Track Treks to Stanford Invitational
Rachel Yurkovich, the 2008 NCAA women’s javelin champion, and fellow All-Americans Matthew Centrowitz (men’s indoor mile), Alex Wolff (men’s javelin), Mike Simmons (men’s javelin) and Kenny Klotz (cross country) will be making their 2009 outdoor varsity debuts, along with a large contingent of Ducks who will compete Friday and Saturday at the Stanford Invitational. Action on Friday begins at 11 a.m. from Cobb Track and Angell Stadium, while Saturday’s competition gets underway at 9 a.m. Friday’s distance carnival runs late into the evening with the final event, the "A" section of the men’s 10,000 meters, scheduled to go off at 10:48 p.m.
This week marks just one of three weeks during the regular season that the Ducks will be in competition away from Historic Hayward Field. The Oregon women will be in Walnut, Calif., for the Mt. SAC Relays April 17-19. And the Ducks will be back at Stanford on May 2 for the Cardinal Invitational.
PUSKEDRA TO COMPETE AT IAAF WORLD XC CHAMPIONSHIPS
Two-time All-American Luke Puskedra is on his way to Amman, Jordan, to represent the United States at the 2009 IAAF World Cross Country Championships on Saturday. The freshman from Ogden, Utah, earned a spot on the American team by finishing third in the U.S. junior championships on Feb. 7 in Derwood, Md. Puskedra will be the fourth Duck in the junior race in the last five years. Chris Winter ran for Canada in 2004, while he and Galen Rupp (USA) were both in the 2005 race. Kenny Klotz was a 2007 representative for Team USA.
OREGON ENTRIES
In addition to the All-Americans listed above, dozens of Ducks will be in action at the Stanford Invitational. Some of those competing include All-Americans Chad Barlow (200 meters, 400 meters), Shadrack Biwott (10,000 meters), Danny Mercado (10,000 meters), Diego Mercado (10,000 meters) and Scott Wall (5,000 meters) on the men’s side and Keshia Baker (800 meters), Nicole Blood (1,500 meters, 5,000 meters), Mattie Bridgmon (10,000 meters), Dana Buchanan (1,500 meters, 3,000 meter steeplechase), Zoe Buckman (800 meters), Melissa Gergel (pole vault), Alex Kosinski (1,500 meters), Amber Purvis (long jump), and Jamesha Youngblood (long jump, triple jump) for the women.
A complete list of entries can be found at www.gostanford.com.
RESULTS
Live results will be available on www.gostanford.com. Final results will also be posted on www.goducks.com.
TRIO ALREADY IN OUTDOOR RECORD BOOKS
Just one meet into the outdoor season, three women have already etched their names on the UO top 10 performance lists. Ashley McCrea heads the group with her big PR of 172-2 in the javelin that vaulted her from sixth to third all-time. Newcomer Rita Santibanez also made a splash with her No. 7 all-time shot put of 48-10.75. Another newcomer, Amber Purvis, hit No. 10 on the 400 meter list in 54.27, which was an Oregon Preview meet record.
INDOOR PR’S
Not only did the indoor season produce an NCAA Championship for the men’s team and an all-time best showing for the women, it also yielded an unusually high number of personal bests in events that Oregon student-athletes will compete in during the spring.
At the top of that list is Galen Rupp’s American indoor record of 13:18.12 in the 5,000 meters. Here is a list of indoor PR’s that will carry over into the outdoor season:
MEN Event Mark
Galen Rupp 5,000 Meters 13:18.12
Shadrack Biwott 5,000 Meters 13:41.66
Luke Puskedra 5,000 Meters 13:46.52
Scott Wall 5,000 Meters 13:54.20
Diego Mercado 5,000 Meters 13:57.79
Danny Mercado 5,000 Meters 14:03.28
Ashton Eaton High Jump 6-10.25
Ashton Eaton Pole Vault 16-8.75 (tie)
Vernell Warren Long Jump 24-7.25
Vernell Warren Triple Jump 47-9.25
WOMEN Event Mark
Jamesha Youngblood 200 Meters 24.81
Keshia Baker 400 Meters 53.27 (tie)
Mattie Bridgmon 5,000 Meters 16:09.29
Bria Wetsch 5,000 Meters 16:38.64
Brianne Theisen High Jump 5-11.25
Melissa Gergel Pole Vault 13-9.75
Jamesha Youngblood Long Jump 21-1.25
Brianne Theisen Long Jump 19-9 (tie)
RUPP SETS ALL-AMERICA MARK
With 12 career All-America awards (nine track, three cross country), senior Galen Rupp is now the most honored student-athlete in school history. With three NCAA championships at the 2009 indoor nationals, Rupp passed Leann Warren, who earned 10 All-America awards combined between women’s track and cross country. On the track-only list, his nine career All-America awards are also now tops in University history.
