Track & Field Teams Add 3 NCAA At-Large Invites; Will Send 21 to NCAA Outdoor Finale in Sacramento
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EUGENE - The University of Oregon men’s and women’s track and field teams received word Tuesday that they received 21 invitations (10M / 11W) to the upcoming NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Championships, scheduled for Sacramento, Calif., Wed.-Sat., June 8-11.
The 88th men’s edition and the 25th women’s edition will be hosted at Hornet Stadium on the Sacramento State campus, and will feature live television on both Friday (CSTV) and Saturday (CBS).
The UO men will send 11 different men to compete in 10 different events (including two relays), and the list of individual event entries includes two sprinters (200m, 400m), two hurdlers (110m/400m hurdles), and one distance runner (5,000m), pole vaulter, javelin and hammer thrower.
The UO women earned 11 invitations by 10 athletes in eight different events, including three middle distance runners (800m-2; 1,500m-1), two hammer throwers, two heptathletes, one 400-meter hurdler, one javelin, one long jumper and one pole vaulter.
Among the Duck men’s qualifiers, junior Tommy Skipper leads the collegiate pole vault qualifying list in 2006 with his school and Pac-10 record (19-0), and two others rank top-five nationally ? seniors Matt Scherer (400m, second, 45.19) and Eric Mitchum (110m hurdles, fourth, 13.48w).
On the women’s side, Oregon sports the nation’s third-ranked hammer thrower ? redshirt junior Britney Henry (hammer, school record 221-7) ? and a pair of top-five ranked freshmen ? Rebekah Noble (800m, third, UO #4 all-time 2:02.85) and Rachel Yurkovich (javelin, fifth, UO #2 all-time 179-10).
On Tuesday, two Duck men and one woman ? seniors Akobundu Ikwuakor (400m hurdles) and Amber McGown (1,500m) and redshirt Colin Veldman (hammer) - were added as at-large selections by the NCAA championship committee since they finished top-12 in their respective events in last weekend’s NCAA West Regional, Fri.-Sat., May 25-26 in Provo, Utah and ranked among the top 26-28 in their events on the national qualifying lists.
Also in Provo last weekend, six Duck men finished top five in individual events to earn automatic NCAA invitations ? including 110m hurdles champion Eric Mitchum ? while both relays claimed automatic nods with top-three finishes. The Oregon women added eight top-five finishes themselves and celebrated titles by Rebekah Noble (800m) and Rachel Yurkovich (javelin).
Two other Duck women ? the heptathlete pair of redshirt freshman Kalindra McFadden and senior Lauryn Jordan ? earned their NCAA invitations back in mid-April’s Mt. Sac Relays with their strong NCAA provisional marks that rank ninth and 10th nationally (5,428/5,426), respectively. Jordan is the only Duck male or female this year to qualify in multiple individual events since she finished fourth in the West Regional long jump. The male duo of junior Jordan Kent and Matt Scherer will run the 200m and 400m, respectively, and will also compete on both the 4x100m and 4x400m relays.
2006 OREGON OUTDOOR NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS QUALIFIERS
Event - Duck Women, Yr., Hometown ? 2006 NCAA Seed, Best (PR if better, UO Rank)
800m ? Rebekah Noble, Fr., Spokane, Wash. ? 3rd, 2:02.85 (UO #4), 5/5/06
800m ? Sara Schaaf, RSr., Klamath Falls, Ore. ? 26th, 2:07.61 (2:06.91), 5/26/06
1,500m ? Amber McGown, RSr., Melfort, Sask. ? 11th-t, 4:19.00 (UO #3), 5/14//06
400H ? Kasey Harwood, So., Polson, Mont. ? 28th, 59.84 (UO #6), 5/13/06
PV ? Emily Enders, Jr., Snohomish, Wash. ? 8th-t, 4.16m (13-7 3/4) (UO #3), 5/27/06
LJ ? Lauryn Jordan, Sr., Stockton, Calif. ? 15th-t, 6.38m (20-11 1/4, w:1.1), (UO #2), 4/13/06
HT ? Britney Henry, RJr., Bellevue, Wash. ? 3rd, 67.54m (221-7), (223-8-RS, UO #1) , 4/15/06
