Track Teams Close Regular Season at Home in Oregon Twilight
EUGENE - In their sixth and final weekend of the regular season, the Oregon track and field teams return home for their fourth of five home meets, the Oregon Twilight, Sat., May 7.
The Ducks will enter scaled-back units against a mix of area collegiate and post-collegiate talent, while the UO decathletes and heptathletes head to the Pac-10 multi-events at UCLA’s Drake Stadium, Sat.-Sun., May 7-8.
While a good chunk of the UO teams may compete in off events or rest this weekend, several distance races will welcome many of the nation’s top post-collegians, including a men’s 10,000 that features Duck freshman Galen Rupp.
Last weekend in the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, the men’s 4x400 clipped two seconds off their season best and took second (3:05.72) behind the returning NCAA champion, while the 4x100 sped to the third fastest all-time mark in UO history (39.88) ? only .05 seconds behind their season best from two weeks before (39.83). For the UO women at Drake, sophomore Emily Enders tied her pole vault season best (12-5 1/2), senior Sarah Malone heaved another +170-foot toss in the javelin (third, 174-2), and Bree Fuqua added second in the shot put (51-9 3/4).
Looking ahead past this weekend, the UO men and women will return to UCLA the following weekend with 24-person rosters to compete in the 75th and 19th editions of the conference championships. The ?Men of Oregon’ placed first against the ?Conference of Champions’ in 2003 and second in ?02 and ?04, and are tabbed for another tight race for first with Arizona State, UCLA and USC.
The UO women look to improve on fifth and seventh-place finishes in 2003 and ?04, respectively.
Returning men’s Pac-10 champions include Tommy Skipper (pole vault, decathlon) and Eric Mitchum (110 hurdles), while Malone is a three-time javelin runner-up and the top seed so far in ?05.
At the end of May, the third-annual West Regional Championships visit the University of Oregon's Hayward Field for the first time, Fri.-Sat., May 27-28. The top five individual finishers and top three relays from each event will earn automatic invites to the NCAA Championships, Wed.-Sat., June 8-11 in Sacramento, Calif.
More West Regional meet info is located in the Home Meet Info dropdown menu at the top of the page.
THIS WEEK'S MEET INFO
Meet: Oregon Twilight
Location: Hayward Field, University of Oregon, Eugene, Oregon
Dates: Saturday, May 7
First Field Event: 3 pm
First Running Event: 4:35 pm - M 1,500
Last Event: 8:10 pm - Bill McChesney Jr. Memorial Twilight Mile
Results Website: www.GoDucks.com
Promotions: Bi-Mart Family Ticket Deal (Show Bi-Mart card at entry, and pay $10 for two adults and unlimited kids). Victory Lap T-shirts.
Single Meet Track & Field Tickets: Reserved $6; General Admission - $5 Adult, $3 Children (high school or younger) and Senior Citizens (62 or older). $2 per person group rates (10 or more). The Bowerman Building ticket office will open Saturday at 2:30 pm.
Meet: Pacific-10 Championships Heptathlon/Decathlon
Location: Drake Stadium (UCLA), Los Angeles, Calif.
Dates: Saturday-Sunday, May 7-8
Saturday: First Event: Noon; Last Event: 5:15 pm
Sunday: First Event: Noon; Last Event: 5 pm
Results Website: www.UCLAbruins.com / www.Pac-10.org
PAC-10 HEP PREVIEW: Jordan Continues Duck Heptathlon Tradition.
After she hiked her heptathlon personal best to 5,020 points in the Oregon Invite two weeks ago, junior and first-year Duck Lauryn Jordan looks to again challenge for an NCAA invite in the seven-event discipline. The San Joaquin Delta College transfer joined the Ducks with a prior best of 4,895 points from 2004, and indoors in 2005 she tallied an NCAA provisional pentathlon score of 3,894 points that was 91 points shy of the final NCAA Indoor Championships invite. Jordan ranks eighth for UO in the heptathlon with her debut score and will try to break into the school's career top five, with the fifth slot held by ?04 graduate Abby Andrus (5,325, 2004). Also under the guidance of Duck heptathlon coach Rock Light last season, Andrus was 10th in the 2004 NCAA finale (5,257) and repeated third last year in the Pac-10 meet (5,325) for the second straight year behind a pair of All-Americans. Heading into this weekend’s meet, the WSU twins of Diana and Julie Pickler rank first and second with season bests of 5,492 and 5,414 points, both just below the NCAA automatic mark of 5,500 points, and Cal’s Brooke Meredith follows in third place (5,401). Last year, Meredith took sixth in the NCAA heptathlon (5,442), and second in the Pac-10 meet (5,476) behind Arizona State’s Jackie Johnson (first, 5,807). Last June, Johnson added the NCAA title in Austin, Texas as a freshman and upset returning NCAA champion Hyleas Fountain of Georgia (second, 5,785), then at the Olympic Trials last July in Sacramento, Johnson added 12th. This year although she has yet to compete in track and field, although she did play for the Sun Devils on the hard court, and played 17 games and had the following game averages (0.6 ppg, 0.7 rbg, 4.5 min). Washington’s Grace Vela was an NCAA qualifier last year (21st) and owns a best of 5,225 points, but has yet to compete in a heptathlon outdoors in ?05.
PAC-10 DEC PREVIEW: Young Gunning For UO Five-Peat.
Under the guidance of sixth-year decathlon mentor Bill Lawson, redshirt junior Andy Young will challenge for UO’s fifth straight Pac-10 title and leads the Pac-10 season best list with his score of 7,329 points from the Oregon Invite two weeks ago. The returning NCAA veteran (13th in 2004) and Newberg, Ore., native will match wits with Washington State’s Darion Powell. The Cougar redshirt junior placed fourth as a frosh in the 2004 NCAA decathlon (PR 7,511) after he took second in the Pac-10 Champs that year (7,386) behind 2001 NCAA champion Santiago Lorenzo (7,564). Other Duck winners in that string of league titles included Lorenzo (7,617, 2001), Billy Pappas (7,532, 2002) and then-frosh Tommy Skipper (7,589, 2004) although the latter Duck will miss the ?05 edition because of rehab from arthroscopic knee surgery in mid-March. Redshirt junior Ryan Voge was an All-American indoors for the Ducks in ?05 in the pentathlon, and the top Pac-10 finisher from March’s indoor finale in Fayetteville, Ark., and has yet to compete in a decathlon in 2005. Last year in his Pac-10 debut, he finished fifth with his personal best and NCAA provisional score (7,245). Junior and first-year Duck Cody Fleming will round out the UO entries and owns a personal best of 6,741 points from his runner-up finish in the 2004 NWAACC Championships for Lane CC in Eugene. The Sparks, Nevada native has competed in one decathlon so far this season and two weeks ago in the Oregon Invite tallied a nine-event score of 5,862 points that was marred by a no-height in the pole vault. Among other contenders, ASU’s Joshua Kinnaman, the returning Pac-10 runner-up, has yet to compete in a multi outdoors in ?05, while Arizona frosh Robert Arnold tallied 7,259 points in mid-April. Indoors in ’05, he owned a regular season heptathlon best of 5,518 points that ranked eighth nationally and tops among frosh, and took 13th in the NCAA finale (4,575), while WSU’s Powell and ASU’s Kinnaman did not finish the seven-event competition.
WEEKLY WOMEN’S PREVIEW: Ducks Make Final Prep for Pac-10s.
Senior Sofie Abildtrup will likely compete in the 200 or 400 one last time before the Pac-10 Championships which are a week away. She ran 400 and 200 season bests (54.37 / 24.32) in the Oregon and Golden Bear Invites in mid-April and ran on the Ducks’ 4x400 (3:45.20) and sprint medley relays (3:59.51) last weekend in the Drake Relays. Redshirt senior Laura Harmon will take aim at her 1,500 best of 4:29.49 from the 2002 Mt. SAC Relays. Outdoors in 2005, she ran a season best and regional qualifier in the 5,000 in the Oregon Invitational (16:39.37) two weeks ago. The Vancouver, Wash., native was only six seconds off her outdoor PR from 2004 (16:33.17) that placed third in the 2004 West Regional and netted an NCAA invite. Indoors in ?05, Harmon sped to a best of 16:18.56 in mid-February in Seattle and ranks second all-time in school history, then made her NCAA indoor track debut in March (15th). Distance teammate and Duck indoor 5K record holder Magdalena Sandoval will take to the track for the first time since February and will compete in the 3,000 that includes Olympian Shayne Culpepper and former Stanford NCAA champion Lauren Fleshman, a World Championships qualifier in 2003 in the 5,000. Redshirt and junior transfer Britney Henry topped 210 feet for the first time in the hammer in the Mt. SAC Relays (211-8), and will again compete unattached this weekend after prior home marks of 201-2 and 206-4 in the Oregon Preview and Oregon Invite, respectively.
