Photo of Victoria Smith at 2016 Big Meet by Spencer Allen/SportsImageWire.com.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Reigning Pac-12 women's javelin champion Mackenzie Little makes her season debut as Stanford brings 14 track and field athletes to the Hornet Invitational on Friday and Saturday at Sacramento State.
Little, a sophomore, grew up in Australia, but was born in the United States and last competed at the U.S. Olympic Trials in July, placing 17th. She was a first-team All-America as a freshman, placing seventh at the NCAA Championships, and dominated the Pac-12, winning by 30 feet.
Little and another javelin thrower, Victoria Smith, are Stanford's two All-Americans competing. The Cardinal contingent also includes five making their first appearance for Stanford, including three freshmen -- Erika Malaspina, Jaimi Salone, and Landon Ellingson -- making their collegiate debut.
Malaspina, from nearby Santa Cruz, was second at the California high school championships last year and third at the U.S. junior nationals. Salone, from Minneapolis, is the Minnesota Class A championship meet record holder in the discus. And Ellingson was last year's Wisconsin Division II champion in the shot and discus.
Also, junior javelin thrower Trevor Danielson makes his collegiate debut, three years after graduating from high school. Danielson was the No. 7 high school thrower in the country in 2013 and graduated from Newberg (Ore.) High a year later. His javelin journey resumes Saturday.
Hammer thrower Michael Painter has collegiate experience, but is making his first appearance for Stanford. Painter is a native of Norwich, England, and competed for University of Cambridge. Painter now is a graduate student in computer science and has a personal best of 215-5 (65.67 meters).
This is not the first outdoor meet of the season involving Stanford athletes – Nathaniel Kucera and Ryan Silva ran the 800 at the Cal Opener on March 4, and the Cardinal had 10 competitors at the NCAA Indoor Championships last weekend. The Hornet Invitational is another step in the lead-in to the outdoor season, with the Stanford Invitational March 31-April 1, acting as the de facto season opener.
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Meet Information
Hornet Invitational
Where: Sacramento
Site: Hornet Stadium
Track Heat Sheets: Click here.
Field Flight Sheets: Click here.
Meet Schedule: Click here.
Live results: Click here.
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Stanford's Schedule
Friday
11:30 a.m.: Women's hammer (Lena Giger).
Followed by: Men's hammer (Tristen Newman, Michael Painter).
Saturday
9:30 a.m.: Women's javelin (Mackenzie Little, Victoria Smith).
9:45 a.m.: Men's shot put (Tristen Newman).
10:30 a.m.: Women's discus (Jaimi Salone).
Followed by: Men's discus (Landon Ellingson).
11:15 a.m.: Women's long jump (Daryth Gayles).
11:15 a.m.: Women's pole vault (Erika Malaspina, Nicole Summersett).
12:30 p.m.: Men's javelin (Trevor Danielson, Charles Kerr).
12:38 p.m.: Men's 1,500 (Ryan Silva).
1:30 p.m.: Women's shot put (Lena Giger).
3:45 p.m.: Men's 800 (Nathaniel Kucera).