Men’s and women’s track and field go on the road


Senior sprinter and hurdler Anna Cockrell runs to pass the baton during the second leg of a 4×4 relay race last season. (Daily Trojan file photo)

After winning 11 events at the Jim Click Shootout last week, the Trojan track and field team looks to build on its impressive start to the outdoor season on Friday and Saturday at the Triton Invitational in La Jolla, Calif. USC will face competition from across the country, but most of the opposing teams this weekend are from the Big West Conference, Western Athletic Conference and local community colleges.  

Although many of the Trojans’ top performers on the track will not travel to the meet this weekend, USC will be well represented with a loaded contingent of throwers and a group of younger, less experienced runners seeking to make their mark on collegiate track for the first time.

Vying to improve on his fifth-place finish at last year’s Triton Invitational, senior Nathan Bultman will compete in the hammer throw, an event for which he is ranked 10th on USC’s all-time records list.  

Another Trojan thrower headlining this weekend’s competition is redshirt junior captain Matthew Katnik. Coming off a victory at the Trailblazer Challenge earlier this season, Katnik will seek another first-place result and an improvement on his fifth-place standing in the USC record books in shot put this weekend.

Three Trojan women will compete in the hammer throw, led by sophomore Joy McArthur.  McArthur has registered the 10th best throw in school history and will look to pick up her first victory this season after finishing third at last week’s Jim Click Shootout. Freshmen Karlee Freeman and Natasha Stamp also look to leave with a top finish this weekend.

On the track, freshmen John Dempsey and Devin Bright and sophomore David Hulme seek to burst onto the scene in the men’s 800-meter race. Dempsey and fellow freshman Mitch Libby also hope to capitalize on their competition in the 1500-meter race.

Five Trojan women — freshman Brynn Sauer, sophomore Jennifer Daly, junior Kamryn Weber and seniors Rachel Glynn and Amber Gore — will lead USC’s efforts to capture the 800-meter crown.

Senior distance runner Lauren Maurer looks to end on a high note in the women’s 1500-meter race as her collegiate track career comes to a close.

With the No. 1 women’s team and No. 34 men’s team in the country, USC track and field hopes to use a successful weekend at the Triton Invitation to fuel another national championship run.