WEEKLY MEN’S PREVIEW: Rupp Set For Loaded 10K.
Freshman Galen Rupp will make his second appearance for the Ducks in an elite men’s 10,000 that features World Championships veterans Adam Goucher and Pete Julien. Rupp debuted in a Duck uniform two weeks ago in the Oregon Invitational 5,000 and overcome a fall just after the 2K mark to still run a regional qualifying time (13:50.10) that was one of the fastest by a Duck frosh ever. In the evening finale Saturday, several Duck men’s distance runners will shoot for personal bests in another installment of the Bill McChesney Jr. Memorial Twilight Mile. The late Duck great is Oregon’s record holder in the 5,000 (13:14.80) and 10,000 (27:50.82) and made U.S. Olympic and World Championships teams in 1980 and ?83, respectively. In other distance action, a pair of former Colorado NCAA cross country champions, Dathan Ritzenhein and Jorge Torres, go head to head in the 5,000. Junior and returning NCAA 110 hurdle runner-up Eric Mitchum still ranks third nationally in the 110 hurdles with his season best three weekends ago in the Mt. SAC Relays (13.56, w:1.0). This weekend, he’ll return to the 400 hurdles to prep for the Pac-10 chase after he debuted in the event two weekends ago in the Oregon Invitational (second, 52.15). He was fifth last year in the league finale, and ninth in the prelims as a freshman in ’03. However, last weekend he dropped a spot to 10th on the UO all-time 400 hurdles list after junior A.K. Ikwuakor passed him with his Drake Relays personal best (50.99) and now ranks ninth for the Ducks. Ikwuakor will likely rest this weekend to get ready for the multiple heats in the Pac-10 Championships the following weekend in LA.
REVISED MEET SCHEDULE
Note: (Tentative Duck Entries in () next to event)
3:30 M Javelin (Wuethrich)
*3:35 W Hammer (Hinchcliffe, Kersh)
4:00 M Pole Vault (Derby, Moore)
*4:15 W High Jump (Wallace)
4:35 M 1,500
4:45 W Steeplechase (M. Fitz-Gustafson)
*4:55 M Hammer
5:00 W 4 x 100
5:05 M 4x100
5:05 W Triple Jump (Hayward-Lee, Traver)
5:10 W 100 Hurdles
5:15 M 110 Hurdles (Rexius)
5:25 W 400
5:30 M 400 (Anderson)
5:35 Girl's Middle School Mile
5:45 Boy's Middle School Mile
5:55 W 100 (Bridenbeck)
6:00 M 100 (C. Rexius)
6:00 W Pole Vault (Enders, Moore)
6:05 Official's Pin Presentation
6:15 W 800 (Schaaf)
6:20 M 800 (Gillespie)
6:30 W 400 Hurdles
6:35 M 400 Hurdles (Mitchum)
6:35 M High Jump (Lindsey, Owen)
6:40 W 200 (Searcy)
6:50 W 1,500 (Harmon, Pearson)
7:00 W 3,000 (Sandoval)
7:15 M 5,000 (Wall, Werhane)
*7:30 Seniors Last Lap
*7:40 M 10,000 (Rupp)
*8:15 M Bill McChesney Jr. Mem. Twilight Mile
* indicates events with slightly different time than original schedule
THIS WEEK'S PAC-10 MEN'S RANKINGS
100 - 9th, Richard Del Rincon, 10.54
100 - 12th, Jordan Kent, 10.63
200 - 8th, Richard Del Rincon, 20.93
200 - 11th, Jordan Kent, 21.05
200 - 12th, Kedar Inico, 21.08-i
400 - 4th, Matt Scherer, 45.95-i
400 - 6th, Kedar Inico, 46.41-i
800 - 15th, Roderick Dotts, 1:50.46
1,500 - 9th, Eric Logsdon, 3:43.46-c
5,000 - 5th, Eric Logsdon, 13:40.21
5,000 - 8th, Galen Rupp, 13:50.10
10,000 - 10th, Patrick Werhane, 30:49.95
110H - 1st, Eric Mitchum, 13.56
110H - 4th-t, A.K. Ikwuakor, 13.93
110H - 17th, Sol Rexius, 14.75W
110H - 24th, Andy Young, 15.37
400H - 3rd, A.K. Ikwuakor, 50.99
400H - 8th, Eric Mitchum, 52.15
Steeple - 2nd, Brett Holts, 8:47.11
Steeple - 8th, Kyle Alcorn, 8:53.77
Steeple - 15th, Scott Wall, 9:26.89
4x100 - 3rd, 39.83
4x400 - 2nd, 3:04.17-i
HJ - 3rd-t, Jeff Lindsey, 7-0.25
Hj - 15th, Ryan Voge, 6-7.25
PV - 1st, Tommy Skipper, 18-6.75-i
PV - 5th-t, Jon Derby, 17-6.5-i
PV - 12th-t, Andy Young, 16-6.75-d
LJ - 2nd, Leonidas Watson, 25-11-i
LJ - 5th, Jordan Kent, 24-9.5
TJ - 2nd, Leonidas Watson, 52-9.25
SP - 14th, Brandon Tower, 53-8
DT - 12th, Brandon Tower, 170-8
HT - 3rd, Paul Etter, 203-4
JT - 10th, Matt Adams, 203-3
JT - 12th, Brian Wuethrich, 202-0
Dec. - 1st, Andy Young, 7,329
Dec. - 5th, Cody Fleming, 5,862 (9 evts.)
