By Ron Smith
March 6, 2021
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) Westmont men's relay teams picked up two All-American honors on the final day of the 2020-21 NAIA Indoor Track and Field National Championships.
 
The men's 4 x 800 meter relay of John Baker, Jason Peterson, Danny Rubin and Zola Sokhela placed sixth in the finals, finishing in a time of 7:47.84.
 
"They matched their outdoor time on an indoor track," noted Westmont head coach Russell Smelley. "The goal is always to run as fast indoors as they have outdoors, which is an achievement. They each contributed what they were capable of doing."
 
With nearly six hours between the 4 x 800 meter relay and the distance medley relay, the team used the opportunity to rest and refuel.
 
"It took them 20 minutes to start moving after the. 4 X 800. I don't know what they have left in their legs," said Smelley. "We went out and got pancakes at the grocery store deli and had a good meal. They were determined that they wanted to try to win."
 
The pancake-fueled team of Rubin, Jarad Harper, Peterson and Sokhela finished as national runner-up, taking second in a time of 10:09.66.
 
"It was a fantastic performance," expressed Smelley. "Danny ran six seconds faster on his 1200 meters leg today than in the semifinals. He finished his leg in second place and ran really tough. He refused to back off even though the pace was fast.
 
"Danny handed off in good position to Jarad, who was running for his second time ever on an indoor track. Jarad handled himself brilliantly. Coming off the second turn, a guy tried to cut him off. Jarad slid on him and got outside and left that guy behind. He ran a 51.2 in his 400 meters, which was a strong time for him indoors.
 
He handed off to Jason who improved the team's position. Jason stormed in and passed some people on the last turn and gave the baton to Zola close to second place. Zola went off strong in 56 seconds, two-flat and 3:02, and finished his (1600 meter) leg in a time of 4:14."
 
Sokhela, who only recently became eligible to compete, joined the team just in time to compete at nationals. The freshman from Pietermaritzberg, South Africa came to Westmont as a Michaelhouse Scholar.
 
During the four days of the national championships, Westmont earned four individual All-American titles and two relay All-American honors out of the seven events in which they competed.
 
"As a group, everybody performed up to their capabilities," noted Smelley who was clearly proud of their accomplishments. "There were no failures."
 
Smelley also expressed his gratitude for the event organizers, saying, "I am proud of the NAIA for making this event happen. It went off well and testing went well."
 
The team returns home tomorrow and will jump into training for the beginning of the outdoor track and field season. The next scheduled event for the Warriors is the Adams-Klein Combined Events on March 25 and 26 and the Westmont Classic on March 27.