Torrance, Calif. – As expected, the Mt. SAC Men's Track and Field Team does what they do best – excel across the board and dominate the competition.
Competing at the South Coast Conference Championships hosted by El Camino College, the Mounties overwhelmed a seven-team field over two days, racking up 389 team points across 21 events.
Cerritos trailed far behind in second with 180 points, while Long Beach finished third with 68, proving just how impressive Mt. SAC's performance truly was.
Depth proved to be the Mounties' greatest strength, as they placed athletes in the top three in 18 of the 21 events and captured first place in 11 of them. Whether on the track or in the field, Mt. SAC consistently delivered high-level performances that left little room for doubt about who owns the conference stage this season.
On the track, standout performances came from Dylan Ochoa, who sprinted to victory in the 400 meters with a time of 48.13, and the 4x100 relay team of Leniel Suarez-Morales, Marques Guzman, Dane Barker, and Yannik Berg, who claimed gold in 41.18. The 4x400 relay squad—Guzman, Ochoa, Dillon Thomasson, and Berg—kept the momentum going with a first-place finish in 3:14.76. Marques Guzman also impressed individually, narrowly taking second in the 100 meters with a time of 10.63, just one hundredth of a second off the lead.
Distance events once again highlighted the Mounties' endurance and impressive pack strength—a staple of the program's success. It's no surprise, considering many of these same athletes were key contributors to the team's second-place finish at the state cross country championships this past fall, bringing that same grit and cohesion onto the track this season.
In the steeplechase, Mt. SAC runners swept the top four spots, led by Conner Sybrandy's winning time of 9:42.06, followed closely by Luis Soto, Rylan Dinneweth, and Jacob Diaz. In the 1500 meters, Ethan Hufnagel and Andy Silva secured second and third, respectively, both breaking the four-minute mark. Alexander Plummer delivered a personal best of 1:54.07 for second place in the 800 meters, while the 5,000 and 10,000 meter races saw multiple Mounties finish among the top contenders, adding to the team total.
In the field events, Mt. SAC continued to excel. Myles Massie led the way with dominant victories in both the long jump (24' 3.75") and triple jump (52' 4"), while Anik Singh soared to first in the high jump at 6' 6.75".
The pole vault squad put on a strong showing with Caleb Garcia taking first with a height of 15'1", followed by Jadan Williams and Jinhong Yang in second and third.
In the throwing events, Andres Lambarena captured first in the shot put, reaching 49' 2.25". Standout Taiyo Ishiguro not only placed second in the 110-meter hurdles (15.47), but also won the javelin (187') and decathlon (6668 points), showcasing remarkable versatility.
NEXT UP:
The Mounties now shift their focus to the SoCal Regionals, set to take place at Bakersfield College on May 2 and May 9. After finishing second at last year's regional meet behind Riverside City College, Mt. SAC will look to build on this dominant performance and make another strong push for the top spot.
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