2005 Pac-10 Women’s Rankings
200 - 16th, Sofie Abildtrup, 24.32
400 - 9th, Sofie Abildtrup, 54.37
400 -19th, Michelle Donovan, 56.59
400 - 20th, Julie Schmidt-Scherer, 56.65
400 - 22nd, Irie Searcy, 57.39
800 - 6th, Sara Schaaf, 2:08.52
800 - 20th, Kasey Harwood, 2:12.01-i
1,500 - 26th, Sarah Pearson, 4:32.85
Steeple - 17th, Mandi Fitz-Gustafson, 11:09.20
5,000 - 5th, Laura Harmon, 16:18.56
5,000 - 12th, Magdalena Sandoval, 16:41.21-i
100H - 22nd, Lauryn Jordan, 14.60
400H - 5th, Kayla Mellott, 60.15
400H - 6th, Kasey Harwood, 60.73
4x100 - 9th, 46.83
4x400 - 5th, 3:43.10
HJ - 6th, Lauryn Jordan, 5-8-i
HJ - 17th-t, Rachel Wallace, 5-5
PV - 16th-t, Emily Enders, 12-5.5
PV - 16th-t, Hannah Moore, 12-5.5
LJ 6th, Lauryn Jordan, 19-11.25-i
TJ - 5th, Lauryn Jordan, 40-11.5
TJ - 12th, Clarice Hayward-Lee, 39-10.5
TJ - 18th, Maegan Traver, 37-11.5
SP - 5th, Bree Fuqua, 53-11
SP - 20th, Lauryn Jordan, 42-3.75
SP - 21st, Roslyn Lundeen, 42-1.75
DT - 10th, Bree Fuqua, 165-4
DT - 24th, Brittany Hinchcliffe, 137-2
DT - 25th, Katie Kersh, 130-4
HT - 4th, Brittany Hinchcliffe, 199-2
HT - 13th, Katie Kersh, 179-7
JT - 1st, Sarah Malone, 177-1
JT - 5th, Roslyn Lundeen, 158-10
JT - 11th, Elisa Crumley, 144-10
Hep. - 5th, Lauryn Jordan, 5020
2005 UO WOMEN’S OUTLOOK: Field Events Again Pace Charge in ?05.
The field events again lead the Oregon women’s charge in 2005 with a trio of double All-Americans back in the javelin ? redshirt juniors Elisa Crumley (12th in ?02, 13th in ?03) and Roslyn Lundeen (seventh in ?02, eighth in ?03) and 2004 Olympic Trials runner-up Sarah Malone (seventh in ?02, third in ?04). The pole vault sports another pair of NCAA veterans in redshirt junior Hannah Moore and sophomore Emily Enders who made NCAA trips indoors and outdoors in ?04, and finished 13th (12-11 1/2) and 15th (12-9 1/2), respectively. Senior Bree Fuqua enjoyed a successful debut campaign for UO in 2004 with an NCAA trip outdoors in the shot put thanks to her then-personal best in the West Regional (fourth, 52-8 3/4) that left her second all-time for the Ducks. She was also a scorer in both the shot put (fourth, 52-5 1/2) and discus (fifth, 162-2) in the Pac-10 Champs. Senior Sofie Abildtrup paced the Ducks in all three sprint events in her debut season in ?04, and ranked top-10 outdoors all-time for UO last year in the 100 (10th, 12.01), 200 (seventh, 23.93) and 400 (third, 52.92), then added an NCAA trip in the 400. Redshirt senior Laura Harmon has made three straight NCAA trips, including invites in the 5,000 indoors in ?05 (15th) and outdoors in ?04 (18th) that book-ended an All-America honor in her NCAA harrier debut in ?04 (31st). Redshirt senior Magdalena Sandoval seeks renewed health after an impressive opening to her 2003-04 slate that featured an indoor school record in the 5,000 (16:04.40) and NCAA appearances indoors and in cross country. Two newcomers in particular expect to challenge for NCAA invites immediately. Redshirt junior hammer thrower Brittany Hinchcliffe ranked 29th in the U.S. with her 200-3 best as a redshirt in ?04, and junior transfer Lauryn Jordan just missed an NCAA indoors in the pentathlon in ?05 (3,894). The latter addition from San Joaquin Valley Community College arrived with the team’s top preseason PRs in the high jump (5-8 1/2), long jump (19-10) and heptathlon (4,895), and its second-best mark in the triple jump (40-8 1/4) ? while all four would have ranked top-10 in school history.
2005 DUCK MEN’S SEASON PREVIEW: UO Flexes Depth Around the Track.
The UO men return after a best-ever sixth-place NCAA indoor finish in March, thanks to a school record nine qualifiers and eight All-America honors ? including another pole vault crown from sophomore pole vaulter Tommy Skipper (18-4 1/2). The Duck sprint and hurdle crew ranks among the nation’s best with a pair of indoor All-American indoors in the 400 in ?05 ? senior Kedar Inico (sixth) and junior Matt Scherer (ninth) ? joined by 2004 NCAA outdoor 110 hurdle runner-up and junior Eric Mitchum, a three-time All-American and school record holder in the 110 hurdles (13.38). The UO 4x400 relay has run school records indoors in ?05 (3:04.17) and outdoors in ’04 (3:03.49), and followed with fifth-place finishes in both NCAA chases. Skipper is the top returning outdoor collegiate pole vaulter with his 2004 Pac-10 record (18-10 1/4) but is expected to miss the first 4-6 weeks of the season after left knee surgery in late March ? an injury he competed through three indoor meets that included an NCAA win (18-4 1/2) and USA runner-up finish (18-2 1/2). Last year, he won the NCAA outdoor crown (18-8 1/4) and took second indoors (18-4 1/2), and also broke the school indoor record with a mark of 18-8 3/4. Redshirt senior Leonidas Watson has rewritten the school long jump and triple jump indoor records several times the past two seasons. He sports indoor bests of 25-11 and 52-10 1/4, and was an All-American indoors in ?04 (ninth) and ?05 (fourth, PR 25-11). Redshirt seniors Eric Logsdon and Brett Holts have combined for seven All-America honors in cross country and track and field. Logsdon has won three honors in the 5,000 on the oval indoors in ?05 (seventh) and outdoors in ?04 (seventh) and ?03 (eighth) and in cross country in 2003 (29th) and ?02 (41st). This past indoor season in a five-week span, he also sped to school indoor records in the mile (4:01.86) and 5,000 (13:49.99) and moved to #2 in the 3,000 (7:54.29). Holts is a three-time top-four Pac-10 placer in the steeplechase and was an All-American over the NCAA barriers in ?04 (seventh), and in cross country in ?02 (43rd). Senior hammer thrower Paul Etter was an NCAA qualifier in ?04 in the hammer and a top-six placer in his 2004 Pac-10 and West Regional debuts (sixth/fifth). Other Ducks with NCAA experience include redshirt sophomore sprinter Jordan Kent (200, 20th, 2003), junior 110 hurdler A.K. Ikwuakor (110 hurdles, 23rd-prelims, 2004), indoor heptathlon All-American and redshirt junior Ryan Voge (10th, 2005) and redshirt junior decathlete Andy Young (13th, 2004). Top newcomers include junior sprint transfer Richard Del Rincon (100 10.23w-10.40; 200 20.57w-20.87) and freshman Canadian steeplechaser Chris Winter (8:54.94). Recent Danish national javelin runner-up Lars Mueller Laursen (javelin 233-6) joined the team for the spring term, as did freshman distance star and Portland native Galen Rupp ? the U.S. junior record holder for the 3,000 (8:03.57) and 5,000 (13:37.91).
NEWCOMERS TO WATCH: Del Rincon, Hinchcliffe and Jordan Go Green in ?05.
Top Duck women’s newcomers in 2005 include junior and San Joaquin Valley CC transfer Lauryn Jordan (PRs ? heptathlon 5,020, HJ 5-8.5, LJ 19-11.5-indoors, TJ 40-11.5), redshirt junior and Arizona State transfer Mandi Fitz-Gustafson (1,500 4:37.86, steeple 10:51.81), freshman sprinter Julie Schmidt-Scherer from Copenhagen, Denmark (200 24.45, 400 54.97) and redshirt junior and Washington State transfer Brittany Hinchcliffe (HT 200-3). Other notable women’s newcomers include freshman Kasey Harwood (800 2:12.02-i, 400H 60.73), Katie Leary (1,500 4:36, 3,000 10:00.38), sophomore and Boise State transfer Emily Mathis (800 2:13.98, 1,500 4:44.31), freshman Kalindra McFadden (200 25.00, 100 hurdles 14.64, HJ 5-4.5) and freshman Sarah Pearson (1,500 4:32.85, 3,000 9:56.92). Although she has to redshirt the '05 campaign because of transfer rules, junior Britney Henry arrived in Eugene with the LSU school record (207-9) and was an NCAA and Olympic Trials qualifier in 2004 for the Bayou Bengals. The men’s newcomer list is headlined by junior sprinter and Grossmont JC transfer Richard Del Rincon (100 10.40-10.23w, 200 20.87-20.57w), junior Danish javelin thrower Lars Mueller Laursen (233-6), freshman and North Vancouver, B.C. native Chris Winter (steeple 8:54.94), and juniors and Lane CC transfers Cody Fleming (decathlon 6,741, DT 154-2) and Brian Bartow (decathlon 6,671, JT 209-0). Other men’s newcomers that will vie for Pac-10 and West Regional invites include junior and Glendale Community College transfer Matt Adams (JT 203-3, DT 156-1), redshirt sophomore and BYU transfer Montrell Dunn (TJ 49-7-49-10w, LJ 23-10) and freshman and North Bend, Ore., native Brian Wuethrich (JT 202-0).
