46.31 (PB); 6, Julia Maxwell (Stanford) 9:47.29.
100 hurdles – 1, Amber Lewis (Stanford) 14.76; 2, Morgan Robertson (Cal) 14.87.
400 hurdles – 1, Amber Lewis (Stanford) 1:03.42; 2, Arielle Stevenson (Cal) 1:04.21.
3,000 steeplechase – 1, Danielle Katz (Stanford) 10:25.85 (No. 8 Stanford all-time; PB); 2, Elizabeth Flatley (Cal) 11:31.75.
4x100 relay – 1, California (Erica Wilson, Jasiri Blake, Khala Taylor, Jayla Scholis) 46.82; 2, Stanford (Gaby Gayles, Amber Lewis, Michaela Crunkleton Wilson, Olivia Baker) 47.59.
4x400 relay – 1, Stanford (Olivia Baker, Kristyn Williams, Claudia Saunders, Michaela Crunkleton Wilson) 3:38.98; California 3:49.52.
High jump – 1, Asia Chesley (Cal) 5-6 (1.68m); 2, Christine Canning (Cal) 5-6 (1.68m); 3, Tara Lookabaugh (Cal) 5-4 ½ (1.64m).
Pole vault – 1, Victoria Rische (Cal) 13-1 ½ (4.00m); 2, Taylore Jaques (Stanford) 11-8 ½ (3.57m); 3, Tara Lookabaugh (Cal) 10-4 ¾ (3.17m).
Long jump – 1, Marisa Kwiatkowski (Stanford) 18-11 ¼ (5.77m); 2, Rukayah Bent-Mikail (Cal) 18-6 (5.64m); 3, Ashley Anderson (Cal) 17-4 ¼ (5.29m).
Triple jump – 1, Marisa Kwiatkowski (Stanford) 41-5 ¼ (12.63m) (No. 8 Stanford all-time; No. 3 Stanford frosh all-time; PB); 2, Rukayah Bent-Mikail (Cal) 41-1 (12.52m); 3, Ashley Anderson (Cal) 40-6w (12.34m); 4, Carla Forbes (Stanford) 40-5 ½ (12.33m).
Shot put – 1, Rebecca Hammar (Stanford) 50-11 (15.52m) (No. 9 Stanford all-time; PB); 2, Lena Giger (Stanford) 50-9 ½ (15.48m); 3, Ginika Iwuchukwu (Cal) 46-0 (14.02m).
Discus – 1, Valarie Allman (Stanford) 188-7 (57.48m) (No. 3 Stanford all-time; PB); 2, Rebecca Hammar (Stanford) 179-6 (54.71m); 3, Lena Giger (Stanford) 139-9 (42.60m).
Javelin – 1, Victoria Smith (Stanford) 155-4 (47.35m) (No. 8 Stanford all-time); 2, Cheri Chan (Cal) 134-4 (40.95m); 3, Brianna Bain (Stanford) 14-6 (4.42m).
Hammer – 1, Lena Giger (Stanford) 186-4 (56.80m); 2, Valarie Allman (Stanford) 178-11 (54.53m) (No. 10 Stanford all-time; PB); 3, Destiny Parker (Cal) 165-6 (50.44m).
PB = personal best
