Gaucho women finish 17th at state
The Saddleback track & field season finished up on Saturday at American River College in Sacramento, California. The Gauchos finished 17th overall, which is the fifth best finish of all time.
Saddleback started out on Friday by collecting three points when Anna Gillis finished sixth in the hammer throw. They finished with Rachel Oberschelp collecting five points by finishing fourth in the 3,000 meter steeplechase. In total, Saddleback finished with 10 points and tied with Cuesta College and San Bernardino Valley College for 17th place.
Gillis entered the meet ranked No. 11 in the state in the hammer and came close on Friday to a personal-best when she tossed the hammer 44.78 meters (146'11") on her third throw of the day. It was just 0.05 meters away from a personal-best and got the Gauchos off to a good start. She would later finish seventh in the discus on Saturday after entering the event ranked No. 8 in the state.
Oberschelp (pictured) was considered one of the favorites in the steeplechase after finishing fourth in the event last year. She equaled the feat on Saturday, finishing fourth and earning All-America status with the finish. Oberschelp ran the race in 11:38.04, which was 2.88 seconds faster than a year ago. She led in the early stages of the race before eventually being caught and passed by Diana Ellis (Canyons), Angelica Sales (Glendale) and Mariah Theologidy (Antelope Valley).
Saddleback's 17th place finish is the fifth best finish in program history. The top finish for the Gauchos was a fifth place finish back in 1986.