Two familiar faces come up just short at nationals

Two athletes with local ties came up short in their quests for titles at the NCAA Division I track and field championships at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.

UC Riverside sophomore Brenda Martinez finished 14th in the 1,500 meters on Saturday with a time of 4:24.99. She was as close as fourth place through the first two laps but couldn't stay with the lead group of runners that pulled away from the pack.

Martinez, a graduate of Rancho Cucamonga High School, is just the third athlete from the school to qualify for the meet since it moved to the division I level.

The event was won by Hannah England of Florida State with a meet record 4:06.19.

USC red-shirt junior Corey White, a transfer from the University of Redlands who won the Division III national title in 2006, ended up second in the javelin with a best throw of 255 feet, two inches.

He was the first Trojan to place at the NCAA Championships in the javelin since Nils Fearnley also placed second in 1995. White's throw was the farthest ever by a Trojan in the javelin competition at the NCAA finals, topping Jan Sikorsky's mark of 249-4 set in 1962.