SPOKANE, Wash. – In its first meet as a team in 2026, California track & field got off to a roaring start at the Spokane Sports Showcase, with multiple freshmen making an immediate impact and several returners posting strong marks of their own at The Podium to shake up the Golden Bears' record book. In total, Cal collected two school records and three freshman records as well as four additional program top-10 marks and four event wins.
 
Cal's men took second place as a squad with a score of 134 points (10 behind winner UCLA's 144 points), while the Bears' women placed third behind UCLA (141) and USC (110) with 87 points.
 
The first of Cal's record-breaking results came at the hands of freshman Pietro Camilli, who shattered Cal's 11-year-old freshman weight throw record (Peter Simon, 2015 – 18.21m/59-9) on his first throw of 19.08m (62-7.25) and improved it to 19.61m (64-4) on his third attempt to place second in the competition. He followed by sophomore teammate Kai Barham (18.96m (52-2.25), who placed third, and redshirt freshman transfer Miles Clark (18.56m/60-10.75) in fourth place. Camilli and Barham also recorded overall program top-10 marks: Camilli at No. 7 and Barham at No. 10, the latter of whom improved his PR by well over two meters.
 
On the track, redshirt sophomore Lamarr Kirk Jr. bettered his own school record in the 1000m by over five seconds to 2:27.97, placing second in the race. Freshman squadmate Jackson Hein, appearing in his first collegiate meet, responded with a school (and freshman) record of his own, posting the fastest final 200m among his competition to move from fourth to second place and finish in 1:18.83 – just surpassing the 2016 mark of 1:18.94 set by Eugene Hamilton III.
 
The fourth of Cal's records came late in an intense men's pole vault competition, as rookies Sam Novak and Kai Anderson battled back and forth as the final two remaining in the contest in hopes of coming out on top. Both surpassed Cal's freshman record of 5.07m (16-7.5) on their first attempts at 5.10m (16-8.75), but it was Novak who followed up by clearing 5.25m (17-2.75) on his first try to become the only Bear freshman in history to surpass the 17-foot mark. Cal also won the women's event, as senior Ali Sahaida cleared 4.17m (13-8.25) to improve her own program number five mark.
 
The Bears posted three more program top 10s on the track. Senior Saqqara Ruffin lowered her personal best to 8.46 in the 60m hurdles preliminaries, making her debut on Cal's all-time list and joining junior teammate Mari Testa (8.39) in the final, then followed that up with another huge PR of 8.33 to finish third and move up to No. 8 in program history. Sophomore Aidan Orias, competing indoors in a collegiate uniform for the first time, posted a 60m time of 6.86 in the prelims to advance along with All-American heptathlete Seth Johnson (6.87), then finished second in the final at 6.79 to tie with Darren Woods (2005) for 10th all-time at Cal. In the women's 200m, sophomore Nairobi Smith placed second with a time of 24.26 (good for sixth-best in program history) while sophomore Wazell Wright finished just 0.01 seconds away from Cal's top-10 list, posting a .33-second personal best of 21.56.
 
Juniors Adrianna Coleman and Angie Schykerynec went 1-2 in the women's weight throw, with Coleman launching her first attempt 19.45m (63-9.75) and Schykerynec her fourth toss 18.24m (59-10.25). Redshirt junior Nik Iwankiw took first place in the men's shot put at 17.18m (56-4.5), while sophomore Lucija Leko finished second on the women's side with a mark of 15.65m (51-4.25). Freshmen shot putters Matas Matas Mikulenas and Elliot Traxler joined Iwankiw in the shot put final, posting marks of 16.30m (53-5.75) and 15.58m (51-1.5), respectively.
 
Third-year Victor Ezike Jr. placed third in the men's high jump with a clearance of 2.00m (6-6.75). Cal recorded a pair of top-three finishes in the long jump, one on the men's side courtesy of senior ACC bronze medalist Jason Plumb (7.32m/24-0.25) and one on the women's side in freshman Caitlyn Johnson (5.92m/19-5.25). The men's long jump also saw sophomore Trevor Rogers (7.29m/23-11) and Javon Hampton Jr. (7.02m/23-0.5) earn an extra three attempts, while senior Leah Anderson (12.16m/39-10.75) and freshman Avery Hart (11.81m/38-9) likewise did so in the women's triple jump.
 
