LONG BEACH, Calif. – For the fourth year in a row the Hawai'i women's track and field team turned in a top four finish at the Big West Championships, coming in fourth behind a number of podium finishes on day two Saturday.
The Rainbow Wahine edged out UC San Diego for fourth place with a weekend total of 76.5 points to mark the fourth consecutive year dating back to 2022 that they have placed in the top four of the conference. Prior to that, UH had just one top four conference finish in the program's last 20 seasons.
"Just a tremendous team effort today," said director of track and field/cross country
Tim Boyce. "We are so proud of these women. They have persevered against the odds the past few years to become a force to be reckoned with. All the credit goes to our great coaching staff as well. The future is bright for Hawai'i track and field."
Lilian Turban completed an incredible weekend by taking home the javelin title to start off the day. She picked up her second individual crown of the weekend by 46.53m (152-8) to become the first UH athlete ever to take gold at a conference championship in two different field (non-multi) events after winning the high jump Friday.
Rose Forshaw made it a 1-2 Rainbow Wahine finish atop the javelin podium with a toss of 44.35m (145-6) on her sixth and final attempt to move into 10th all-time at UH.
Lucy Milliner capped off her incredible freshman season by totaling 11 points in the middle distance events. She finished on the podium in the 1500m, taking third with a time of 4:38.81 before coming in fourth in the 800m about an hour later, clocking a time of 2:09.85.
Helen Hoadley collected her first career outdoor medal by coming in second in the pole vault, clearing 4.17m (13-8.25) on her second attempt at that height.
Samaria Vital claimed a spot on the discus podium, placing third with a PR toss of 50.30m (165-0) to crack the UH top 10 in the event at the No. 7 spot.
Tara Wyllie finished off the day's action with a third-place finish in the triple jump – her six points moving UH ahead of the Tritons for fourth place. The junior set the tone with a jump of 12.52m (41-1) on her first attempt on the way to earning bronze for her second career medal in the event.
Catherine Touchette capped off her strong meet that started in last week's heptathlon, putting up two points in the 400m hurdles with a seventh-place finish. She beat out her previous PR by .02 seconds with a time of 1:00.51, improving upon her No. 6 mark in school history.
Final Team Standings
1. UC Irvine - 150.5
2. Cal Poly - 149
3. Long Beach State - 109.5
4. Hawai'i - 76.5
5. UC San Diego - 75.5
6. Cal State Fullerton - 58
7. UC Davis - 52
8. UC Riverside - 47
9. CSUN - 44
10. UC Santa Barbara - 38
11. Cal State Bakersfield - 18
