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Under the blistering sun at Robinson Stadium, the Lancers dominated each level of competition at the renewed Pasadena Invitational. The preparation and hard work that coaches Innocent Egbumike and Pat Williams put into crafting a perfect practice that makes the players superior athletes was exhibited throughout the day, starting from the 100-meter dash.

“They have been working so hard; these are great young men and women blessed and representing Pasadena City College,” Egbumike said. “For me, this is an opportunity to celebrate their talents, so im excited for them, and I truly believe that they’re going to do much better as we move forward.” 

The Lancers began the 100-meter dash competitions hot, with Ireja Lauderdale, Anaya Tyron, and Brianna Fisher winning their heats. Expectations were set early as Lauderdale would go on to place fifth in the final dash. The male runners Allen Jamir, Kai Sebastian, Jayden Jordon, and Issac Otero were next to add brass to the collection. Jamir would start the Lancers off on a good foot, winning the second heat of the 100 accompanied by Sebastian, who won heat four along with Jordon, and Otero coming in third and fourth. Jamir would follow up his first heat with a stellar time of 11.08, getting him third overall for the competition, being the one of two Lancers to finish top-three in the 100-meter dash. 

Pasadena continued their fast-paced fashion in the 200-meter dash as female runners Jaylin Morgan, Deniya Fields, and Anaya Tryon headlined the competition for the Lancers. Fields and Tryon put up strong performances, getting fifth and sixth place, respectively, but it was Jaylin Morgan who stole the show. Morgan’s ability to accelerate whilst changing direction gave her the edge in a 24.81-timed performance, which gave her the .01 millisecond she needed to get first place. 

Male runner Anthony Pequeno’s execution on the 200 would get him a third-place medal in a closer race, with each runner in the top three running within one second of each other. Pequeno wouldn’t stop his medal collection there as a stunning run in the 400-meter dash would earn him a silver medal. Morgan would also get second in the 400-meter run, getting Pasadena on the podium in both groups.  

Lancers would keep up their dominance in long-distance events, with Teddie Wen showing off his mental strength and willpower by running a 9:40 in the 3000-meter and getting second place. In the women’s 800-meter dash, Ashley Sosa would get third place, but Deniya Fields turned heads, winning by a full five seconds, an unheard-of accomplishment in the event. She recorded a time of 2:22, and although it won by five seconds, it was only her second 800-meter dash she’d run and wasn’t even her best time this season, showing off her glowing talent. 

“Deniya is a great runner, she’s who I look forward to competing and running with,” Ashley Sosa said. “She’s who I try to stay with in the [800-meter dash].”

As the day grew tired, the teams grew more competitive, with teams exchanging words before matches began and building up excitement for the spectacle those in attendance were about to bear witness to. 

Pasadena’s 4 x 100 relay team set forth by Fischer, Morgan, Fields, and Ireja Lauderdale backed their talk up with a resiliant final stretch that saw Fields putting the team on her back and fought from third and long to narrowly securing second place in the dying moments of the race. 

The men would follow this up with their effective lineup of Jordon, Jamir, Pequeno, and Devin Hardy for the 4X100. This race was neck and neck, with the Lancers falling behind until Pequeno got the baton and took off like a V12 engine to get the Lancers first place in a photo finish. The Lancers would substitute Jordon for Travon Avery in the 4 x 400 and fall short of gold, placing third. 

This Lancers team has a mindset shaped by the tough but encouraging coaching of Innocent Egbunike and Pat Williams. 

“All we wanna see is improvement and believe in your ability, believe in your coache,s believe in yourself that you can do this and that’s all this is about,” Williams said. “We have things to correct and fix, but next time you see us, we’ll be even better.”

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