Site icon The Poly Post

Arissa Hatcher, Neshara Smith earn NCAA Provo at Midwest Classic

By Elizabeth Teo, Feb. 11, 2025 

Cal Poly Pomona women’s indoor track and field team set three new school records at the Midwest Classic in Indianapolis Jan. 31 to Feb. 1, highlighted by record-breaking performances from Neshara Smith and Arissa Hatcher. 

Division I and nationally ranked schools competed in this event, such as Northwestern, Indiana and Ashland, making for a tough competition, but the Broncos walked away with the team-breaking nine CPP top-10 finishes. 

“I thought we did well at this high-end meet for so early in the season,” said track and field head coach Chris Bradford. “I was pleased with the progress, though it might not have shone in the results.” 

Despite not placing as high as Northwestern or Purdue, the Broncos finished with records in seven out of the 10 events. 

Furthermore, Tianna Jardstrom, a senior on the team, broke into CPP’s top 10 in the 400-meter dash with a record of 57.72 seconds.  

“I am trying to run my race smarter and more strategically, and there is more to come for sure,” Jardstrom said.  

Jade Kingston was another record-breaker this weekend, fighting to earn her time in the 3,000, coming in at 10:06.86 minutes.  

Following behind Kingston was Miranda Palacios at 10:26.48, Galilea Jimenez at 10:28.58 and Chloe Alchin at 10:29.01.   

Hitting the top 10 nationally was Neshara Smith, who not only broke her record once, but twice from two weeks ago and pushed to improve her time by a 10th of a second.  

Smith also checked into the long jump, earning a CPP top-10 record of 5.45 meters. 

Another highlight was Arissa Hatcher’s performance in the 800-meter dash. Coming off an injury, Hatcher finished with 2:12.10, earning her an NCAA Provo and a new school record.   

“I trained hard, and I feel like I had my head on straight and wanted to break the 600 and 800,” Hatcher said. “… I felt composed and visualized running all four laps and what I had to do for each one.”  

Hatcher also aims to reclaim the 800-meter championship title during the NCAA championships.  

“This is a young group and new group, but it’s a talented group, and there are big things coming for them,” Bradford said. 

The team travels next to Minnesota Feb. 14 to compete in the Premiere meet and only about a month away is the NCAA DII Indoor Championships, which will be taking place in Indianapolis.

Feature image courtesy of Will G MacNeil

Exit mobile version