By Shanna Shernaman |Staff Writer|

The CSUSB women’s track and field team competed at the Triton Invitational on April 22 and 23 in San Diego.

The day was hot, but the ‘Yotes ran hard to get their last minute qualifying marks in.

Field event prelims began on April 22. Finals for field and track events took place on April 23.

In shot put, Coyote Simone Everett threw 10.54 meters, not far off of her personal record of 10.69.

The 1500-meters was the first event on the track where team captain Patricia “Patty” Cortez ran a 4:39.97 in heat two, earning herself a second place finish.

In heat three of the 1500-meter run, Soleil Hall came in with a fourth place finish and a time of 4:52.23.

The Coyotes nearly swept the open 400-meter race, where Rhais’sa Baker finished first in her heat and her teammate, Jacqueline Mota, in second.

“I wanted to get a strong start,” said Baker.

“Running the 400 [meter] is a tough race and you have to really be focused and smart running it,” continued Baker.

Baker took off strong and kept her lead the entire race.

“It’s always a good feeling to come in first,” said Baker.

“Especially [after] putting all the hard work in outside of the meets and practice,” concluded Baker.

At 3 p.m. the 100-meter dash began.

Coyote Sinclair Watson placed second in her heat with a time of 12.40 seconds. Her teammate, Taylor Matthews, ran in the next heat and placed fourth with 12.51 seconds.

At 4:20 p.m., Matthews came back and finished the 200-meter with a second place finish with a time of 25.99 seconds in her heat.

At 5 p.m., Yanitza Padfield represented the Coyotes in the triple jump, where she jumped 10.41 meters.

Next on the track was the women’s 3000-meter and the Coyotes set out to make a statement.

Cortez came out with a first place finish of 9:55.52 followed by Hall in fourth with a 10:27.57 and junior, Jessica “Jessie” Steinhoff in sixth with a 10:41.88.

In the 5000-meter Coyote Evelyn De La Luz was the first of her team to cross the finish line and came in at 18:28, matching her personal record.

At 6:50 p.m. the women’s steeplechase went off where Cynthia Rivera and Laura Aceves battled it out against their competition.

It was Aceves’ first time racing in about two months. Aceves had to take time off due to an iron deficiency, which caused her to feel fatigued.

“My strategy was to pace myself, get comfortable and have a good finish,” said Aceves.

“I just wanted to find my rhythm and let it take me throughout the race,” continued Aceves.

She went out strong and earned a third place finish with a 10:56.49.

“I felt great coming back to race and feeling the adrenaline again,” said Aceves.

In addition to a third place finish, Aceves became the first on her team to make the NCAA provisional qualifier for nationals. If Aceves makes it to nationals she will compete against the fastest runners in the nation.

Although the season is winding down quickly, Aceves believes that, “this is only the beginning.”