[sports]


Celentano vaults into 49er record books

By David Felton , On-line Forty-Niner
May 5,1998

Saturday at Steve Scott Track and Field Invitational at UC Irvine, Long Beach State pole vaulter Borya Celentano won his event with a jump of 18 feet, 1 1/4 inches, establishing the rising athlete with the fifth highest jump in the nation and putting him in the 49ers' record books, ranking him third all time at the school.
 
The event hosted more than 20 of the best teams track and field has to offer and Long Beach kept its winning edge. The 49er track and field team started with wins and ended with wins.
 
The sunshine filled day started with a Long Beach win in the 4x100 meter relay with a time of 41.29 seconds, creating not only a seasonal best for the athletes, but also the fastest 49er run in this event in three seasons.
 
Freshman Brian Carson replaced Senior Detric Cofield in the event due to Cofield suffering a hamstring sprain earlier in the season.
 
In the 4x400 meter relay, the 49er team members took first in their heat against six teams with a time of 3:11.21. The athletes were Kashus Perona, Earl Smith, Brian Carson and Lewis Young. In the final leg, Long Beach was just behind No Limit, which is a select group of non-collegial runners.
 
In the final stretch, Young overtook his competitor by 10 meters to win the race for his team. Young was on fire and continued to dominate. In all he won four events. In the 400 meter dash, his time was 47.00, and in the 200 he recorded 21.31.
 
Perona was right behind his teammate in the 400 with a time of 47.95.
 
In the women's events, sophomore Hilliary Martino and freshman Kesha Brown are 49ers to keep and eye on. Both are starting to make a significant impact in the conference and on the team, Long Beach Coach Andy Sythe said.
 
Martino won the 400 in her section of seven runners with a time of 56.60.
 
Brown placed second in her heat in the 100 meter dash with a time of 12.89 and placed second in the 200 with a time of 26.98.
 
"This may be the best meet at the Irvine Invitational since the ten seasons I have been at Long Beach State," Sythe said. Celentano vaults into 49er record books