HT - Brittany Hinchcliffe, RSr., Olympia, Wash. - 8th, 64.13m (210-5) (UO #2), 5/27/06
JT ? Rachel Yurkovich, Fr., Newberg, Ore. ? 5th, 54.82m (179-10) (UO #2), 3/18/06
Hep. ? Kalindra McFadden, RFr., Bozeman, Mont. ? 9th, 5,428 (UO #5), 4/13/06
Hep. - Lauryn Jordan, Sr., Stockton, Calif. ? 10th, 5,426 (UO #6), 4/13/06
Event - Duck Men, Yr., Hometown - ?06 NCAA Meet Seed, Season Best (PR if better, UO Rank)
200m ? Jordan Kent, RJr., Eugene, Ore. ? 25th, 20.82 (UO #5), 5/27/06
400 - Matt Scherer, Sr., Sumner, Ill. ? 2nd, 45.19 (UO #2), 5/14/06
5,000 - Galen Rupp, So., Portland, Ore. - 18th, 14:00.94 (PR 13:37.91), 5/14/06
110H - Eric Mitchum, Sr., Calumet City, Ill. - 4th, 13.48w (PR 13.38, UO #1), 4/22/06
400H - AK Ikwuakor, Sr., Arvada, Colo. - 20th, 50.80 (PR 50.61, UO #8), 5/26/06
4x100 - Del Rincon, Scherer, Jones, Kent - 14th, 39.74 (UO #4), 5/14/06
4x400 - Anderson, Scherer, Ikwuakor, Kent - 15th, 3:06.75 (UO #10), 5/14/06
PV ? Tommy Skipper, Jr., Sandy, Ore. ? 1st, 5.79m (19-0), (UO #1), 3/18/06
HT ? Colin Veldman, RJr., Fort Collins, Colo. ? 20th, 64.22m (210-8) (UO #8), 4/21/06
JT ? Matthew Maloney, Fr., Barrington, R.I. ? 20th, 68.56m (224-11) (UO #7), 4/21/06
The above group includes six individual All-Americans (4M, 1W) and five more athletes (3M, 2W) have scored All-America honors on relays among their combined 42 NCAA appearances (33-men (20 outdoor/13 indoor); 9-women (4 outdoor / 5 indoor).
In contrast, eight Ducks will make their NCAA outdoor debuts ? the men’s trio of freshmen Derrick Jones (4x100m) and Matthew Maloney (javelin) and junior transfer Colin Veldman (hammer), and five UO women - redshirt senior Sara Schaaf (800m), sophomore Kasey Harwood (400m hurdles) and freshmen Rebekah Noble (800m), Rachel Yurkovich (javelin) and Kalindra McFadden (heptathlon).
Returning Duck All-Americans / 2006 NCAA Outdoor Qualifiers
Outdoors ? Men (8) - Matt Scherer (400m ? 14th, ’05); Galen Rupp (10,000m ? 2nd, ’05); Eric Mitchum (110 hurdles ? 4th, ’05; 2nd, ?04), 4x100m (Richard Del Rincon, Matt Scherer, Jordan Kent) (6th, ’05); 4x400m (Travis Anderson, Akobundu Ikwuakor, Matt Scherer (2)) (3rd, ’05; 5th, ’04); Tommy Skipper (pole vault ? 1st, ’04)
Indoors ? Men (12) - Matt Scherer (400m ? 9th, ?05), Galen Rupp (3,000m ? 6th, ’06; 5,000m ? 5th, ’06); Eric Mitchum (60m Hurdles ? 3rd, ’06; 4th, ’05; 6th, ?04), 4x400m (Travis Anderson, Akobundu Ikwuakor, Matt Scherer) (5th, ’05), Tommy Skipper (pole vault ? 1st, ’06; 1st, ’05; 2nd, ’04)
Outdoors ? Women (0)
Indoors ? Women (3) - Rebekah Noble (800m ? 2nd, ?06), Amber McGown (DMR ? 7th, ?06), Sara Schaaf (DMR ? 7th, ?06)
Other 2006 Duck NCAA Outdoor Qualifiers with Prior NCAA Experience
Outdoors ? Women (4) - Emily Enders (Pole Vault ? 15th-t, ’04); Britney Henry (Hammer ? NM, ’04); Brittany Hinchcliffe (Hammer ? 12th, ’05); Lauryn Jordan (Heptathlon ? 14th, ’05)
Indoors ? Women (1) ? Amber McGown (Mile ? 10th, ’06)
Outdoors ? Men (7) ? Jordan Kent (200m, 20th-p, ’03); Matt Scherer (400m, 18th-p, ’03); Akobundu Ikwuakor (110m Hurdles ? FS-semi ’04; 23rd-p, ?04); 4x400m (Anderson, Scherer, Kent) (11th, ’03);
Indoors ? Men (1) ? Matt Scherer (400m, 12th-p, ’04)
Looking back to last year’s NCAA outdoor finale also in Sacramento (6/8-11/05), the Duck men scored 23 points and tied for ninth for the third time in five years after similar finishes in 2001 and 2004, and the UO women tied for 32nd with eight points courtesy of Sarah Malone’s javelin second-place finish (169-4). Overall in the team chases, Arkansas won the men’s title with 60 points, ahead of Florida (second, 49), LSU (third, 36) and BYU and Florida State (fourth-tie, 34), and Texas claimed its sixth women’s team crown and 1999 with 55 points, and edged UCLA and South Carolina (second-tie, 48), and Tennessee (fourth, 40).
