DAVIS – Several members of the Chico State men’s track team saw their names near the top of nearly every event Saturday during the inaugural UC Davis Classic – no less than 14 Wildcat athletes came through with top five performances at Woody Wilson Track in Davis, with Manny Mejia narrowly missing an NCAA Championships provisional bid in the 800-meter run, and Eric Wright posting the meet’s best mark in the hammer throw.

Several hundred athletes from four-year schools, community colleges and clubs, along with unattached competitors, took part in the UC Davis Classic, which replaced the originally scheduled Hornet Invitational due to facility upgrade complications at Sacramento State.

Chico State dominated the field in the 800-meter run, with Mejia posting a winning time of 1:53.05…just five-hundredths of a second shy of earning an NCAA provisional bid. Kyle Robinson finished right behind Mejia at 1:53.94, with Clinton Hayes coming in third with a time of 1:55.86. Michael Wickman’s time of 3:57.26 was good for a third place finish in the 1,500-meter run.

The Wildcats’ relay teams posted very impressive marks Saturday – the 4x100-meter foursome of Damaris Greer, Jake Nelson, Isaiah Haywood and Nick Lonnegren finished second with a time of 42.47 seconds, while the 4x400-meter relay team – Mejia, Hayes, Robinson and Carlos Suarez – came in third in its event, clocking in at 3:21.44.

Chico State athletes were at or near the top of most of the day’s field events. Wright won the hammer throw with a heave of 170 feet, 10 inches, and placed fourth in the shot put with a toss of 47 feet, 6.25 inches. Ryan Bertucci finished third in the high jump with a mark of six feet, six inches; J. Patrick Smith’s 22 feet, 0.75-inch leap in the long jump was good for a third place finish; Talor Fulfer came in fourth in the javelin with a throw of 189 feet, 11 inches; and Chad McCammon finished fifth in the pole vault with a jump of 15 feet, 6.25 inches.

COMPLETE UC DAVIS CLASSIC RESULTS

The Wildcat men’s track team is back in action next week with several different meets on tap – Chico State will be among the schools competing Wednesday and Thursday in the California Multi in Berkeley; Friday the Wildcats will take part in the San Francisco State Distance Carnival, and Friday and Saturday at the Stanford Invitational.