UCLA track and field pumped up for NAU Invitational
Junior sprinter and long jumper Kylie Price and the UCLA track and field team will begin their season Friday at the NAU Invitational.
By Alexander Hyun
Jan. 24, 2014 1:14 a.m.
Change is abound on the track as the Bruins begin a new era of track and field.
A new blue track has been built, there are new coaches and the team has garnered a new sense of family as UCLA begins its season at the NAU Invitational this weekend.
“The team is excited to open up (the season) especially with the new track opening up. Everyone is excited with the new era of coaches in place and we’re ready to get things going,” said men’s coach John Frazier.
The Bruins look to hit their stride early as a single unit. Practice, although limited due to the construction of the new track in Drake Stadium, has yielded encouraging results, Frazier said.
Wednesday’s practice, in particular, struck a positive note.
“The whole team was on the (new) track for the first time and there was a lot of support from each team member to the different groups. Seeing that excitement of getting ready to open up is huge for us right now,” Frazier said.
Excitement in the face of a new season seems to be the prevailing thread connecting the team. Nevertheless, anxiety lingers and the Bruins look to each other for a successful season.
“The overlaying theme is for everyone to support one another and approaching the season as a family through thick and thin,” Frazier said.
The upcoming NAU Invitational appears to be a first chance for the athletes to get their feet wet in hard competition. But it’s more than that; it’s a chance to bond. The team chose to take a bus ride to the invitational in Flagstaff, Ariz. rather than fly.
“We’re traveling by bus for this event as a team bonding experience to get to know other athletes in different events,” said junior sprinter and long jumper Kylie Price. “We are a family and even when we’re competing we continue to support each other whether we know the person or not.”
The invitational has important implications for the players as it is the first real competition in nearly six months. Nonetheless, it is seen as a trial for the bigger event of qualifying for nationals later in the season.
While the meet itself is ultimately a warm-up for the national qualifiers, there is little room for complacency.
“As much as we’d like to keep in our mind that this event is a tune-up, everyone is still up for it because it is our first competition after months of training,” said redshirt sophomore thrower Nicholas Scarvelis. “No one is getting complacent.”
