SAN MARCOS, Calif. – The Cal State San Marcos men's and women's track & field teams will compete in the Bryan Clay Invitational on Thursday and Friday while also competing in Long Beach State's Beach Invitational on Friday and Saturday.
 
LAST WEEK

• CSUSM's women's team took fifth at the Triton Invitational while the men's team came in seventh.
• Nick Melanese placed second in the 800-meter run with the second-fastest time in program history and an NCAA Divisional II provisional at 1:50.58. Matt Frey finished third with the team's fourth-best time at 1:51.64.
• Luz Mercado won the 800-meter run as she posted the fifth-best time in program history and an NCAA Division II provisional at 2:11.95. Sister Ana Mercado finished second at 2:12.96.
• Mia Salinas recorded the fourth-best 400-meter hurdles time in team history at 1:03.40.
• Charlotte Allison tallied the fourth-best high jump mark in program history at 1.57 meters. She also finished eighth out of 34 long jumpers with a wind-aided distance of 5.43 meters.
• Rasha Badrani recorded the fifth-best 400-meter time in team history at 57.13, bettering her own PR by .14.
• Kailey Frye improved her PR in the triple jump with the 10th-longest distance in program history at 10.80 meters.

CCAA TRACK ATHLETES OF THE WEEK

• For their performances at the Triton Invitational, both Nick Melanese and Luz Mercado were named the CCAA Track Athletes of the Week.
• Melanese posted the fastest 800-meter time in the CCAA this season, and the second-fastest in school history, with a mark of 1:50.58. An NCAA provisional time, it was the 12th-fastest time in Division II this season, and it bettered his personal record by .78 seconds.
• In a field of 66 runners, Mercado won the 800-meter run by posting an NCAA provisional and personal-best time of 2:11.95. The sophomore from Chula Vista leads the CCAA and is the only student-athlete in the conference to have a provisional qualifying time in the 800.
• This was the first career CCAA Track Athlete of the Week honor for both Melanese and Mercado.

BRYAN CLAY INVITATIONAL

• A handful of CSUSM student-athletes will compete in Azusa Pacific's Bryan Clay Invitational on Thursday and Friday.
• Lauren Meredith and Morgann Wilson will compete in the heptathlon taking place on Thursday at 8 a.m. and on Friday at 9 a.m.
• All the other CSUSM athletes in the meet will complete on Friday.
• This is the seventh consecutive season in which CSUSM has competed in the Bryan Clay Invitational.

BEACH INVITATIONAL

• This will be CSUSM's third consecutive season competing in the Beach Invitational and sixth time overall.
• The Cougars have a combined total of 21 entries spread out across 17 different events on Friday and Saturday.

COUGAR OUTLOOK

• The women's track & field team will field a roster of 44 this season while the men's roster will be comprised of 35.
• The women's team returns 20 from last year's team while the men have 16.
• The women's squad will compete in four indoor meets while both teams will compete in 14 outdoor meets with the potential of competing in the NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships.
• The men's team tallied eight All-CCAA selections and one individual CCAA Champion in Isaac Muanza (triple jump) in 2022. The team also earned four USTFCCCA All-Region honors.
• On the women's side, the Cougars tallied five All-CCAA selections and two individual champions in returner Devin Yarbrough (long jump) and outgoing senior Clarissa Garcia (800m). Yarbrough also earned USTFCCCA All-Region honors.
• Yarbrough and teammate Ana Mercado represented CSUSM at the 2022 NCAA Division II Outdoor Track & Field Championships.

THE OLSON FILE

• Head coach Torrey Olson begins his fifth season at the helm of the men's and women's track & field programs after taking over in the summer of 2018.
• In 2019, Olson's men's and women's squads tallied three individual CCAA Championships for outdoor competition while the men's team earned five USTFCCCA All-West Region selections.
• In 2022, Olson guided both teams to a combined three individual CCAA Championships, 13 All-CCAA selections and five USTFCCCA All-West Region honors.
• Olson came to CSUSM after spending three seasons as the Director of Track & Field and Cross Country at the Academy of Art University where his teams earned 50-plus All-American honors.
• Olson served as the head cross country coach the previous three years at Academy of Art.
• In addition to the Academy of Art, Olson has also worked with the University of San Francisco and Pomona-Pitzer College.
• A graduate of Pomona College in 2009, Olson also holds an MFA from St. Mary's College (2012).