DUCK WOMEN’S NEWCOMERS
Ashley Bridenbeck, Fr., Lake Oswego, Ore. - 100 12.1, 200 25.56
Heather Fitz-Gustafson, Fr., The Dalles, Ore. - 800 2:18, 1,500 4:39.43. 3,000 10:27.33
Mandi Fitz-Gustafson, RJr.-TR, The Dalles, Ore. - 800 2:16.9, 1,500 4:37.86, Steeple 10:51.81
Kasey Harwood, Fr., Polson, Mont. - 800 2:12, 300H 44.10, 400H 60.73
Britney Henry, Jr.-TR, Spokane, Wash. - HT 211-8, JT 119-0
Brittany Hinchcliffe, RJr.-TR, Olympia, Wash. - HT 200-3, DT 154-11
Lauryn Jordan, Jr.-TR, Stockton, Calif. - HJ 5-8 1/2, LJ 19-10, TJ 40-8 1/4, Hep 5,020
Katie Leary, Fr., Klamath Falls, Ore. - 1,500 4:36, 3,000 10:00.38
Emily Mathis, So.-TR, Henley, Ore. - 800 2:13.98, 1,500 4:44.31
Kalindra McFadden, Fr., Bozeman, Mont. - 200 25.00, 100H 14.64, HJ 5-4.5
Sarah Pearson, Fr., Eugene, Ore. - 800 2:15.4, 1,500 4:32.85, 3,000 9:56.92
Irie Searcy, RFr., Portland, Ore. - 100 12.6-h, 200 25.6-h, 400 57.8-h
Julie Schmidt-Scherer, Fr., Copenhagen, Denmark - 200 24.45, 400 54.97, LJ 18-5 1/4
DUCK MEN’S NEWCOMERS
Matt Adams, Jr.-TR, Chino Valley, Ariz. - JT 203-3, DT 156-1
Brian Bartow, Jr.-TR, Grants Pass, Ore. - Dec. 6,671, JT 209-0
Nick Dalton, Sr.-TR, Clevedon, New Zealand - 1,500 3:50, 3,000 8:30
Richard Del Rincon, Jr.-TR, LaMesa, Calif. - 100 10.40 / 10.23w (w:3.7), 200 20.87 / 20.57w, 400 47.92
Montrell Dunn, Jr., Las Vegas, Nevada - LJ 23-10, TJ 49-7, 49-10w
Cody Fleming, Jr.-TR, Sparks, Nevada - Dec. 6,741, HJ 6-7, DT 154-2
Rob Gillespie, Fr., Eugene, Ore. - 400 49.12, 800 1:54.20
Steve Green, RFr., Malta, Mont. - TJ 46-0-ind, 45-7-hs
Michael Hill, Jr.-TR, Bend, Ore. - HT 169-1
Lars Mueller Laursen, Jr.-TR, Copenhagen, Denmark - JT 233-6
Galen Rupp, Fr., Portland, Ore. - 1,500 3:45.3, Mile 4:01.8, 3,000 8:03.57, 5,000 13:37.91, 10,000 29:09.56
Joel Sauvain, Fr., Canby, Ore. - 1,500 3:58, 3,000 8:44
Pat Swick, Fr., Las Vegas, Nevada - 800 1:59, 1,600 4:22, Steeple - 9:26.89, 3,200 9:22
Jacob Tolbert, RFr., San Jose, Calif. - LJ 22-10, TJ 45-9 1/4
Scott Wall, Fr., Portland, Ore. - 1,600 - 4:15-HS, 3,000 8:18.50, Steeple 9:26.89
Patrick Werhane, RFr., Beaverton, Ore. - 1,500 4:08, 3K 8:34.56, 5K 14:54.24, 10K 30:49.95
Chris Winter, Fr., North Vancouver, B.C. - 1,500 3:53, 3,000 8:31.17, Steeple 8:54.94
J.K. Withers, Fr., Santa Rosa, Calif. - 800 1:53.21, 1,600 4:10.7, Mile 4:13.15, 3,000 8:36.17
Brian Wuethrich, Fr., North Bend, Ore. - JT 202-0, SP 56-3 (HS)
RELAYS TURN IT UP AT DRAKE: 4x100 & 4x400 Run Top-5 All-Time Marks.
DES MOINES, Iowa (4/29-30) ? As expected, the relays stole Duck men’s headlines in action both days last Friday and Saturday in the Drake Relays, held at Drake Stadium at Drake University. The men’s 4x100 of juniors Richard Del Rincon and Matt Scherer, senior Kedar Inico and redshirt sophomore Jordan Kent ranked first in the finals (39.88) and edged Wisconsin (second, 40.08) and North Dakota State (third, 40.54). The UO quartet’s time tied their third-fastest time ever in school history behind the 1991 school record of 39.80, and 2005’s season best of 39.83 from the Golden Bear Invite two weeks ago in Berkeley, Calif. The day before, the same group led the prelims with a time of 40.05, and were followed by Northern Iowa (second, 40.10). In front of another sold-out crowd of 18,000 in the meet’s final event, the 4x400 relay of junior Travis Anderson, Inico, junior A.K. Ikwuakor and Scherer returned to take second in a 2.09-second season best (3:05.72) behind returning NCAA outdoor champion Baylor (3:05.19), while 2005 indoor All-Americans Northern Iowa followed in third place (3:06.03). UO’s mark Saturday was its fifth-fastest in outdoor school history behind four marks from last year, including a school record of 3:03.49 from its Pac-10 Championships runner-up finish. The quartet also ranked second in Friday’s prelims (3:09.25) behind Baylor (first, 3:06.64). In the 110 hurdles, Ikwuakor clipped .10 seconds off his personal best to win the university final Saturday (13.93, w:0.8) by .10 seconds, and climbed a spot on the UO all-time list to move into a tie for sixth with recent Duck Terry Ellis and his mark from 2003. Also on Saturday, he won his section in the 400 hurdles to move to ninth with a personal best (50.99). In the invitational division of the 110 hurdles, junior hurdler Eric Mitchum won his heat and ranked second among collegians (fifth, 13.68, w:0.5) behind collegiate leader and two-time NCAA indoor champion Antwon Hicks of Ole Miss (third, 13.42, w:0.1). In Saturday’s 100 final, Del Rincon tied for fourth (10.62) into a -0.7 headwind, and trailed Wisconsin’s Demi Omole (first, 10.48), Dickinson State’s Derrick Atkins (second, 10.52) and McKendree’s Orion Nicely (third, 10.61). The first-year Duck’s time was .08 seconds off the team’s season best and his tailwind-assisted mark of 10.54 from Berkeley in mid-April (10.54, w:1.4). The day before, he ranked fourth in the prelims (10.64, w:0.4). In the 200, Kent finished second (21.05, w:-1.4) just behind post-collegian and former Boise State All-American Corey Nelson (first, 21.00). Kent’s mark was a .01-second season best and his headwind-slowed effort was only .06 seconds off his personal best from the 2003 West Regional (20.99) that ranks him seventh all-time for the Ducks. In Friday’s long jump, redshirt senior Leonidas Watson took second (25-6w, w:2.8) behind Indiana’s indoor NCAA champion Aarik Wilson (25-10 1/4). Watson was only 4 3/4 inches off his season best (25-10 3/4) from the Pepsi Team Invite in early April when he defeated Wilson head-to-head at Hayward Field in Eugene. Redshirt sophomore Jordan Kent followed in 11th place (23-9, w:1.7) in his second appearance of the season. He debuted last weekend in the Oregon Invite (24-9 3/4) in his first effort on the runway since the middle of his freshman campaign in 2003. The next day, Watson, added fifth in the triple jump (50-7 1/2, w:0.8) with his second-best mark of the outdoor campaign in an event also won by Indiana’s Aarik Wilson (54-5 1/4). Watson entered the weekend ranked ninth nationally with his season best of 52-9 1/2 from the Golden Bear Invite at Cal two weeks ago. Other solid field event marks came from senior hammer thrower Paul Etter (10th, 184-9) and junior javelin thrower Matt Adams (sixth, 200-1).
MALONE & FUQUA LEAD CHARGE AT DRAKE: Duo Go Top-3 in Javelin & Shot Put.
DES MOINES, Iowa (4/29-30) ? In Friday’s invitational javelin section at the Drake Relays last week, redshirt senior Sarah Malone was above 170 feet for the third straight meet with her third-place toss of 174-2. The Newberg, Ore., native trailed collegiate season leader Dana Pounds of Air Force (first, 181-2) and Kayla Wilkinson of Nebraska (second, 174-4). Duck redshirt junior Roslyn Lundeen followed in ninth place (147-8). Redshirt senior Bree Fuqua scored the UO women’s highest finish of the meet with her runner-up effort in the shot put (51-9 3/4) behind South Florida’s Chandra Brewer (first, 52-8). The Polson, Mont., native Fuqua added 11th in the discus (154-6) earlier in the day. In other field event action, redshirt junior Lauryn Jordan competed in the long jump (16th, 18-5, w:0.1) and triple jump (13th, 39-5 1/4), sophomore pole vaulter Emily Enders tied her season best (seventh, 12-5 1/2) and redshirt junior Brittany Hinchcliffe took eighth in the hammer (181-0). On the track Friday, the 4x400 of seniors Michelle Donovan and Sofie Abildtrup, redshirt junior Sara Schaaf and freshman Julie Schmidt-Scherer ranked 12th in the prelims (3:45.20), and were only 2.10 seconds off their season best from the Pepsi Team Invite three weeks ago. On Saturday, sprint medley relay of Abildtrup, Schmidt-Scherer, Donovan and Schaaf took fifth (3:59.31) in the 1,600 meter-long race (200-200-400-800) won by Rice (3:52.77).
