By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Here are 10 storylines involving collegiate and professional events to follow at the 60th Mt. SAC Relays at El Camino College in Torrance, Calif.

Programming Note: You can watch the live Webcast here of the meet Thursday, Friday and Saturday. The USATF.TV broadcast and on-demand videos will only be available for USATF.TV +PLUS subscribers. Subscribe here.

Quality quarter-milers in quest for record

The men’s 400-meter record of 44.45 was set in 1992 by Steve Lewis of Santa Monica Track Club and only four years since then has the Mt. SAC winner run under 45 seconds.

USC’s Michael Norman, the 400 world indoor record holder at 44.52, looks to not only improve on his outdoor personal-best 44.60, but challenge the record Saturday.

Norman will have plenty of competition, including Trojans teammate Rai Benjamin, who has a personal best of 45.72, but also split 44.35 indoors March 10 on USC’s national championship 4x400 relay.

Paul Dedewo boasts a personal-best 44.62 from the 39th Sun Angel Classic on April 7 at Arizona State, with Gil Roberts having run 44.22 in June at the USATF Outdoor Championships in Sacramento.

Former Oregon standout Marcus Chambers, who boasts a personal best of 44.92, is also scheduled to compete.

Spectacular sprint showcase

Jenna Prandini won three consecutive women’s 100-meter titles at Mt. SAC from 2014-16, the first two competing for Oregon, followed by one as a professional. Deajah Stevens prevailed last year in her final season for Oregon, giving the Ducks a connection to the past five champions, with English Gardner emerging victorious in 2013.

Chances are that total could reach six in a row Saturday with Prandini and Stevens both entered, along with Oregon redshirt junior Ariana Washington.

Looking to prevent another chapter in the Ducks’ sprint legacy at Mt. SAC will be former Texas A&M standout Aaliyah Brown, San Diego State senior Ashley Henderson and USC freshman Twanisha Terry.

The meet record remains 10.87 from Jamaican star Merlene Ottey representing Los Angeles Track Club in 1987. Inger Miller, who attended Muir High and USC, ran a wind-aided 10.84 in 1998, the fastest time in meet history under all conditions.

College or pro, which way will the relays go?

The men’s 4x100 relay at Houston and men’s 4x400 relay at USC have lofty aspirations this season that include pursuing collegiate records.

Both quartets will have the opportunity to line up against professional teams Saturday, looking to challenge themselves before the postseason.

Houston’s Mario Burke, John Lewis III, Elijah Hall and Cameron Burrell will face a pair of USA all-star teams, a quartet from Altis Track Club, as well as USC.

The world-leading mark of 38.08 was run April 14 by Christian Coleman, Justin Gatlin, Mike Rodgers and Ronnie Baker in Tennessee.

Houston is aiming for the 1989 collegiate record of 38.23 set by Texas Christian. The meet record of 37.79 set by Santa Monica Track Club has stood since 1994.

USC’s Rai Benjamin, Ricky Morgan Jr., Michael Norman and Zach Shinnick already boast the fastest indoor 4x400 in history at 3:00.77, which they set March 10 at the NCAA Division 1 Championships.

The Trojans are now setting their sights on the collegiate outdoor record of 2:59.59 set in 2005 by LSU.

The fastest time in the world this year is 3:01.00, run March 31 by Florida at the Pepsi Florida Relays.

UCLA boasts the fastest time by a collegiate quartet in meet history at 3:00.81 from 1988. The meet record belongs to Mazda Track Club, which ran 3:00.48 in 1992, with only three teams running under 3:02 since.

Scheduled to run Saturday against USC is a USA all-star team, along with Houston, Tennessee and Iowa.

Renewing acquaintances

Quanera Hayes and Georganne Moline were members of the U.S. women’s 4x400 relay team that captured the gold medal March 4 at the IAAF World Indoor Championships in Birmingham, U.K.

USC senior Kendall Ellis and Georgia freshman Lynna Irby were part of the greatest women’s indoor 400 final in NCAA Division 1 Championships history March 10 in College Station, Texas.

Ellis and Hayes were teammates on the U.S. 4x400 relay that captured gold at the World Outdoor Championships in August in London.

All four of them are scheduled to be on the track Saturday competing in the 400, looking to challenge the world-leading mark of 50.07 by Kentucky freshman Sydney McLaughlin and possibly become only the second athlete in meet history to run under 50 seconds. Marion Jones still holds the meet record of 49.59 from 2000.