IN THE INDOOR RECORD BOOKS
Oregon broke 15 indoor records during the recently completed season. Every men’s indoor record between 800 meters and 5,000 meters fell in 2009. That list included Galen Rupp’s American indoor 5,000 meter record of 13:18.12 that he ran Feb. 13 at Fayetteville. His time also set a collegiate record and broke Alberto Salazar’s 1981 school record (13:22.6). Rupp also set the American collegiate record at 3,000 meters at the Reebok Indoor Championships in Boston, running 7:44.69.
Other records on the men’s side included the 800 meters (Andrew Wheating, 1:47.03), mile (Matthew Centrowitz, 3:57.92), heptathlon (Ashton Eaton, 6,174 points) and distance medley relay (Jordan McNamara, Chad Barlow, Wheating, Rupp/9:29.39).
For the women, records have come in the 60 meters (Amber Purvis, 7.34), 200 meters (Purvis, 24.15), 400 meters (Keshia Baker, 53.27), 5,000 meters (Lindsey Scherf, 15:55.67), 60 meter hurdles (Brianne Theisen, 8.54), 4x400 meter relay (Jamesha Youngblood, Purvis, Leah Worthen, Baker/3:36.52), distance medley relay (Nicole Blood, Purvis, Zoe Buckman, Alexandra Kosinski/11:02.81), long jump (Youngblood, 21-1.25) and heptathlon (Theisen, 4,321).
MEN’S TRACK SIGNS FIVE
Five multi-talented high school student-athletes from across the country have signed national letters of intent to compete for the University of Oregon next season, as announced by Associate Athletic Director Vin Lananna. The five are Ben Dejarnette of Mechanicsville, Va., Mac Fleet of San Diego, Calif., Elijah Greer of Lake Oswego, Ore., Mitchell Hunt of Fremont, Neb., and Elliott Jantzer of Medford, Ore. Greer set a personal best of 1:47.68 to win the 800 meters at the 2008 USATF Junior Outdoor Track and Field Championships. Not only did his finish earn him a spot on the U.S. Junior World Team, but his time led the nation’s prep ranks and was the fourth-fastest ever by a high school runner in the United States. Fleet cemented his status as one of the nation’s top prep runners by winning the junior mile at the Feb. 7 Reebok Boston Indoor Games. A Nike Cross Nationals qualifier, Jantzer is a six-time Oregon state champion over an impressive range of distances. Competing for Atlee High School, Dejarnette finished second in both the 1,600 meters and the 3,200 meters at the 2008 Virginia state meet. He ran 4:14.84 in the 1,600 meter race and 9:25.18 at 3,200 meters. Hunt was the 2008 Nebraska state champion at 3,200 meters where he ran 9:25.32, after finishing sixth in the 3,200 meters as a sophomore (9:53.08).
WOMEN’S TRACK SIGNS EIGHT
The Oregon women’s track and field team signed eight talented high school athletes to national letters of intent during the February signing period. The eight are led by Gatorade National Girls Cross Country Runner of the Year Jordan Hasay of San Luis Obispo, Calif. She is joined in the Ducks’ 2009 recruiting class by Laura Bobek of Astoria, Ore., Becca Friday of Bellingham, Wash., Alexandra Jones of Lake Oswego, Ore., Sarah Penney of Paradise Valley, Ariz., Chloe Steinbeck of Beaverton, Ore., Melanie Thompson of High Bridge, N.J., and Taylor Wallace of Klamath Falls, Ore.