2004 HEP/DEC. REVIEW: Decathletes Go 1-3-4-5/Andrus Repeats Third in Hep.
TUCSON, Ariz. (5/7-8/04) ? Last year at the University of Arizona, the Duck men featured four NCAA provisional or automatic marks among their quartet of top-five finishes, including men’s winner Tommy Skipper, in final day action in the Pac-10 Championships decathlon, and senior Abby Andrus posted a NCAA provisional mark and 22-point personal best for third place in the women’s heptathlon at Roy Drachman Stadium. Skipper led the Duck men with an NCAA automatic score (7,589) that was 89 points above the decathlon auto standard, and ended 105 points better than runner-up Arizona State senior Joshua Kinnaman (second, 7,484). Andy Young registered a 193-point personal best to take third place (7,372), and senior Gabriel LeMay followed in fourth with a 158-point personal best of his own (fourth, 7,333). Ryan Voge also easily topped the NCAA provisional standard of 7,000 points with a 191-point personal best to finish fifth (7,245). Among second day marks, Skipper led the pole vault marks by almost a full foot with his clearance of 17-4 1/2, and he was also 18 feet better than the field in the javelin with his collegiate best (203-10). The Sandy, Ore., native also ranked top-two in the 100 (first, 10.69, w:0.0), shot put (first, 44-6 3/4), high jump (second, 6-5 1/2) and discus (second, 143-4), . Giving Oregon its fourth straight Pac-10 decathlon title and 11th overall including Pac-8 history dating back to 1965, he moved up from fourth place after the first day when he tallied 3,857 points. At the halfway point, he trailed ASU’s Kinnaman who scored 3,995 points to lead Oregon’s Voge (3,956), while LeMay followed in third (3,874) and Young stood eighth (3,578). Among Oregon’s other three event wins, Young kicked to the tape first in the 1,500 (4:21.94) in a Duck 1-2-3 sweep with LeMay in second place four seconds back (4:25.94). LeMay won the first day’s 400 (48.78), and Voge skied to a personal best and Pac-10 qualifying win in the high jump (6-9). Overall, the Ducks’ 1-3-4-5 finish netted them 25 points ? their most points in a single event in recent memory in any of the 19 individual events in the conference championships. On the all-time Duck charts, three of the four Ducks bettered the previous 10th-place ranked performer, Paul Pappas, who scored a personal best 7,303 points in 1997. Skipper moved to eighth all-time for the Ducks ahead of Kanon Vanderhoff (ninth, 7,488) and recent Pac-10 champion and All-American Billy Pappas (10th, 7,532) who tallied his best en route to the Pac-10 win in 2002. On the women’s side, Andrus notched an NCAA heptathlon return with a 22-point personal best (5,325) and repeated her third-place finish from 2003. The Peoria, Ariz., native trailed only a pair of top-five ranked collegians in the final scores ? Arizona State then-freshman Jackie Johnson (first, 5,603) and Cal’s Brooke Meredith (second, 5,475). Andrus had single event marks 25.98 (w:0.7) in the 200, 35-7 3/4 in the shot put, 18-2 1/2 in the long jump (w:2.9) and 118-0 in the javelin, Among the day’s opening events, Andrus ranked fifth with a hep season best in the long jump (18-2 1/2, w:2.9), and her javelin mark (118-0) was only four inches shy of her personal best. Before the 800, she owned a six-event score of 4,481 points and was in a three-way battle for third place with Washington’s Grace Vela (4,482), and Washington State’s Julie Pickler (4,478). As Andrus pushed to the lead from the start en route to a two second-win (2:18.48) over ASU’s Johnson (second, 2:20.88), the other Northwest rivals faded to fifth (Vela, 2:26.09) and eighth (Pickler, 2:50.36) in the two-lap event. Andrus’s last event surge also pushed her ahead of the two rivals on the national list with Pickler (5,135) and Vela (5,065) formerly ranked ahead of Andrus (5,060) based on season bests. Andrus’s mark still ranked her fifth all-time for the Ducks and pushed her closer to two-time All-American Jennifer Thomas (fourth, 5,452) who posted her personal best in 1998.
2004 OREGON TWILIGHT REVIEW: Duo Go Top-3 in Javelin & Shot Put.
EUGENE (5/1/04) ? In their 2004 regular season finale, the Duck men and women combined for 24 Pac-10 marks (14 W / 10 M) and 18 regional marks (9 W / 9 M) in the Oregon Twilight, in front of a crowd of approximately 4,000 at Hayward Field. Among the Duck women’s nine event wins, Sofie Abildtrup added wins in the 200 (24.01, w:1.9) ? only .08 seconds off her personal best ? and as an anchor on the 4x100 relay (47.97). Sara Schaaf (first, 2:08.08) rode the coattails of former Duck Vicky Fleschner (second, 2:08.25) en route to a two-second personal best in the 800 for another Pac-10 and regional qualifier. Abby Andrus added blue ribbons in the 100 hurdles (14.16w, w:2.03) and 400 hurdles (59.9-hand timed) in season bests and her first regional marks of the season in the latter event. Clarice Hayward-Lee finally claimed her first outdoor, wind-legal 40-foot triple jump mark (first, 40-8 3/4), and Maegan Traver also notched a personal best by more than 8 1/2 inches (second, 38-10 1/2). Oregon’s then-second-ranked all-time shot putter, Bree Fuqua, improved her then-personal best by one foot and 1 3/4 inches with her winning mark and regional and Pac-10 mark (52-5 1/4). Then-redshirt Brittany Hinchcliffe unleashed her second-best mark ever in the hammer (first, 198-5) ? less than two feet off her personal best from the Oregon Invite the previous week (200-5). Other women’s event winners included former Duck All-Americans Becky Holliday (pole vault, 14-1 1/4) and Mary Etter (173-11). On the men’s side, the Duck men piled up six wins among the 13 events ? spread among the sprints (2), hurdles (2) and throws (2). Eric Mitchum broke 14.00 again in the 110 hurdles (13.76w, w:2.6), and A.K. Ikwuakor added a .02-second wind-aided then-season best (second, 14.28). Brandon Holliday made a bid for the conference lead in the 400 hurdles with his nearly half-second season best (first, 51.08). Kedar Inico won the 400 for the first time for the Ducks in a season best (46.92), just ahead of Matt Scherer who also logged a season best (second, 47.09). Ryan Gilliam won the 100 again at home with his then-second-fastest collegiate effort (10.70, w:1.2). Ryan Andrus added eighth in the Bill McChesney Memorial Twilight Mile (4:13.25). Brandon Tower won his first event at Hayward Field thanks to a 10-foot personal best in the discus (166-6), and pulled within two feet of the Pac-10 qualifying mark. Adam Jenkins won the javelin (205-3) by six inches over former Duck NCAA champ John Stiegeler (second, 204-9). In the hammer, Paul Etter (fifth, 198-9) was only three inches from his season best and six inches from his personal best last season for Clackamas, and Tower turned in a six-foot best (eighth, 151-5). The pole vault stood as the Ducks’ deepest event as Tommy Skipper upped his outdoor then-season best by 3/4 inches (second, 17-9 1/4), and Trevor Woods (third, 17-1 1/2) and David Moore (fourth, 16-5 1/2) added a half-inch and 3/4 inches, respectively, to their season bests. Three more wins came from All-America Duck alumni ? Simon Kimata of Nike (800, 1:48.33), Jason Boness of Team XO (high jump, 6-11 1/2), and Piotr Buciarski (pole vault, 18-1 1/4) ? while local post-collegian Tom Brooks of Eugene Health & Performance won the Bill Mcchesney Jr. Memorial Twilight Mile (4:07.17).
