BOSTON, Mass. – Azusa Pacific track & field had several athletes run at the Boston University Last Chance Meet on Sunday, the day included two events in which Cougars broke school records.

RECORDS BROKEN

The women's distance medley relay team of Briseida Garcia Meza, Jaylah Walker, Mikayla Akers and Marian Ledesma are the new all-time leaders in program history as they ran a time of 11:41.20, and Ayrton Ledesma broke the school record in the men's 3K with a race of 8:09.37. 

Garcia Meza opened the relay with the 1200m leg, and she ran a time of 3:34.89. Garcia Meza then passed the race off to Walker, who ran the 400 in a time of 54.65. The 800m third leg was handled by Marian Ledesma, who turned in a time of 2:13.81, and Akers closed out the race with a lifetime best 1600m time of 4:57.83. Not only did the quartet set the new school record, but their time puts them No. 14 on the national qualifying list.

"The ladies ran great," said distance coach Sean Smith, "they executed exactly what we had talked about leading up to the race. When Mikayla got the baton for the final leg, we knew she needed to run a 4:58 split, which would be a lifetime best effort. She ran courageously, and she was able to feed off of the great execution of each of the first three legs. This group really fought for every tenth of a second, and I am so proud of them."

Ayrton Ledesma's record-breaking race was 11 seconds faster than his personal best, posting four splits of 32 seconds or less. His overall time also met the provisional standard of 8:21.16. "We have known for a while that Arty had a good 3K in him," said Coach Smith, "but he has had to overcome some setbacks this winter that impacted his ability to train. We are really excited to see what he can do in the outdoor season. I have watched him grind through all of the lows this sport has had to offer, and I am so proud of the way he ran today. This kid is a star."

PROVISIONAL PERFORMANCES

In addition to the provisional times posted by the distance medley relay and Ayrton Ledesma's 3K, four Cougars improved upon their provisional qualification and Josh Velasco ran his first provisional qualifying race in the 3K.

In the women's 200, Jaylah Walker and Mechaela Hyacinth each ran times worthy of top-10 spots on the national list. With a race of 23.95 seconds on Sunday, Walker holds the No. 3 spot, while Hyacinth crossed the finish line at 24.16 seconds, which puts her No. 8 on the national list. 

Kiayra Holmes improved upon her provisional time in the 400, as she ran a personal best time of 56.35 seconds. 

On the men's side in the 400, Daniel Bessolo delivered a race of 48.28 seconds to improve upon his previous provisional standing. 
 

Velasco ran his way onto the provisional list in the 3K, running a personal-best race of 8:19.10. "Josh ran such a tactically savvy race today," said Smith, "He made a great move with 1k to go and opened the race up and when he got passed with 500m to go, he responded fast and fought all the way through. Awesome race for him and we have a lot more in the tank."

ALL TIMES RAN BY AZUSA PACIFIC ON SUNDAY

Women's 60 Meters (Prelims)

Mechaela Hyacinth - 7.54 seconds (No. 2 on national list with season-best time of 7.35)

Women's 200

Jaylah Walker - 23.95 seconds (No. 3 on national list)

Mechaela Hyacinth - 24.16 seconds (No. 8 on national list)

Women's 400

Alayna Verner - 55.43 seconds (No. 12 on national list with season-best time of 55.37)

Kiayra Holmes - 56.35 seconds (No. 34 on national list)

Women's 800

Briseida Garcia Meza - 2:16.91 (personal best)

Mikayla Akers - 2:18.41 

Marian Ledesma - 2:29.04

Women's Distance Medley Relay

Briseida Garcia Meza, Jaylah Walker, Marian Ledesma, Mikayla Akers - 11:41.20 (No. 14 on national list)

Men's 400

Daniel Bessolo - 48.28 seconds (No. 32 on national list)

Men's 800

Ben Sumner - 1:54.18 (tied personal best)

Men's 3K

Ayrton Ledesma - 8:09.37 (No. 33 on national list - personal best)

Josh Velasco - 8:19.10 (No. 79 on national list - personal best)