Hayes won the USATF Outdoor title in June in Sacramento, clocking 49.72, with Ellis placing third in 50.00. Ellis, a 2016 winner at Mt. SAC, followed by setting the collegiate indoor record March 10, clocking 50.34 to win the NCAA title.

Irby boasts an indoor personal best of 50.62, but this will be her collegiate outdoor 400 debut.

Moline ran an indoor personal-best 51.39 on Feb. 9 at Texas Tech and looks to drop her outdoor PR of 51.93 by a significant amount against such a strong field that also includes Jessica Beard, Kendall Baisden, Jaide Stepter and Oregon sophomore Makenzie Dunmore.

Baker seeking back-to-back titles

Former TCU star Ronnie Baker was the first male athlete to run a wind-legal 100-meter dash at Mt. SAC in under 10 seconds since 2002 when he clocked 9.99 last season.

Baker will attempt to add to his legacy Saturday by becoming the first repeat winner in the men’s 100 since Michael Marsh in 1999-2000 against a deep field that also includes 2016 winner Ameer Webb.

Ato Boldon is the only male sprinter in meet history to have two wind-legal efforts under 10 seconds, running 9.93 in 1996 and 9.86 in 1998, the latter remains the meet record. Walter Dix boasts the fastest time under all conditions, running a wind-aided 9.85 in 2012.

Great Britain’s CJ Ujah is also entered, along with former Oregon standout Kyree King, in addition to Houston’s Cameron Burrell, Georgia’s Kendal Williams and Ducks senior Damarcus Simpson.

Georgia brings runway royalty out West

The greatest collection of women’s jumpers in one collegiate program will get an opportunity to test themselves against not only some of the toughest competitors in NCAA Division 1, but several professionals Saturday when Georgia brings its talents to Torrance, Calif.

Kate Hall, a Division 1 indoor and outdoor champion, and freshman Tara Davis are entered in the long jump. They are the national high school outdoor and indoor record holders.

Keturah Orji, the collegiate and American record holder in the triple jump, is scheduled to make her outdoor debut in the event, along with senior Aliyah Johnson.

And Tatiana Gusin – a three-time NCAA runner-up in the high jump, including twice last year to teammate Mady Fagan – is scheduled to compete against three professionals, including Vashti Cunningham, who has won four years in a row at Mt. SAC, the past two as a professional.

Hall and Davis are scheduled to jump against world leader and Commonwealth Games gold medalist Christabel Nettey of Canada, who produced a wind-legal leap of 22-8.5 (6.92m) on March 28 in Brisbane, Australia.

The long jump meet record remains 22-10 (6.97m) set by Carol Lewis in 1984.

Hall boasts a personal-best 22-5 (6.83m), which set the national high school record in 2015, and Davis soared to 22-1 (6.73m) at last year’s California state championship.

Orji is scheduled to square off against Tori Franklin, who became the second-best American triple jumper in history March 30 with her leap of 47-6.25 (14.48m) at the 91st Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays. Orji’s American record is 48-3.25 (14.71m) when she placed fourth at the 2016 Olympic final.

The meet record of 45-9.75 (13.96m), shared by three athletes, should be surpassed in the right conditions. The best mark in meet history under all conditions is a wind-aided 46-8.25 (14.23m) set in 2008 by Shakeema Welsch.

The world triple jump leader is Jamaica’s Kimberly Williams, who had a leap of 48-0.50 (14.64m) on April 10 to win the Commonwealth Games title in Australia.

Gusin, who has a personal-best high jump clearance of 6-3 (1.91m), will try to keep pace with Cunningham and former Arizona standout Liz Patterson. Cunningham has cleared at least 6-4 (1.93m) the past three years in Mt. SAC competition.

Former Georgia star Levern Spencer, the Commonwealth Games gold medalist representing Saint Lucia, boasts the world lead at 6-4.75 (1.95m). The meet record of 6-6 (2.00m) is shared by Tisha Waller in 1999 and Chaunte Lowe in 2006.

Hall seeks another heroic hurdling effort

With the community college portion of the Mt. SAC Relays not being held since 2015, College of the Sequoias CA standout Quincy Hall made his mark at the event last year winning the men’s 400 meters in 45.12 seconds.

