Final Results (PDF)

LA JOLLA, Calif. -- A pair of runner-up individual finishes highlighted the last day of the 2019 California Collegiate Athletic Association (CCAA) Track & Field Championships as Cal State East Bay wrapped up its best team performance since joining the conference. 

The women's squad tallied a program-best 26 points to finish in ninth place out of 13 teams in the final standings -- their best-ever CCAA team finish. The men's squad finished with eight points to notch an eighth-place team finish. 

Angelina Ronquillo got the day started for the Pioneers on Saturday. After qualifying for finals the previous afternoon, she took second place in the championship race of the 1500 meters with a time of 4:31.88 that ranks as the seventh-fastest time ion program history. It's the best 1500 meter time by a Pioneer since 1985.

A couple hours later, Brittney Duquette crossed the finish line in second place in an exciting 800 meter championship race. Her time of 2:12.72 was a bit short of the personal best she set a couple weeks ago. Ronquillo and Duquette, combined with Claire Fisher's 10k title from Friday, gave the CSUEB women three podium finishers, the most they've ever had at a CCAA championship meet. 

Those points assured the Pioneers would finish ahead of Cal State Monterey Bay in the women's standings, which clinched a narrow two-point victory for CSUEB over the Otters in the multi-sport yearlong "Battle of the Bays" competition.

The CSUEB women just missed adding more points in the final distance event, the 5,000 meters. Andrea Romero was only a few seconds behind the scoring runners, finishing in 10th place to lead the Pioneers in 18:13.33. Amanda Navarro was right on her shoulder in 11th in 18:16.33.

On the men's side, junior Julian Johnson and freshman Xavier Smith both scored in the 5,000 meters, taking seventh and eighth place, respectively. It's the first time East Bay has ever had two runners earn top-eight CCAA finishes in the same event, and it's the first time a CSUEB runner has ever scored in the 5,000 meter finals.

Smith also became the first Pioneer runner to score in multiple track events at a CCAA meet after he earned seventh place points Friday in the 10k. Smith's 5,000 meter time of 15:10.45 is an 11-second drop from his previous PR and it stands as the eighth-best mark in school history -- a particularly impressive feat given the volume of competitive running he did over the course of two days.

Freshman Bryan Llopis also finished 21st in the 5k with a personal best time of 15:54.56, while senior Israel Sotelo placed 23rd with a PR of 15:57.88.

The Pioneer men also added relay points as the CSUEB foursome of Jared Johnson, Argenis Torres, Keith Moreno, and Brett Fuchs finished seventh in the 4x100, followed by the quartet of Fuchs, Johnson, Sotelo, and Jeremy Shay placing eighth in the 4x400 relay.