University of Oregon
Pac-10 Conference Championships
Ducks Gobble up Seconds at Pac-10 Championships
05/14/11 | Track and Field
TUCSON, Ariz. - Steve Finley won the men's 3,000 meter steeplechase, while the women's team counted a trio of runner-up finishes Friday at the first day of the Pac-10 track and field championships.
"It was a good day," said Oregon Associate Athletic Director Vin Lananna. "We are on schedule, but the men's meet is really close. We will need a huge second day from them and for the women to continue to compete like they did today."
In the women's race, Arizona used 31 points in the shot put to build a first day lead with 70 points. Arizona State was next with 53 points, followed by Oregon with 49.5 and Stanford with 48.
For the men, Oregon grabbed the overnight lead with 53 points, followed by Arizona and Stanford with 45 each.
"Conference races are never easy," said Finley. "It was really important to set the tone today for tomorrow's finals."
Finley, a senior transfer from Virginia, won in dramatic fashion. He opened up a 30 meter lead midway through the race only to have Stanford's Benjamin Johnson slowly catch up and then pass him with 250 meters remaining. But Finley countered on the final hurdle, charging over the last barrier with a burst of speed to pass Johnson and win in 9:04.62. Johnson finished in 9:05.09.
"In the steeplechase, when people make a move, they rarely have another gear," said Finley, who won his first conference title, after being the ACC runner-up at Virginia. "Luckily, I was able to rest in the middle and I had something left at the end."
Meanwhile, the women were piling up points with three runner-up finishes and a pair of third places.
The Ducks were especially impressive in the pole vault, scoring 16.5 points in the event. In an entertaining competition, senior Melissa Gergel tied Stanford's Katerina Stefanidi for the best clearance at 14-0.5/4.28m, but Stefanidi won on fewer misses. Gergel took second, with freshman Kortney Ross claiming third at 13-4.5/4.08m. That mark was tied for the sixth-best in school history. Oregon claimed another 2.5 points in the event from Jordan Roskelley, who tied for sixth at 13-0.75/3.98m.
"I feel like as a group, we just destroyed the form chart," said Gergel.
The women were nearly as impressive in the 3,000 meter steeple chase, where the Ducks went 2-3-7.
Defending champ Claire Michel took second in 10:26.05, freshman Lanie Thompson surged for third in 10:33.35 and sophomore Taylor Wallace used a strong closing lap to climb to seventh in 10:41.25.
"Going 2-3-7 with three scoring; I couldn't be happier," said Michel, a senior from Clackamas, Ore. "Time didn't have anything to do with it. It's all about the team."
Jamesha Youngblood took second in the long jump, going a season-best 21-3.25/6.48m on her fourth attempt. The senior from San Pablo, Calif., was the two-time defending Pac-10 champion in the event. Lauryn Newson also scored in the long jump, finishing sixth at a season-best 20-2.5/6.16m.
The women also collected six points in the 10,000 meters with junior Bronwyn Crossman finishing fourth in 36:06.48 and freshman Sarah Andrews eighth in 36:42.28.
For the men, Finley's win was backed by an impressive 14-point performance in the long jump. Vernell Warren was the runner-up at 24-9/7.54m, a season-best for the senior from Portland, Ore., while fellow senior David Klech was third at 24-6/7.48m.
Justin Frick got the men on the scoreboard first by clearing 7-1.5/2.17m on his third attempt to place fourth in the high jump. The senior transfer from Princeton had the seventh-best clearance in school history.
"I was thinking I have to get over this bar," said Frick of his third-attempt clearance. "It's me versus that bar and I have to get that that bar."
Oregon also claimed six points in the javelin with Alex Wolff placing fifth at 225-9/68.81m and freshman Ethan Powell moving up to seventh with a toss of 204-3/62.26m.
"Pac-10 champ. Pac-10 champ - that's what I kept telling myself because I had to push though and we needed it for the team."
The Ducks also garnered seven points in the 10,000 meters, with Luke Puskedra taking fifth in 29:35.67, Parker Stinson seventh in 29:55.44 and Danny Mercado eighth in 29:58.78.
In the preliminary rounds, it was nearly a perfect performance for the Ducks on a hot and windy day at Drachman Stadium.
On the women's side, Oregon advanced all four women in the 1,500 meters. Jordan Hasay won her heat in 4:30.35, with freshman Megan Patrignelli right behind her at 4:31.27. In the other heat, Anne Kesselring won in 4:33.56, with Becca Friday on her heels in 4:33.86 to move on.
Oregon also had three of the top four qualifiers in the women's 100 meters. USC's Jessica Davis was the top qualifier at 11.27. Oregon's Amber Purvis followed in a wind-aided personal best of 11.30, with freshman English Gardner moving on in 11.31 and senior Mandy White clocking a wind-aided personal best of 11.39.
Those three also advanced in the 200 meters. Purvis was the top qualifier in a season-best 23.11. Garner won her heat in 23.36 and White matched her personal best to advance on time in 23.59.
Three Ducks moved on in the 800 meters. Kesselring, the defending champion in the event, won her heat in 2:05.65. Freshman Laura Roesler won her heat in 2:07.40, while freshman Phyllis Francis advanced on time by running a season-best 2:08.45.
Freshman Chizoba Okodogbe was the top qualifier in the 400 meters. She won her heat in a season-best 53.19. That was the sixth-fastest time in school history.
For the men, Mike Berry blazed through his 400 meter preliminary heat in a personal best 45.65. That was the fifth-best time in school history. Junior Bryan Harper did not advance, but ran a personal-best 47.63.
A.J. Acosta and Matthew Centrowitz both won their 1,500 meter preliminaries to advance. Acosta was the top qualifier in 3:48.46, while Centrowitz won in 3:57.51.
The Ducks also advanced a pair of runners in the 800 meters. Both Elijah Greer and Boru Guyota won their preliminary heats. Greer came through in 1:48.54, while Guyota timed 1:48.80.
Both Eric Hersey and Klech survived in the 110 meter hurdles. Hersey timed a legal personal best in 13.99. That moved the junior from Los Altos, Calif., to 10th on the UO list. Klech advanced in 14.25.
LaMichael James ran a legal personal-best 10.62 in the 100 meters, but did not advance.
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