Ducks Punch Tickets Saturday At Hayward
06/25/22 | Track and Field
Two UO alums clinched spots in Oregon22 on Saturday, and a current Duck advanced to the U20 World Championship meet.
EUGENE, Ore. — Two tickets were punched by Oregon alums Saturday for the World Athletics Championships coming up in July at Hayward Field, and the Ducks saw another age-group national champion crowned.
Cooper Teare rode the shoulder of his former UO teammate Reed Brown for much of Saturday's final in the men's 1500, before Teare went wide off the final turn and stormed past the rest of the field to win a national title at the USATF Outdoor Championships. Just a few minutes later, Alaysha Johnson took second in the women's 100 hurdles, also clinching a spot back at Hayward Field for Oregon22 beginning July 15.
Also Saturday, current UO freshman Harper McClain gave their Ducks their second title in the concurrent USATF U20 Outdoor Championships, winning the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:23.25. That followed a win by Kohana Nakato in the javelin on Thursday.
A year after capping his collegiate track career with an NCAA Outdoor title at 5,000 meters, Teare won his first U.S. title Saturday. The victory provided some redemption after Teare was fourth in the 5,000 at the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, one place shy of qualifying for the Tokyo Games.
"I actually can't believe I won a U.S. title," said Teare, who turned pro after running cross country for the Ducks this past fall. "That's the goal, that's what we're here for every year; it's my job now. (But) last year I think I was just happy to be here, and this year I was coming for it. Really happy to just have it under my belt now. Still hasn't really set in, but maybe that's a good thing — just gonna keep chugging along and get ready for three weeks from now."
Teare crossed first Saturday in 3 minutes, 45.86 seconds. Brown hung on for fifth in 3:46.28, Johnny Gregorek was sixth in 3:46.36 and Sam Prakel was the final UO alum across the line, in eighth in 3:46.49. As he did in the prelims, Prakel made a strong move on the final lap to open up some space on the field after Brown had led the middle portion of the race.
At that point, Teare found himself boxed in off the backstretch. But in shades of Andrew Wheating's charge to finish second in the 800 at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials at historic Hayward Field, Teare went wide coming off the last turn and charged past the competition to win.
"There's some big guys out there," Teare said. "I was trying to get around Henry Wynne for a while, and he was just battling me off. So I had to be a little methodical about when to go. Then Eric Holt also was out in lane two or three, and I finally got around him and just told myself, don't look back. Get past the line and then you can think about what everyone is doing."
Teare and Brown, who arrived at Oregon as freshmen together in the fall of 2017, worked together for much of Saturday's race to encourage an honest pace. With urging from Teare — possibly including, Teare acknowledged afterward, a little shove in the back — Brown found a window to the lead as the field crossed the finish line for the first time. He remained in first with 800 to go before battling to finish fifth, and cap a season that saw him disappointingly fail to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
"I think top five was my goal; that's where I think I could have been at the beginning of the year," Brown said. "And with all the setbacks I've had, it's just great to end on hitting that goal I set. I came really close to getting a little bit higher up there, but everybody had a great finish."
Like Brown, McClain went to the front early in her 3,000 steeplechase of the U20 meet, taking control about three laps in. She led the rest of the way, in the process posting a qualifying time for the U20 World Championships in Cali, Colombia, beginning Aug. 1.
And she did it on the track where she competed as a freshman for Oregon this year.
"It's super cool," McClain said. "It's a really nice way to give thanks for everything I've gotten an opportunity to do this year. And it's a great transition to my next year at Oregon. I feel like it sums up a lot of the hard work I've been doing, and I'm just ready for the next step."
Johnson, who contributed to the UO women's program's Triple Crown of titles in 2016-17, has announced her return to national prominence five years later. She took second Saturday in the 100 hurdles in 12.35 seconds, leaning at the line to finish just short of winner Keni Harrison's 12.34.
Johnson established her PR of 12.40 earlier this year, and rocketed to a 12.41 in her first-round race Friday. She said she'll learn from that and have more controlled performances when she's back in Hayward Field for Oregon22. But all that work this week resulted in a second-place finish and an improved PR in Saturday's final.
"I went out there and did everything I could," Johnson said. "Personal best, so I can't be mad at the second place."