Women’s Twilight Meet Records
100 - 11.86, Dena Burroughs, BYU (1993)
200 - 23.53, Judi Brown, Team Nike (1984)
400 - 52.62, Maria Mutola, Nike (1998)
800 - 2:01.28, Claudette Groenendaal, Ore. (1985)
1,500 - 4:07.50, Maria Mutola, Mozambique (1992)
3,000 - 8:59.76, Kathy Hayes, Oregon (1983)
Steeple - 10:02.92, K. MacDonald, NY Elite (2002)
5,000 - 15:07.66, Marla Runyan, Asics (2000)
100 Hurdles - 13.39, Cindy Greiner, AW (1988)
400 Hurdles - 57.27, Judi Brown, Tm. Nike (1984)
400 Relay - 47.97, Oregon (McAllister, Donovan, Santana, Abildtrup), 2004
Mile Relay - 3:44.17, Oregon (Nelson, Otterstedt, Morris, Hilsenteger) (1985)
High Jump - 6-2.25, D. Gaztambide, Unat. (1992)
Pole Vault - 14-1.25, Becky Holliday, N. Balance (2004)
Long Jump - 21-5.25, S. Williams, Adidas (1997)
Triple Jump - 40-8.75, C. Hayward-Lee, Oregon (2004)
Shot Put - 52-5.25, Bree Fuqua, Oregon (2004)
Discus - 189-7, Kathy Picknell, Bud Light (1985)
Javelin - 174-0, Sarah Malone, Oregon (2001)
Hammer - 198-5, Brittany Hinchcliffe, Unat. (2004)
Men’s Twilight Meet Records
100 - 10.31, Pat Johnson, Oregon (1995)
200 - 21.02, Joao DaSilva, Brazil (1985)
400 - 46.88, Klaus Weigeldt, Oregon (1990)
800 - 1:45.9, Mike Boit, Unattached (1977)
1,500 - 3:41.38, Gordon Johnson, Unat. (1995)
Mile - 3:55.31, Dub Myers, Oregon (1986)
3,000 - 7:37.7, Rudy Chapa, Oregon (1979)
2-mile - 8:29.46, Ritchie Harris, Athl. West (1981)
Steeple - 8:30.7, Danny Lopez, Mizuno (1992)
5,000 - 13:25.6, Rudy Chapa, Oregon (1978)
10,000 - 27:43.6, Steve Prefontaine, OTC (1974)
110H - 14.1, Dwight Robertson, Oregon (1982)
110H - 14.1, LaMar Hurd, Oregon (1983)
110H - 14.1, Muhammad Oliver, Oregon Int. (1994)
400H - 50.89, Brian Wright, Oregon (1989)
400 Relay - 40.01, Oregon (Gray, Wilson, Russell, Weigeldt) (1989)
1,600 Relay - 3:13.00, Oregon (Anderson, Scherer, Holliday, Finol) (2003)
High Jump - 7-3 1/4, Jason Boness, Ore. (2000)
Pole Vault - 19-0 1/4, Kory Tarpenning, PCC (1989)
Long Jump - 26-1 1/2, Bouncy Moore, Ore. (1971)
Triple Jump - 53-9 3/4, S. Williams, Unat. (1994)
Triple Jump - 53-9 3/4, Gregg Bleakney, Ore. (1998)
Shot Put - 67-83/4, Neil Steinhauer, Army (1969)
Discus - 206-8, Mitch Crouser, MUSA (1982)
Hammer - 266-0, Lance Deal, New York AC (1992)
Javelin - 256-0, Brian Crouser, Team Nike (1989)
REMEMBERING BILL: Eugene's Own Bill McChesney Jr. Electrified Hayward Field as a Prep, Collegian & Post-Collegian. The Bill McChesney Jr. Memorial Twilight mile is named after the Eugene native who owns Oregon records in the 5,000 (13:14.80) and 10,000 (27:50.82), but it is better remembered for his magical junior season. Following the lead of his older brothers and Duck track alum, Steve and Tom, the younger McChesney rebounded from a heel injury in March and April of 1980 and debuted in the Pac-10 5,000 (third). Three weeks later, he repeated the same place in the NCAA 5,000 (13:47.96) as the top American in the Austin, Texas-hosted finale. The Olympic Trials followed in Eugene, and he inspired the homecrowd with a gutsy surge with a mile remaining in the 5,000. As the crowd roared, he pushed out to a 70-yard lead ? a gamble that eventually paid off with a third-place finish (13:34.4) and an Olympic Team spot. Later that summer in Europe, he became America’s second-fastest ever in the 5,000 (13:18.6) and sixth all-time in the 10,000 (27:58.50). He returned home in July to join the Duck sub-4:00 club at an Oregon Track Club all-comers meet (second, 3:59.1). In those three months, he dropped his 5K personal best almost 24 seconds (13:42.5-13:18.6) and more than a minute in the 10K from his prep personal best (29:06.8-27:58.50). In all-time national and world rankings, he stood top-five nationally in the 5,000 three years and fourth in the world in 1981 (13:15.77). In the 10,000, he ranked top-10 in the U.S. four years and ninth in the world in 1981 (27:47.50). He ran his 5K career best of 13:14.80 in 1982, while his 10K best of 27:47.25 came in 1981. Besides making the 1980 Olympic Team in the 5,000, he finished 15th in the 10,000 in the 1983 World Championships. Overall as a collegian, he claimed two All-America track honors in the 5,000, and two honors in cross country. His Oregon 5K best also stands as the American collegiate record with only Washington State Kenyan Henry Rono running faster at the collegiate level (13:08.4). As a redshirt and would-be senior in 1981, he lowered his mile best in the Oregon Twilight (second, 3:56.36) ? a race that featured a meet record five under the 4:00-minute barrier. In cross country, he raced in four NCAA Championships, including 28th overall as a freshman helping the team to its fourth NCAA title in 1977, and runner-up finishes in 1978 and 1979. He was equally decorated as a prep at South Eugene High School and helped the Axemen to four state cross country and three track team titles, and individually he won six state titles in track (3) and cross country (3). As a prep, he ran his six-mile (28:09.4) and 10,000-meter (29:06.8) national junior records during his junior year (3/20/76) at Hayward Field. On the relay front, he was a member of national record quartets in the four-mile relay (17:06.6) and distance medley (10:01.6). He broke Steve Prefontaine’s state meet record in the 3,200 by 12 seconds with his 8:50 clocking. Even today, he ranks third behind Pre (8:07.4) on the all-time state 3,000 list (8:16.2).
Oregon Twilight Champions & Sub-4:00 Milers
1966, Dyrol Burleson, 3:57.3; Roscoe Divine, 3:59.1; Wade Bell, 3:59.8
1969, Mike Manley, 4:01.8
1970, Roscoe Divine, 3:56.3; Steve Prefontaine, 3:57.4; Dave Wilborn, 3:58.2; Norm Trerise, 3:59.1; Steve Savage, 3:59.2
1971, Arne Kvalheim, 3:56:4; Steve Prefontaine, 3:57.4
1972, Steve Prefontaine, 3:56.7
1973, Steve Prefontaine, 3:55.0
1974, Paul Geis, 3:58.1; Mark Feig, 3:58.5
1975, Gary Barger, 4:02.7
1976, Peter Spir*, 3:43.8
1977, Peter Spir, 4:01.3
1978, Don Clary*, 3:47.0
1979, Matt Centrowitz, 3:59.7
1980, Matt Centrowitz, 3:57.77
1981, Tom Byers, 3:55.71; Bill McChesney, 3:56.36; Rudy Chapa, 3:57.04; Ed Spinney, 3:57.34; Ken Martin, 3:57.84
1982, Jim Hill, 3:56.41; Dan Aldridge, 3:59.87
1983, Dub Myers, 3:57.06; , Larry Mangan, 3:57.46; Ed Spinney, 3:58.02
1984, Dub Myers, 3:58.24; Larry Mangan, 3:58.36; Randy Wilson, 3:58.74; Mike Blackmore, 3:59.80
1985, Mike Blackmore, 3:59.81
1986, Dub Myers, 3:55.31; Mike Blackmore, 3:58.35; Kelly Britz, 3:58.55; Marty Hemsley, 3:59.70
1987, Dub Myers, 3:59.40; Harold Kuphaldt, 3:59.73; Rick Bergesen, 3:59.79; Mike Blackmore, 3:59.88
1988, Dub Myers, 3:57.44; Mike Blackmore, 3:57.46
1989, Alan Foster*, 3:42.12
1990, Eric Peterson*, 3:46.16
1991, Greg Whiteley, 3:59.22; Colin Dalton, 3:59.44
1992, Shannon Lemora, 4:04.01
1993, Shannon Lemora, 4:03.09
1994, Gordon Johnson, 4:00.23
1995, Gordon Johnson*, 3:41.38; Shannon Lemora*, 3:42.05; Daniel Das Neves*, 3:42.49
1996, Daniel Das Neves*, 3:44.01
1997, Ian Gillespie*, 3:44.84
1998, Ian Gillespie, 4:01.84
1999, Adam Goucher, 3:57.63
2000, Jason Pyrah, 3:57.63; Clyde Colenso, 3:58.49; Steve Fein, 3:59.35; Dan Browne, 3:59.71; Mike Miller, 3:59.86
2001, Mike Miller, 3:57.13
2002, Mike Miller, 4:02.26
2003, Nick Symmonds, 4:03.85
2004, Tom Brooks, 4:07.17
* Asterisk denotes 1,500
COACHING UPDATE: Gray Assumes Interim Director Title.
