Toro Track & Field Strikes Out on Day 1 of the NCAA National Championships
May 24, 2007

Carson, CA - The Toros competed in three preliminary events on day one of the 2007 NCAA DII Track & Field Championships held at the Irwin Kelk Complex on the campus of John C. Smith University in Charlotte, North Carolina, but ended the afternoon empty handed.

The CSUDH 4 x 100 relay team took the track first to compete against the best in the nation along with fellow CCAA member UC San Diego, but the quartet came up just short, finishing with a time of 46.70 as Tarleton State captured the eighth and final spot with a time of 46.65.

Sprinter April Panteau (Long Beach, CA/Long Beach CC) was up next for the Toros in the 400-meter dash, but failed to qualify with her time of 55.78, placing her 14th.

After running a leg of the 4 x 100 relay, junior sprinter Grace Fitchett (Los Angeles, CA/Paramount HS) took to the track for the 100-meter dash in the Toros final race of the day, but also failed to qualify by placing 15th in a time of 12.20.

Despite the rough start to the Championships the Toros will complete in two races tomorrow, with two competitors in both events. Fitchett and Deborah Bowser (Long Beach, CA/Cerritos JC) will be competing in the 200-meter dash at 5:30 pm, while Fitchett and Alexandria Anderson (Moreno Valey, CA/Cal State L.A.) will be running in the 100-meter hurdles slated for a 6:50 pm start, with both times being EST.