It might be too early to tell, but the initial evaluation of Cal track and field at the NCAA West Regionals this past weekend is disappointing.

The basic story of the competition for the Bears was that many of the squad's most consistent performers were not able to put together their best efforts at Hayward Field in Eugene, Ore.

Now, it will be up to the NCAA selection committee to decide whether a number of Cal athletes will have their seasons continue onto nationals.

"We had disappointments, we had surprises," coach Tony Sandoval said. "Our biggest disappointment might've been Kimyon Broom in the 100m hurdles. She hurt her hamstring in the (4x100m) relay earlier. She was trying to get through it without aggravating it, and she dug too big of a hole to get out of in her race."

Broom had a stellar season leading up to this weekend, breaking school records and winning a conference title, but will now have an injury to handle if she competes at nationals.

Two other disappointments for the Bears were sophomore Michael Coe and senior Jordan Paul. Coe, slowed by a late-season ankle injury, was unable to finish in the top five of the 1500m and, as such, did not automatically qualify for nationals. Paul, coming off the best run of his life at Pac-10 Championships, finished last in the 110m hurdles after stumbling early.

Fortunately for Cal, the team saw a reasonable amount of triumphs and, as Sandoval said earlier, big surprises.

An expected triumph was senior Martin Maric, who locked up his second straight NCAA West Regional title in the discus with a throw of 200-11 ft.

"It was a seasonal best," Sandoval said. "It was his second-best throw ever in his life. And obviously a regional championship is very, very good so I hope that he can build on that at NCAA Championships."

If Maric can throw anywhere near the distance he threw on Saturday, he will undoubtedly be in contention for a national title.

The women's 4x100m relay provided a pleasant surprise, showing resiliency after losing Broom to injury.

"We replaced (Broom) with Brook Turner and we changed the order on (the 4x100 relay)," Sandoval said. "They did a great job of getting second so they will be running at nationals."

The relay clocked in with a time of 44.67 seconds, a season best.

Another bright spot for the Bears was the breakout performance of junior Tracey Stewart's career. Stewart took second in the triple jump with a mark of 42-3.50 ft.

"The surprise of the meet for us has to be Tracey Stewart, who got an automatic bid to nationals with a triple jump that was two feet more than her previous best," Sandoval said.

Final entries-including at-large selections-for the NCAA Championships come out later today, determing whether or not a number of athletes will get a chance to redeem themselves after their lackluster performances this weekend.

Tags: CAL TRACK AND FIELD, MARTIN MARIC, KIMYON BROOM