UCLA track and field sprints for podium at Crossroads of America Invitational
Former Bruin Myles Misener-Daley speeds along the track in Drake Stadium. (Amelie Ionescu/Daily Bruin senior staff)
By Maaz Mohiuddin
Jan. 28, 2025 8:18 p.m.
The indoor season just started, but the Bruins are already making history.
UCLA track and field competed at the Crossroads of America Invitational in Indianapolis on Friday and Saturday, where it secured 12 podium finishes at the Indiana State Fairgrounds & Event Center.
Sophomore Gabriel Clement II etched his name into Bruin record books, claiming first place in the men’s 400-meter dash with a time of 46.72 seconds. The personal-best performance placed him No. 6 in UCLA’s all-time indoor history.
Clement later anchored the men’s 4x400m relay, powering the Bruins to a second-place finish with a 3:11.52 time, alongside graduate student Kojo Manu, junior Tamaal Myers and graduate student Parker Raymond.
UCLA found success in the field events as well. Graduate student Asha Fletcher soared to new heights in the triple jump, leaping into Westwood’s annals with a personal best of 12.99 meters – the fourth-best indoor mark in program history.
In the men’s long jump, the Bruins dominated the podium with junior Camryn O’Bannon springing into the spotlight, leading a one-two punch with graduate student Allan Hunter. O’Bannon jumped 7.71 meters to claim first place, while Hunter finished in second with a 7.55-meter jump.
Sophomore Taylor Snaer, competing in her first indoor season, sprinted into the record book with a second-place finish in the 200m. Her 22.39-second mark slates in as the program’s third-best.
Freshman Kayla McBride, junior Naomi Johnson, senior Aly Conyers and Snaer stamped the women’s second-place finish in the 4×400-meter relay. The quartet finished with a 3:35.74 mark, good enough for the eighth-best time in indoor program history.
Junior Michael Pinckney placed second in the men’s weight throw with a mark of 20.63 meters, and freshman Valentina Fakrogha cleared 1.77 meters to claim second in the women’s high jump.
In the hurdles, redshirt senior Yanla Ndjip-Nyemeck placed second in the women’s 60-meter, while senior Di’Niko Bates finished second in the same event on the men’s side.
Despite their snow-covered arrival in Indianapolis and recent uncertainties on campus due to the Los Angeles wildfires, the Bruins rose to the occasion, placing themselves in what appears to be an optimal condition before traveling to the Washington Invite on Jan. 31.