On the day competition in the women's 100 hurdles wrapped up, it began for the men in the 110 hurdles. Oregon alum Devon Allen, who will be a rookie with the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles come fall, won his opening round Saturday in 13.27 seconds.
Two weeks earlier Allen ran the third-fastest time in history, 12.84 seconds. He said he took some recovery time between that performance and the U.S.A. meet.
"I'd been racing a lot, and I wanted to be fresh here," Allen said. "This was like my first fast rep in a week, so it feels good. Keep doing that and keep winning, you're going to do well here."
Saturday also featured preliminaries in the men's and women's 200 meters. Oregon alums Kyree King and Jenna Prandini both advanced through the first round, motivated in different ways by their results in Friday's 100 meters.
The men's final of that event saw King finish sixth in a personal-best 9.96 seconds, giving him a boost of confidence entering Saturday. He ran Saturday's prelim in 20.24, advancing automatically to Sunday's semifinal as a top-three finisher.
"Once I ran a PR, and I ran well through the (100) rounds, I felt real good," King said. "So I definitely came out here and knew I was capable of doing something special. Even that time, last year that would have been a PR. So I feel pretty confident with what I'm doing right now."
Prandini, on the other hand, reached Friday's semifinals of the 100 but did not advance to the final later in the day. The silver lining was, she had one less race in her legs for Saturday's first round of the 200, in which Prandini won her heat in 22.65 seconds.
"It was good to get back on the track," Prandini said. "(The) 200's my main focus, so I'm excited for the rounds to start. (The 100) didn't go to the exact plan, but this whole year our attention has been on this 200."
Also in action Saturday for Oregon was junior triple jumper Lexi Ellis. She soared 43 feet, 9.25 inches on her second attempt, which got her into the finals and held up as her best jump for a sixth-place finish. Ellis scratched on her fifth attempt, which she thought was her best of the day.
"That's kind of been the theme every meet — I always have one that gets away that I want on paper," Ellis said. "There's a lot of marks that are more accurate to who I am as a jumper that just aren't on paper yet. But that's OK."
Ellis' UO teammate Dominique Ruotolo, pulled out of Saturday's event, as did UO alum Cole Walsh in the pole vault. Capping action for the Ducks Saturday afternoon, incoming freshman Lily Jones ran 24.02 in the U20 200 meters and did not advance to the final.
Cooper Teare rode the shoulder of his former UO teammate Reed Brown for much of Saturday's final in the men's 1500, before Teare went wide off the final turn and stormed past the rest of the field to win a national title at the USATF Outdoor Championships. Just a few minutes later, Alaysha Johnson took second in the women's 100 hurdles, also clinching a spot back at Hayward Field for Oregon22 beginning July 15.
Also Saturday, current UO freshman Harper McClain gave their Ducks their second title in the concurrent USATF U20 Outdoor Championships, winning the 3,000-meter steeplechase in 10:23.25. That followed a win by Kohana Nakato in the javelin on Thursday.
A year after capping his collegiate track career with an NCAA Outdoor title at 5,000 meters, Teare won his first U.S. title Saturday. The victory provided some redemption after Teare was fourth in the 5,000 at the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, one place shy of qualifying for the Tokyo Games.
"I actually can't believe I won a U.S. title," said Teare, who turned pro after running cross country for the Ducks this past fall. "That's the goal, that's what we're here for every year; it's my job now. (But) last year I think I was just happy to be here, and this year I was coming for it. Really happy to just have it under my belt now. Still hasn't really set in, but maybe that's a good thing — just gonna keep chugging along and get ready for three weeks from now."
Teare crossed first Saturday in 3 minutes, 45.86 seconds. Brown hung on for fifth in 3:46.28, Johnny Gregorek was sixth in 3:46.36 and Sam Prakel was the final UO alum across the line, in eighth in 3:46.49. As he did in the prelims, Prakel made a strong move on the final lap to open up some space on the field after Brown had led the middle portion of the race.
At that point, Teare found himself boxed in off the backstretch. But in shades of Andrew Wheating's charge to finish second in the 800 at the 2008 U.S. Olympic Trials at historic Hayward Field, Teare went wide coming off the last turn and charged past the competition to win.