SPOKANE SPORTS SHOWCASE – MEN'S RESULTS
60m Prelims – 4. Aidan Orias 6.86 (q); 5. Seth Johnson 6.87 (q, PR); 9. Wazell Wright 6.94; 14. Christian Trapps 6.98; 17. Javon Hampton Jr. 7.08
60m Final – 2. Aidan Orias 6.79 (PR, Tied – Cal No. 10); 5. Seth Johnson 6.92
200m – 4. Wazell Wright 21.56 (PR); 7. Avinash Schwarzkopf 21.88 (PR); 9. Aidan Orias 22.09 (PR); 10. Christian Trapps 22.70
400m – 5. Arian Naim 50.00; 8. Avinash Schwarzkopf 50.66 (PR)
600m – 2. Jackson Hein 1:18.83 (PR, School Record, Cal Freshman Record)
1000m – 2. Lamarr Kirk Jr. 2:27.97 (PR, School Record)
60m Hurdles – 5. Matt Gladney 8.43; 6. Antonio Bayon 8.50 (PR); 7. Luke Buddie 8.64 (PR)
High Jump – 3. Victor Ezike Jr. 2.00m/6-6.75
Pole Vault – 1. Sam Novak 5.25m/17-2.75 (PR, Cal Freshman Record, Tied – Cal No. 6); 2. Kai Anderson 5.10m/16-8.75 (PR); 4. Will Siemens 4.80m/15-9; 5. Antonio Bayon 4.65m/15-3 (PR); 6. Seth Johnson 4.35m/14-3.25; 8. Luke Buddie 4.20m/13-9.25 (PR)
Long Jump – 3. Jason Plumb 7.32m/24-0.25; 6. Trevor Rogers 7.29m/23-11; 9. Javon Hampton Jr. 7.02m/23-0.5; 11. Chukwunonso Udeh 6.95m/22-9.75; 14. Brandon Cheeks II 6.61m/21-8.25; 15. Seth Johnson 6.39m/20-11.75; 16. Jeremiah Bolaños 6.21m/20-4.5
Triple Jump – 4. Kosi Nwafor 14.64m/48-0.5
Shot Put – 1. Nik Iwankiw 17.18m/56-4.5; 6. Matas Matas Mikulenas 16.30m/53-5.75 (PR); 7. Eliot Traxler 15.58m/51-1.5 (PR); 13. Luke Buddie 12.55m/41-2.25 (PR); 14. Seth Johnson 12.34m/40-6
Weight Throw – 2. Pietro Camilli 19.61m/64-4 (PR, Cal Freshman Record, Cal No. 7); 3. Kai Barham 18.95m/52-2.25 (PR, Cal No. 10); 4. Miles Clark 18.56m/50-10.75 (PR)
                                                                                                                                                                            
SPOKANE SPORTS SHOWCASE – WOMEN'S RESULTS
60m – 12. Lauren Gilhooly 7.57, 17. Caitlyn Johnson 7.64 (PR); 18. Nairobi Smith 7.66; 19. Mari Testa 7.66 (PR); 20. Tiffany Williams 7.67 (PR); 22. Kaitlyn Williams 7.69 (PR); 23. Paige Porter 7.70
200m – 2. Nairobi Smith 24.26 (Cal No. 6); 7. Kaitlyn Williams 25.19 (PR); 8. Paige Porter 25.23; 9. Lauren Gilhooly 25.27 (PR); 11. Tiffany Williams 25.76 (PR); 13. Diana Scott 26.16 (PR)
400m – 2. Diana Scott 59.90 (PR)
800m – 4. Savannah Harris 2:24.71 (PR)
60m Hurdles Prelims – 4. Mari Testa 8.39 (q); 5. Saqqara Ruffin 8.46 (q); 9. Inara Ukawuba 8.64
60m Hurdles Final – 3. Saqqara Ruffin 8.33 (PR, Cal No. 8); 5. Mari Testa 8.40
High Jump – 8. Kimiko Hirahara 1.60m/5-3 (PR); T-10. Grace Reinhardt 1.55m/5-1
Pole Vault – 1. Ali Sahaida 4.17m/13-8.25 (PR, Cal No. 5); 5. Shelly Coates 3.77m/12-4.5 (PR)
Long Jump – 3. Caitlyn Johnson 5.92m/19-5.25 (PR)
Triple Jump – 4. Leah Anderson 12.16m/39-10.75; 8. Avery Hart 11.81m/38-9 (PR)          
Shot Put – 2. Lucija Leko 15.65m/51-4.25
Weight Throw – 1. Adrianna Coleman 19.45m/63-9.75; 2. Angie Schykerynec 18.24m/59-10.25
 
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Cal will head to Albuquerque, New Mexico, on Jan. 23-24 for the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Invitational.
 
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