Feb. 19, 2012
Westmont Meet Results 
SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The Pepperdine track team got its 2012 season off to a solid start on Saturday, setting two school records at a three-team meet that was hosted by Westmont and also included UC Santa Barbara.
Senior Lauren Lodge (Hopkinton, Mass./Hopkinton HS) had the team's top performance, winning the 3,000-meter run with a time of 9:52.98. That set the school record by more than 11 seconds. The previous record (10:04.01) was set by Chelsea Wishard in 2010.
"That's huge," Pepperdine Coach Robert Radnoti said. "She won the race over a very good UC Santa Barbara runner. LoLo got boxed in toward the beginning and was in the back in the first 50 meters, but all of a sudden she shot out of the turn, took the lead and never looked back. By a half-mile she led by 50 meters. We're feeling very good about what's going to happen in her senior season."
Senior Aneasha Lawrence (Simi Valley, Calif./Village Christian HS) also set a school record as she finished third in the mile. That record had stood since 2007 (it was held by Brieanna Carroll), though the event isn't contested very often.
"I think it gives Aneasha a boost that she's now in our record books, and that's good for her," Radnoti said.
The Waves worked in several new runners, including freshman Niala Charles (Temecula, Calif./Great Oak HS), who was Pepperdine's top finisher in the 100 meters (second place overall) and 200 meters (third place overall).
"It was good to get in that first meet," Radnoti said. "A lot of our freshman sprinters were in their first college competition. There were some nerves, but it was good for everyone to see where they stand and where they need to improve. Both of our relay teams ran pretty well. We need to get faster but we had clean handoffs. Everyone was very excited about the day."
Two of Pepperdine's men competed, with juniors Wesley Blundell (Brush Prairie, Wash./Prairie HS) and Jonathan Rahaeuser (Irvine, Calif./Calvary Chapel HS) finishing 3-4 in the 3,000 meters.
"Our guys ran very well," Radnoti said. "Wes hadn't raced in a couple of years, so he had a very good time. Jonathan also broke nine minutes so that was a solid performance for our two men that competed today."
Next up for the Waves is their annual trip to Florida, which involves volunteer work as part of Project Serve and the North Florida Invitational on March 2-3.