"There's some big guys out there," Teare said. "I was trying to get around Henry Wynne for a while, and he was just battling me off. So I had to be a little methodical about when to go. Then Eric Holt also was out in lane two or three, and I finally got around him and just told myself, don't look back. Get past the line and then you can think about what everyone is doing."
Teare and Brown, who arrived at Oregon as freshmen together in the fall of 2017, worked together for much of Saturday's race to encourage an honest pace. With urging from Teare — possibly including, Teare acknowledged afterward, a little shove in the back — Brown found a window to the lead as the field crossed the finish line for the first time. He remained in first with 800 to go before battling to finish fifth, and cap a season that saw him disappointingly fail to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
"I think top five was my goal; that's where I think I could have been at the beginning of the year," Brown said. "And with all the setbacks I've had, it's just great to end on hitting that goal I set. I came really close to getting a little bit higher up there, but everybody had a great finish."
Like Brown, McClain went to the front early in her 3,000 steeplechase of the U20 meet, taking control about three laps in. She led the rest of the way, in the process posting a qualifying time for the U20 World Championships in Cali, Colombia, beginning Aug. 1.
And she did it on the track where she competed as a freshman for Oregon this year.
"It's super cool," McClain said. "It's a really nice way to give thanks for everything I've gotten an opportunity to do this year. And it's a great transition to my next year at Oregon. I feel like it sums up a lot of the hard work I've been doing, and I'm just ready for the next step."
Johnson, who contributed to the UO women's program's Triple Crown of titles in 2016-17, has announced her return to national prominence five years later. She took second Saturday in the 100 hurdles in 12.35 seconds, leaning at the line to finish just short of winner Keni Harrison's 12.34.
Johnson established her PR of 12.40 earlier this year, and rocketed to a 12.41 in her first-round race Friday. She said she'll learn from that and have more controlled performances when she's back in Hayward Field for Oregon22. But all that work this week resulted in a second-place finish and an improved PR in Saturday's final.
"I went out there and did everything I could," Johnson said. "Personal best, so I can't be mad at the second place."
On the day competition in the women's 100 hurdles wrapped up, it began for the men in the 110 hurdles. Oregon alum Devon Allen, who will be a rookie with the NFL's Philadelphia Eagles come fall, won his opening round Saturday in 13.27 seconds.
Two weeks earlier Allen ran the third-fastest time in history, 12.84 seconds. He said he took some recovery time between that performance and the U.S.A. meet.
"I'd been racing a lot, and I wanted to be fresh here," Allen said. "This was like my first fast rep in a week, so it feels good. Keep doing that and keep winning, you're going to do well here."
Saturday also featured preliminaries in the men's and women's 200 meters. Oregon alums Kyree King and Jenna Prandini both advanced through the first round, motivated in different ways by their results in Friday's 100 meters.
The men's final of that event saw King finish sixth in a personal-best 9.96 seconds, giving him a boost of confidence entering Saturday. He ran Saturday's prelim in 20.24, advancing automatically to Sunday's semifinal as a top-three finisher.
"Once I ran a PR, and I ran well through the (100) rounds, I felt real good," King said. "So I definitely came out here and knew I was capable of doing something special. Even that time, last year that would have been a PR. So I feel pretty confident with what I'm doing right now."
Prandini, on the other hand, reached Friday's semifinals of the 100 but did not advance to the final later in the day. The silver lining was, she had one less race in her legs for Saturday's first round of the 200, in which Prandini won her heat in 22.65 seconds.
"It was good to get back on the track," Prandini said. "(The) 200's my main focus, so I'm excited for the rounds to start. (The 100) didn't go to the exact plan, but this whole year our attention has been on this 200."
Also in action Saturday for Oregon was junior triple jumper Lexi Ellis. She soared 43 feet, 9.25 inches on her second attempt, which got her into the finals and held up as her best jump for a sixth-place finish. Ellis scratched on her fifth attempt, which she thought was her best of the day.
"That's kind of been the theme every meet — I always have one that gets away that I want on paper," Ellis said. "There's a lot of marks that are more accurate to who I am as a jumper that just aren't on paper yet. But that's OK."
Ellis' UO teammate Dominique Ruotolo, pulled out of Saturday's event, as did UO alum Cole Walsh in the pole vault. Capping action for the Ducks Saturday afternoon, incoming freshman Lily Jones ran 24.02 in the U20 200 meters and did not advance to the final.
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