Outdoors in 2005, the Ducks are under the temporary direction of associate athletic director Gary Gray, who stepped into the role of interim director of track and field after the resignation of former coach Martin Smith on Fri., March 18. Gray serves as the department’s compliance director and also held prior titles of assistant athletic director and director of student services since he joined the staff in 1984. The State Center, Iowa native already oversaw the program as part of his administrative duties, and serves in the same capacity for the cross country and wrestling teams.
TYSON ON BOARD: Former Duck Tabbed Interim Men’s Distance Coach.
After the departure of former head coach Martin Smith, former Duck Pat Tyson joined the team in late March as a men’s volunteer distance coach for the spring season. As a student-athlete, the former walk-on was a two-time NCAA competitor for the Ducks in cross country (33rd in 1971, 54th in ?72) as the squad placed first and third, respectively, those seasons for former coach Bill Dellinger. On the track, Tyson ended his collegiate career in ?73 with top-six rankings for the Ducks in the 3-mile (sixth, 13:37.0) and 6-mile (fourth, 28:34.0). After graduation, he quickly began a 31-year prep coaching career that included a pair of initial stops in Seattle. However, he is best known as the men’s distance mentor at Mead High School in Spokane, Wash, and guided the Panthers to 26 combined individual titles (track and cross country) and 12 state cross country team titles since his arrival in 1986. His harrier teams have ranked top-five nationally seven seasons, and last fall his squad took third in the inaugural Nike Team Nationals in Portland. His seven Footlocker National Championships qualifiers rank third-most of any boy’s program nationally, and include a pair of Mead alum ? Matthew and Micah Davis ? that combined for five All-America honors in track and cross country for UO.
HAYWARD FIELD PROFILE: Eugene Welcomed its Ninth NCAA Finale in ?01.
One of the most famous track facilities in the world, Hayward Field is named for Bill Hayward, who coached the Oregon’s men’s team from 1904-1947. Originally dedicated in 1919, the 10,205-seat stadium now boasts a standing room capacity of 10,505. In 2001, the venue welcomed the world’s fastest, strongest and most explosive to a Triple Crown of great meets ? the NCAA Outdoor Championships, Prefontaine Classic (www.preclassic.com) and USA Outdoor Championships. Altogether, nine NCAA Championships (1962-64-72-78-74-77-91-96-01) have visited Track City USA, along with three Olympic Trials (1972-76-80) and six U.S. Championships (AAU 1971-75, TAC 1986, USATF-1993-99-01). Since the NCAA started rotating outdoor championships sites in 1934, Oregon has welcomed more finals (9) than any other school. California follows with eight (although they haven’t hosted one since 1968), and no other school has hosted more than five. Looking ahead, the fabled facility will host the 2005 West Regional Championships (5/27-28/05) and 2006 Pacific-10 Conference Championships.
PICKS OF THE PAC-10: Five Current Ducks Have Claimed Weekly League Honors.
Last week, redshirt junior Andy Young was tabbed the Pacific-10 Conference Men’s Field Event Athlete of the Week after he won the Oregon Invitational decathlon with an NCAA provisional score of 7,329 points on Thu.-Fri., April 21-22. He notched a season best in eight of the 10 events, and only five collegians had scored higher decathlon totals before last weekend. Young was an NCAA decathlon competitor for the Ducks in 2004 (13th - 3 places higher than his seed), and is a two-time Pac-10 top-five finisher in (third in ’04, fifth in ’03). In 2004, Tommy Skipper took UO’s second honor in the fifth and final edition of the award that season (5/10). The then-freshman from Sandy, Ore., won the conference decathlon title in his collegiate event debut with an NCAA automatic score (7,589) that was 89 points above the NCAA automatic standard, and 105 points better than runner-up Arizona State senior Joshua Kinnaman (second, 7,484). Skipper gave Oregon its fourth straight Pac-10 decathlon title and 11th overall including Pac-8 history dating back to 1965. Among final day marks, he led the pole vault marks by almost a full foot with his clearance of 17-4 1/2, was also 18 feet better than the field in the javelin, and also topped the field the first day in the 100 (10.69) and shot put (44-6 3/4). In the award’s opening edition of 2004 (4/12), Sofie Abildtrup claimed similar honors for the women’s track category. The Saturday before (4/10/04), she helped Oregon to team wins over Colorado, Minnesota and Washington in the Pepsi Team Invite and claimed individual blue ribbons in the 200 (23.94) and 400 (54.49), and also ran a 54.40-second split on the victorious 4x400 relay. Looking back to 2003, the Duck men tied with USC for the most weekly Pac-10 Athlete of the Week honors with USC (4), among the five editions that honor both a track and field event performer. The Duck men claimed the most field event honors (2), USC held court for most track honors (3), and UCLA claimed the other field event honor (1). Among current Ducks tabbed in 2003, Brett Holts was selected in the men’s track category after he took the Pac-10 steeplechase lead with his four-second personal best in the Cardinal Invitational (8:48.81, Fri., 5/2). The week before (Mon., 4/28), Adam Jenkins was selected in the field event category after he leapfrogged teammate John Stiegeler to the top of the Pac-10 javelin rankings, thanks to his three-foot personal and six-foot, seven-inch season best in the Oregon Invitational (221-4). Another current Duck, Sarah Malone, won an honor in early May 2001 for her javelin school record and Oregon Twilight win (174-0).
2005 NCAA INDOOR M RECAP: Ducks Claim Sixth with Eight All-Americans.
FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. (3/11-12/05) ? In the 41st edition of the NCAA Indoor Men’s Track and Field Championships, the University of Oregon men’s team posted a best-ever sixth-place finish and 29 points, thanks to six top-eight efforts in the Randal Tyson Track Center. Individually, the Duck men claimed eight All-America honors among their nine entries, including their first-ever NCAA indoor crown courtesy of sophomore Tommy Skipper (pole vault, 18-4 1/2). Other men’s All-Americans included senior Leonidas Watson (long jump, fourth, 25-11), junior Eric Mitchum (60 hurdles, fourth, 7.73), the men’s 4x400 relay (fifth, 3:05.26), seniors Kedar Inico (400, sixth, 46.62) and Eric Logsdon (3,000, seventh, 8:04.27), and juniors Matt Scherer (400, ninth, 47.15) and Ryan Voge (heptathlon, 10th, 5,209). The only Duck not to place top-10 was redshirt junior pole vaulter Jon Derby who no-heighted. Their sixth-place team finish was the third top-20 NCAA indoor effort in three years as Oregon took ninth in 2002 and 18th in 2004 with 15 and 13 points, respectively. The Ducks also paced the Pacific-10 Conference in the team results, and were followed by Arizona (10th, 20 points), Arizona State and Stanford (13th-tie, 15 points), USC (22nd, 10), UCLA (25th, 9) and Washington (28th, 7), while California and Washington State did not score. The UO men also led the league in NCAA indoor qualifiers (9), ahead of Arizona State (7), Stanford (5), Arizona (4 entries, 3 athletes), UCLA (3), Washington (2), Washington State (2), California (1) and USC (1). Looking ahead to 2006, the Duck men graduate only three scorers and nine points from 2005’s NCAA indoor meet. Overall in the team race, meet host and favorite Arkansas tallied 56 points to edge Florida (second, 46), Wisconsin (third, 43) and Auburn (fourth, 37).
2005 NCAA INDOOR W RECAP: Harmon Debuts on NCAA Indoor Oval.
Oregon’s lone women’s NCAA indoor representative, redshirt senior Laura Harmon placed 15th in the 16-woman 5,000 meters (17:24.21) in her third race of the season at the distance. The Vancouver, Wash., native matched her pre-meet seed the first day which was based on her season best and NCAA provisional mark of 16:18.56 which she ran in mid-February in the Husky Classic in Seattle. Harmon also bettered the NCAA provisional mark of 16:45.00 in the UW Invitational at January’s end (16:29.17). Harmon followed the lead of teammate Magdalena Sandoval who made UO’s first-ever NCAA women’s indoor 5,000 appearance in 2004, and NCAA automatic qualifier with her school record (16:04.40) and a contender for All-America honors until the final kilometer when she faded from seventh to 17th because of a pre-race injury. In the 23rd edition of the NCAA women’s team race, Tennessee won its first NCAA crown with 46 points and became the seventh different school to win the indoor team title. Florida followed in second place (36), ahead of Miami (third, 32), Nebraska (fourth, 29) and South Carolina (fifth, 28).