Individually, the Men of Oregon sent 15 entries (12 individuals (including one double qualifier) in 10 different events, along with and two relays, and afterwards came away with seven All-America honors ? their most since they had seven in 1992. Compared to their pre-meet seedings, 10 of the 15 qualifiers either equalled or bettered their ranking. UO men’s All-America honors went to Matt Scherer (400m, 14th-p, 45.70), Galen Rupp (10,000m, second, 28;23.75), the 4x400m relay (third, school record 3:00.82) and 4x100m relay (sixth, school record 39.20) relays, Eric Mitchum (110m hurdles, fourth, 13.53, w:0.7), and then-seniors Kedar Inico (400m, eighth, 45.85) and Eric Logsdon (5,000m, 12th, 14:20.21). The relays keyed the scoring with record-setting runs, while the Duck men’s distance troops also had its largest contingent of qualifiers (4) since 1996 ? including two in the steeplechase, and one in the 5,000 and 10,000.
The Oregon women had seven individuals combine for eight NCAA invites last year in Sacto (including six in the field events), and all eight of UO’s entries either matched or improved on their pre-meet seedings. Malone improved one place in her final NCAA appearance from her bronze medal in ’04 and seventh-place finish as a freshman in Eugene in ’01, and was one place from a fourth All-America honor as a sophomore in 2002 (14th). Among Duck NCAA outdoor returnees in ?06 Lauryn Jordan took 14th in the heptathlon - eight places higher than her pre-meet seed - with a 168-point career best of 5,367 points, and Brittany Hinchcliffe finished five places higher than her pre-meet and took 12th in the final (189-11, 194-8p).
Full NCAA meet results this season will be available at the www.HornetSports.com website, and more pre-meet information is also at the www.NCAAsports.com website.
Looking ahead another two weeks, several Duck individuals will likely travel to the USA Outdoor Senior and Junior Championships, Thu.-Sat., June 22-25 in Indianapolis, Ind. More meet info is available at the www.usatf.org website.
Additional Duck NCAA Qualifier Notes
This year’s 21 Duck individual qualifiers (11M, 10W) include:
- Five Duck athletes (3M, 2W) have combined for eight Pacific-10 Conference individual titles and also a 4x100m men’s relay crown (2006), courtesy of Eric Mitchum (110m hurdles, ’04, ’05, ?06), Matt Scherer (400m, ’06), Tommy Skipper (pole vault, ’04, ’06), and Rebekah Noble (800m ’06) and Rachel Yurkovich (javelin ’06).
- Six athletes that own outdoor school records. Men (4) ? Eric Mitchum (110H, 13.38, 2004), Tommy Skipper (pole vault, 19-0, 2006), 4x100 (39.20, 2005), 4x400 (3:00.81, 2005); Women (2) ? Britney Henry (hammer, 221-7, 2006), Rachel Yurkovich (javelin, 1179-10, 2006)
- One athlete ? Matt Scherer that was a Pac-10 First Team and ESPN National Third Team Academic All-American in 2005.
- Three athletes (2M, 1W) that claimed 2006 West Regional titles (Mitchum, Noble, Yurkovich), while Mitchum also won 110m hurdles regional titles in 2004 and ’05. Tommy Skipper broke a Pac-10 and Oregon school record en route to a pole vault regional title in 2004, and Jordan Kent won the 200m regional title as a freshman in 2003.
- Of the 21 Duck qualifiers (including relays), the breakdown follows: 9 seniors (5M, 4W); 5 juniors (3M, 2W); 2 sophomores (1M, 1W); 5 freshmen (2M, 3W)
NCAA CHAMPIONSHIPS SCHEDULE
Hornet Stadium (Sac State), Sacramento, Wed.-Saturday, June 7-10, 2006
*All events are finals unless otherwise noted
Wed., June 7, 2006
10 am M Dec. 100m/Long Jump/Shot Put/High Jump/400m
11 am M Hammer- Qual. (Veldman)
11:30 am W Javelin - Qual. (Yurkovich)
3 pm W 4 x 100m Relay - Semi
3:20 pm M 4 x 100m Relay- Semi (OREGON)
3:30 pm W Long Jump - Qual. (Jordan)
3:40 pm W 800m ? Prelim (Noble)
3:55 pm M 800m - Prelim
4:15 pm M High Jump- Qual.
