University of Oregon
Don Kirby Elite
School Records Fall on Busy Day for the Ducks
02/15/15 | Track and Field
EUGENE, Ore. – Two school records fell on Saturday as the Oregon track and field team left its mark across the country while competing at the Millrose Games in New York, the Don Kirby Elite in Albuquerque, N.M., and the Husky Classic in Seattle.
Edward Cheserek broke the school record with a time of 3:56.43 in the men's Wanamaker Mile. Cheserek finished eighth, racing among some of the greatest milers in the world while teammate Johnny Gregorek took 10th in 3:57.47.
The record Cheserek broke was a fresh one, as Daniel Winn had set it about 90 minutes earlier while running at the Husky Classic. Winn kicked in to a time of 3:57.62, finishing fourth and breaking Mac Fleet's previous record set in 2010. Now 14 Oregon student-athletes have broken the four-minute barrier indoors, with three of those coming on Saturday alone, all of which were faster than the previous school record.
Also at the Millrose Games, Eric Jenkins and Will Geoghegan led a quartet of Ducks in the men's 3,000, finishing first and second, respectively. Jenkins took over from professional runner Andy Bayer in the final laps with Geoghegan staying close behind. Jenkins crossed the finish line in 7:44.91, just missing Galen Rupp's school record but claiming the eighth-fastest time in NCAA history. Geoghegan clocked a 7:45.71, third in Oregon history and ninth in NCAA history.
Brittany Mann had a huge day for the Ducks in the shot put, breaking the school record on her first attempt with a distance of 52-10 (16.10m). But the sophomore was not done there as she crushed that mark on her second throw with a toss of 55-6.5 (16.93m) and now owns the school record by nearly three feet. In addition, the performance puts her in qualifying position for the NCAA championships as she currently ranks seventh in the nation.
Jasmine Todd and Jenna Prandini continued to tear up the track in the 60-meter dash, as the pair finished first and second at the Don Kirby Elite. In the final, Todd tied her personal-best mark of 7.15 while Prandini was on her heels with a new personal best of 7.17 after tying her old record of 7.24 in the prelims. The two are now second and third on the Oregon all-time list behind only English Gardner. It was a busy day for Todd who also finished fourth in the triple jump with the third-best mark in school history (41-4.25/12.60m).
Taking part in the women's 60 at the Husky Classic was Alisha Rowlee who climbed all the way up to eighth in the Oregon record book, running 7.58 in the prelims before a time of 7.54 in the finals, finishing fourth.
Dual-sport athlete Tony James has made the transition from the football field to the track and finished third in the 60 (6.72), Saturday, just missing his personal best of 6.71.
Sasha Wallace took third in a very strong hurdles field in Albuquerque after winning her preliminary heat in 8.23. The sophomore advanced to the finals where she posted a season-best time of 8.15.
In the men's hurdles, Trevor Ferguson took third at the Don Kirby Elite with a personal best of 7.90, beating his previous best of 8.02. The time moves him up to seventh in the Oregon record book.
Wallace and Ferguson weren't the only ones to have a successful day in the hurdles. Freshman Ashlee Moore finished third in the 60 hurdles at the Husky Classic with a time of 8.48 which moves her up to fourth on the Oregon all-time list. It was a busy day for the Track and Field News high school All-American who won the long jump with a distance of 19-3.50 (5.88m) and also cleared an indoor personal best of 5-8 (1.73) in the high jump, tying for second with teammates Chancey Summers and Lauren Crockett.
Freshman jumper Nate Moore unleashed a huge triple jump in his final attempt of the day, reaching 51-10.5 (15.81m) to finish as the top collegian in the field, third overall. The mark is second-longest in Oregon history only behind Leonidas Watson's school record set in 2004.
The Ducks finished the day in Albuquerque with the 4x400 team of Jordan Latt, Arthur Delaney, Ben Thiel and Marcus Chambers winning the 4x400 in 3:08.99, the ninth-fastest time in the NCAA this season.
Both the men's and women's distance teams had strong showings in Seattle as Jeramy Elkaim (3,000 – 7:56.71)Travis Neuman (3,000 - 8:14.42), Katie Porada (Mile – 4:38.08) and Ashley Maton (Mile – 4:45.57) each set big personal bests in their races.
Annie Leblanc and Nikolaus Franzmair ran indoor bests in the 800 at the Husky Classic. Franzmair finished sixth in 1:48.80 while Leblanc took ninth in 2:07.15.
Oregon will have next weekend off before the last meet of the regular season at the MPSF Championships, Feb. 27-28 in Seattle.
Players Mentioned