ALL-AMERICA EQUATION: Breaking down the NCAA Honor.
Based on their NCAA Championships performances, individuals are awarded All-America honors by the U.S. Track Coaches Association. The top-eight finishers from each event are honored regardless of citizenship, and any additional U.S. finishers that are among the top eight American finishers are also rewarded. If necessary, the U.S.-based honors can even extend to the top performances in the preceding qualifying round if there are not eight Americans in the event’s final.
THE ROAD TO SACTO: Explaining the Outdoor Regional System.
In contrast to the indoor season where athletes qualify based on season bests that meet NCAA automatic and provisional qualifying standards, the outdoor season relies on a head-to-head regional system that features four, two-day regionals, drawn in a vertical fashion geographically. This year, Eugene is one of four sites that will host a regional Fri.-Sat., May 27-28, and regional qualifying standards are based on the 100th best performance nationally from 2004 (while all conference champions are also automatically invited to their respective regional). Except for the 10K and heptathlon/decathlon (which still operate on an automatic/provisional standard system), the top-five finishers from each individual regional event and top three relay placers automatically advance to the NCAA Championships, nearly two weeks later (June 8-11 in Sacramento, Calif.). Besides the automatic advancers from each regional, an additional 6-8 athletes nationally per event are invited by the NCAA Championships selection committee based on a season performance list (in case of injury, illness, false-start/DQ, etc.) as long as that athlete placed top eight in the regional. Coaches hope that the easier regional qualifying standards (compared to previous national automatic/provisional standards) enable athletes to obtain marks during the regular season and avoid 'chasing marks', especially in mid- to late-May, while the regional competition encouraged head-to-head competition at the end of the season and increase fan and media interest. The switch to the regional method was made prior to the 2003 season, the same year the championships field sizes were increased approximately 40 percent. Most individual events were previously 18-21 deep with relays inviting 11-12 entries, and grew to 27-29 and 15-16, respectively. Previous men's and women's fields were set at 388 athletes among the 21 individual and relay events, and in 2003, the number expanded to 544 each
TRACKWIRE NCAA OUTDOOR PREDICTIONS
Men’s Top 25 Teams
1. Arkansas, 67
=2. Florida, 47
=2. LSU, 47
4. Arizona, 40
5. Stanford, 37
6. USC, 33
=7. Arizona State, 31
=7. Auburn, 31
9. Florida State, 28
10. Indiana, 26
11. Oregon, 23
12. Texas, 22
13. Michigan, 21
14. Mississippi State, 20
=15. Nebraska, 19
=15. BYU, 19
17. Boise State, 18
=18. Wisconsin, 15
=18. Virginia Tech, 15
=20. Dartmouth, 14
=20. Texas Tech, 14
=22. UCLA, 13
=22. Oklahoma, 13
=22. Mississippi, 13
=22. Baylor, 13
UO Men’s Individuals
5K - 11th, Galen Rupp
5K - 12th, Eric Logsdon
110 Hurdles - 3rd, Eric Mitchum, UO
4x100 Relay - 10th
4x400 Relay - 10th
Pole Vault - 1st, Tommy Skipper, UO
Long Jump - 4th, Leonidas Watson, UO
Triple Jump - 7th, Leonidas Watson, UO
Women’s Top 25 Teams
1. Texas, 60
=2. UCLA, 49
=2. Florida, 49
4. South Carolina, 48
5. Tennessee, 40
=6. Miami, 37
=6. Stanford, 37
8. USC, 31
9. Nebraska, 30
10. Texas Southern, 20
=11. North Carolina, 17
=11. Auburn, 17
=13. Washington State, 16
=13. Alabama, 16
=13. Arizona State, 16
16. Duke, 15
=17. BYU, 14
=17. Georgia Tech, 14
19. Georgia, 13
=20. Oklahoma State, 12
=20. Columbia, 12
=22. Clemson, 11
=22. Kansas, 11
=22. Arkansas, 11
=22. Wake Forest, 11
UO Women’s Individuals
JT - 4th, Sarah Malone, UO
2004 OLYMPIC TRIALS REVIEW: Malone Takes Second in Javelin.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (7/9-18/04) ? In the 2004 U.S. finale last July at Sacramento State’s Hornet Stadium, Sarah Malone claimed UO’s highest placing of the 2004 U.S. Olympic Track & Field Trials. The Newberg, Ore., native Malone took second in the 12-woman javelin final (Sun., 7/12) with a daily best of 177-11 (54.22m) on her final throw, and was edged only by American record holder and Nike entrant Kim Kreiner (first, 182-7). Her top-three Olympic Trials finish was the first step towards qualifying for the U.S. team for the Olympic Games in Athens, Greece (8/20-29). However, she fell short in subsequent attempts to meet the Olympic ?A’ qualifying standard of 198-5 (60.50 meters) by August 8. At the end of the season, she ranked sixth in the U.S. and 95th in the world with her Texas Relays school record (179-7) from April. Malone made her second Olympic Trials trip after she competed as a prep for Newberg High School in Sacramento in 2000 (eighth-flight, 156-11, 47.84m) ? the same year she ranked third among preps and 38th in the U.S. (Prep implement 172-0). On the men’s side, Eric Mitchum placed seventh in the first of two 110 hurdles semifinals and ranked 14th among the 16 finishers with his clocking of 13.53 (w:0.6) ? his second fastest-ever wind-legal time and third best overall (13.38-NCAA, 13.50w-Texas Relays). Former Duck Micah Harris also competed in the same race on the meet’s final day and ranked eighth in the section and 15th overall among the two races (13.55). Among collegians, Mitchum ranked third in the semifinal results behind Ohio State’s Joel Brown (ninth, 13.39, w:1.6) and Ole Miss’s Antwon Hicks (11th, 13.45, w:0.6). Mitchum ran two rounds the day prior on Saturday (7/17), and clocked times of 13.67 in both the prelims (third-fourth heat, ninth overall, w:-0.8) and quarterfinals (fourth-third heat, 14th overall, w:-1.1). Going into the meet, Mitchum tied for 11th with Harris on the 2004 U.S. season best list in the 110 hurdles with his NCAA runner-up time and school record from mid-June in Austin, Texas (13.38, w:1.2). Looking back over ?04, Mitchum ran 15 sub-14.00 clockings in 16 races overall, including 10 efforts that were faster than his preseason best of 13.73 that ranked him second in school history heading into ?04 behind former UO record holder Harris (13.67, 2002). On the opening event of the opening day of the meet, freshman Tommy Skipper just missed advancing to the pole vault final (Fri., 7/9). The Sandy, Ore., native needed three attempts to clear the opening height of 17-8 1/2, then missed his three tries at 18-0 1/2. The event’s youngest competitor, Skipper tied for 14th overall, and if he would have cleared 17-8 1/2 on one of his first two tries he would have qualified for the 12-man final. The prelims marks were all noticeably hampered by a steady to strong crosswind from right-to-left that caused havoc to many approaches in the short, one-minute window for each attempt. One victim was American record holder Jeff Hartwig who no-heighted at his opening bars at 18-0 1/2. Skipper entered the meet ranked 10th in the U.S. on the 2004 best list that included seven Americans that had cleared 19 feet indoors and outdoors.
ONLINE TRACK RESOURCES
UO Athletics: www.GoDucks.com
Pacific-10 Conference: www.pac-10.org
NCAA Champs: www.ncaasports.com
NCAA Outdoor Host: www.HornetSports.com
NCAA: www.ncaa.org
College Track Results: www.TrackShark.com
USATF Oregon: www.usatf-oregon.org
USA Track and Field: www.usatf.org
USOC: www.olympic-usa.org
IAAF: www.iaaf.org
High School T&F Info: www.dyestat.com
Oregon Track Club: www.oregontrackclub.org
Prefontaine Classic: www.preclassic.com
World Championships: www.helsinki2005.fi
World Rankings: www.tilastopaja.net
Runner’s World: www.runnersworld.com
Trackwire: www.trackwire.com
T&F News: www.trackandfieldnews.com
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