4:30 pm W 100m Hurdles - Prelim
4:30 pm W Discus - Qual.
4:45 pm M Pole Vault- Qual. (Skipper)
4:50 pm M 110 Hurdles Prelim (Mitchum)
5:10 pm W 200m - Prelim
5:30 pm M 200m ? Prelim (Kent)
5:50 pm W 400m - Prelim
6:10 pm M 400m ? Prelim (Scherer)
6:30 pm W 100m Hurdles - Semi
6:45 pm M 110 Hurdles- Semi (Mitchum)
7 pm W 3,000m Steeplechase - Semi
7 pm W High Jump - Qual.
7 pm M Discus- Qual.
7:15 pm M Long Jump- Qual.
7:25 pm M 3,000m Steeplechase- Semi
7:50 pm W 5,000m - Semi
8:30 pm M 5,000m ? Semi (Rupp)
Thu., June 8, 2006
10 am M Dec. 110 Hurdles/Discus/Pole Vault/Javelin/1500m
11 am W Hammer - Qual. (Henry, Hinchcliffe)
1:15 pm M Javelin- Qual. (Maloney)
3:30 pm W 100m - Prelim
3:50 pm M 100m - Prelim
4:10 pm W 400m Hurdles ? Prelim (Harwood)
4:30 pm M 400m Hurdles Prelim (Ikwuakor)
4:30 pm W Pole Vault - Qual. (Enders)
4:50 pm W 800m - Semi (Noble)
5:05 pm M 800m - Semi
5:20 pm W 100m - Semi
5:30 pm M 100m - Semi
5:30 pm M Shot Put- Qual.
6 pm W 1500m - Semi (McGown)
6:15 pm M 1500m - Semi
6:30 pm W 4 x 400m Relay - Semi
6:30 pm W Long Jump (Jordan)
6:30 pm M Long Jump
6:55 pm M 4 x 400m Relay- Semi (Oregon)
7:15 pm W Shot Put - Qual.
7:20 pm W 10,,000m
8 pm M 10,,000m
Fri., June 9, 2006
10 am Hep. 100m Hurdles/High Jump/Shot Put /200m (Jordan, McFadden)
Noon M Hammer (Veldman)
1:00m pm W Triple Jump - Qual.
1:15 pm W Javelin (Yurkovich)
3 pm M Triple Jump- Qual.
3:45 pm W Discus
3:45 pm W High Jump
4:30 pm M Pole Vault (Skipper)
4 pm W 4 x 100m Relay
4:10 pm M 4 x 100m Relay (OREGON)
5 pm W 100m Hurdles
5:15 pm M 110 Hurdles (Mitchum)
5:25 pm W 400m - Semi
5:35 pm M 400m ? Semi (Scherer)
5:45 pm W 200m - Semi
5:55 pm M 200m ? Semi (Kent)
6:10 pm W 400m Hurdles ? Semi (Harwood)
6:15 pm M Discus
6:20 pm M 400m Hurdles ? Semi (Ikwuakor)
6:30 pm M High Jump
6:35 pm W 3,000m Steeplechase
7 pm W 5,000m
7:30 pm M 5,000m (Rupp)
Sat., June 10, 2006
10 am W Hammer (Henry, Hinchcliffe)
10 am M Javelin (Maloney)
10:30 am Hep. Long Jump/Javelin/800m
(Jordan, McFadden)
11:45 am W Pole Vault (Enders)
12:05 pm W 800m (Noble)
12:15 pm M 800m
12:30 pm W Shot Put
12:30 pm M Shot Put
12:30 pm W Triple Jump
12:30 pm M Triple Jump
12:35 pm W 100m
12:42 pm M 100m
12:52 pm W 400m Hurdles (Harwood)
1:02 pm M 400m Hurdles (Ikwuakor)
1:10 pm W 400m
1:20 pm M 400m (Scherer)
1:30 pm W 200m
1:40 pm M 200m (Kent)
1:52 pm W 1500m (McGown)
2:04 pm M 1500m
2:20 pm M 3,000m Steeplechase
2:32 pm W 4 x 400m Relay
2:45 pm M 4 x 400m Relay (OREGON)
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