Mt. SAC Relays Provides Early State Test for Pirate Track & Field

The Pirates' track and field teams competed in the Mt. SAC Relays on Saturday, putting up strong marks in an early state championship preview in some key events. The VC women's 4x100m relay team of Aubrianna Smith, Ariana Vera, Citilali Cortez and Cassandra O'Reilly ran a season best, and they also had standout performances individually. The Men's 4x100m relay quartet of Jaedon Rogers, Ethan Figlio, Isaiah Martinez Spence and Julian Gibson also ran a strong race at Ventura's final tune-up before the Western State Conference Preliminaries.

The women's 4x100m relay event featured a showdown of the top four teams in the state, VC standing in at No. 3. The Pirate team of Smith (Foothill Tech), Vera (Rio Mesa), Cortez (Rio Mesa) and O' Reilly (Rio Mesa) held their spot to finish third with a season's best time of 48.56, just .02s away from the No. 2 time in school history. The quartet has their eyes set on the 39-year-old school record.

Vera had an incredible day individually as well. After the relay she went on to run the second-fastest 100m in VC history, running 12.03, winning her heat with the third-fastest time of the day, and the fourth-fastest time in the state this season. She came back to finish second in the 200m, running 24.94, the fourth-fastest time in school history and the fifth-fastest time in the state.

Cortez ran two more great races after the relay. She won the women's 100m hurdles with a lifetime best time of 15.89, moving her to No. 11 all-time at VC, and No. 14 in the state in 2022. She then broke the tape third in the 400m hurdles with a lifetime best of 1:10.82, which is No. 19 in the California.

Anissa Cason (Pacifica) ran a lifetime best in the 400m to place third in her heat in 63.85 and is currently No. 15 in WSC. She also tied for fourth place overall in the high jump.

Smith ran the second-fastest 100m of her life in 12.27, holding her No. 4 spot on Ventura's women's all-time list, and maintaining her No. 9-ranking in state.

Jaime Lozano (Oxnard) threw a pair personal bests in the hammer and shot put. In the hammer she finished sixth overall with a throw of 109' 7" which is ranked No. 6 in the WSC this season. She also finished ninth in the discus and 10th in the shot put.

Michelle Sanchez (Oxnard) was eighth in the shot put, ninth in the javelin and 11th in the discus. 

Ramiro Mateos (Oxnard) finished eighth overall in the 3000m steeplechase with a lifetime best of 10:03.50, holding his No. 2 WSC spot, moving to No. 18 in state this year and No. 13 all-time at VC.

The relay team of Rogers (Rio Mesa), Figlio (Rio Mesa), Martinez Spence (Oxnard), and Gibson (Pacifica) were runner-up in their 4x100m heat, finishing seventh overall.

Rogers was also eighth in the triple jump. 

The Pirates will have a small crew of distance runners compete in the Cal State LA Twilight Invitational on Thursday April 14 before the teams compete in the WSC Preliminaries on Friday April 22 at College of the Canyons.