Johnson Challenges Ducks To Raise The Bar This Weekend

When the Oregon track and field program headed to Seattle two weeks ago for its 2018 indoor season opener, the Ducks were most in need of busting the proverbial rust, to be sure. But a few more encouraging marks might have been nice, too.

In the condensed structure of the indoor season, scant chances exist for achieving qualifying marks worthy of NCAA Championship participation. The Ducks achieved few if any in Seattle, something they'll look to fix when they return to competition this weekend in the Columbia Challenge at the Armory Track and Field Center in new York.

"The pressure is really just to make sure you go out there and be the best athlete you can be, every race you get," UO hurdler Alaysha Johnson said. "Because we only get so many chances."

Johnson was one of the more than 60 Ducks who competed in Seattle, and is among the 50 or so who made the trip to New York. She clocked 8.27 seconds in the 60-meter hurdles two weeks ago, and is looking for marked improvement this weekend.

Men's hurdler Braxton Canady was more encouraged by his season-opener, having run 7.90 seconds in a heat that included 110-meter world record-holder Aries Merritt. But even that mark already isn't among the top 16 among collegiate competitors, and thus worthy of NCAA qualification.

"That's really the biggest thing right now, is getting a mark," Canady said. "After I get a mark, I'll be able to relax and focus on the things I need to focus on."

The top priority this weekend, UO coach Robert Johnson said, will be getting qualifying marks for the distance-medley relay squads. A year ago at the Armory, a women's team that included returning veterans Katie Rainsberger and Lilli Burdon set the collegiate record, and the men's team anchored by Edward Cheserek won its race.

New faces will power the Ducks' DMR squads this weekend, but the goal is unchanged.

"That'll be our main focus heading into the meet," Johnson said.

Any other qualifying marks this weekend would be "icing on the cake," Johnson said. But he made it clear to his team that the Ducks if nothing else need to raise the bar coming off the UW Preview.

Following that meet, Johnson gathered the team for a message delivered in no uncertain terms.

"March will be here before you know it," Johnson told the Ducks in a team meeting. "We need to get it in gear, and take things more seriously in practice."

Alaysha Johnson said her coach's message was received, loud and clear.

"Leaving Washington, we didn't feel very excited about the things we had done," she said. "Coach having those meetings made everyone realize, we have a lot more to prove, and we're nowhere close to done."

For Johnson, sharpening up her form this week will begin with her start. A powerful closer over the last few hurdles in the longer outdoor race, Johnson is finding that her margin for error out of the blocks is almost zero in the shorter indoor format.

In what is only a slight exaggeration, according to Johnson, "I really just get up and start running." And in a 60-meter race, if you're last out of the blocks, there's no time to make up for it.

"It's really hard for 'fast' to catch 'fast,' " Johnson said. "This year I'm just trying to get out with everyone else."

It's a worthy long-term goal, but there's scant time to address it, with only two more competitive events after the weekend, until the NCAA Championships to be held March 9-10.

"We've got a lot of work to get done," Robert Johnson said, "to start to get some qualifiers in, and start to show some promise."