Hall is now looking to add a 400 hurdles victory to his Mt. SAC resume Saturday, following a personal-best 49.02 to win the Pan Am U20 title in July in Peru.

Hall already ran the No. 2 time in the world this year in the 400 by clocking 44.60 on April 7 at the 39th Sun Angel Classic at Arizona State. He also prevailed in the 400 hurdles in 49.65 on March 30 at the 43rd Stanford Invitational.

Hall will face significant challenges from Jamaica’s Shawn Rowe, who has already run a personal-best 49.17 this year, along with Americans Bershawn Jackson and Cal State L.A. standout Khallifah Rosser.

Jackson has a season best of 49.44, with Rosser boasting a personal-best 49.04.

Kyron McMaster of British Virgin Islands ran a world-leading 48.25 on April 12 to win Commonwealth Games gold. The 2002 meet record of 48.49 was set by Great Britain’s Chris Rawlinson.

Keeping history alive in the hammer throw

With ongoing construction at Hilmer Lodge Stadium, the only events that still take place at Mt. SAC are the men’s and women’s hammer throw Thursday.

For those who attend the competitions in Walnut, some of the best collegiate and American performers are scheduled to participate, led by Arizona State senior Maggie Ewen.

The collegiate record holder with a world-leading 244-6 (74.53m) from April 6 at the 39th Sun Angel Classic, Ewen is closing in on her overall personal-best 244-7 (74.56m) at the USATF Outdoor Championships in June, making her the No. 5 performer in U.S. history.

She is looking to become the first collegiate female athlete since Southern Illinois’ Brittany Riley in 2007 to win the women’s hammer throw.

Gwen Berry, the American record holder, surpassed the meet record last year with a throw of 244-10 (74.62m).

Northern Arizona senior Brooke Andersen, the No. 2 collegiate thrower and third-ranked American this year, is also scheduled to compete. Andersen had a personal-best throw of 232-10 (70.98m) on March 16 at the Baldy Castillo Invitational to elevate to the No. 6 all-time collegiate performer.

In the men’s hammer throw, Georgia junior and Dutch national record holder Denzel Comenentia is entered against American professionals Conor McCullough, Colin Dunbar, Sean Donnelly and Alexander Young.

Comenentia broke meet and national records March 29 at the 91st Clyde Littlefield Texas Relays with his throw of 250-3 (76.29m), which ranks seventh in the world this year. Former Oklahoma State standout Nick Miller, representing Great Britain, produced a world-leading throw April 8 of 263-4 (80.26m) to capture Commonwealth Games gold.

Comenentia, who ranks No. 9 in collegiate history, boasts the best career mark of any competitor in the field, looking to become the first Division 1 athlete to win the men’s hammer competition since McCullough achieved the feat at USC in 2015.

Murphy looks for another masterful middle-distance effort

Clayton Murphy not only set the meet record in the men’s 800 meters last year by running 1:43.60, but it stood up as the fastest time by an American all year.

Murphy is trying to become the first repeat winner since Duane Solomon won three in a row from 2012-14, but will face significant challenges Saturday from fellow Americans Erik Sowinski, Chris Low, Harun Abda and 2011 meet winner Charles Jock.

With only two Division 1 athletes having run under 1:47 so far this season, BYU senior Abraham Alvarado has the potential to take over the collegiate lead with a personal-best 1:46.62.

On the comeback trail

Brianna Rollins-McNeal returned to competition March 30 at the Stanford Invitational and ran a world-leading 12.62 seconds in the women’s 100-meter hurdles.

In addition to pursuing her first victory Saturday at the Mt. SAC relays, Rollins-McNeal will also look to eclipse the 2000 meet record of 12.63 set by fellow IAAF World Championship gold medalist Anjanette Kirkland.

Yvette Lewis ran the fastest time under all conditions in meet history with a wind-aided 12.43 in 2013.

Rollins-McNeal will square off against former Florida standout Bridgette Owens and Georgia graduate Kendell Williams, along with USC stars Dior Hall and Anna Cockrell, as well as Oregon junior Alaysha Johnson and former Ducks star Sasha Wallace.

Cockrell will also square off against another NIKE professional in the women’s 400 hurdles when she competes against reigning U.S. champion and Olympic gold medalist Dalilah Muhammad.