Walker's Pace: Men Jump to No. 1 as Hostetler Garners Pac-10, USATF Honors
Men Jump to No. 1 as Pac-10 Honors Trio
Wednesday, April 8, 1:00 p.m. PDT
Three Ducks were named Pac-10 track and field athletes of the week and Cyrus Hostetler earned a nod from the USATF, while the men's team ascended to the top of the USTFCCCA polls on an afternoon full of notes from Track Town.
The men moved up from No. 3 to No. 1 this week, which means that the Ducks have been ranked first nationally in all three seasons in 2008-09 by the USTFCCCA: cross country, indoor track and field and now outdoor track and field. That's an impressive trifecta. The women also took another step forward, inching up to No. 2 from No.3.
After the Men of Oregon, the rest of the top five is Texas A&M, Arkansas, Florida and Florida State. Auburn was the big mover of the week, jumping 22 places to No. 20. The Blog mentions that because the Tigers will be sending a team to compete with Oregon at the Oregon Relays, where both squads will be trying to break American and collegiate records in the four-mile relay. OTC Elite is also expected to field a team in that race.
The next highest-ranked Pac-10 team after the Ducks is No. 14 Washington, followed by No. 15 UCLA. The Men of Oregon and UCLA will square off in a dual meet April 18 at Historic Hayward Field.
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On the women's side, Texas A&M remained No.1, followed by the Ducks, Louisiana State, Virginia Tech and Tennessee.
Also on Wednesday, junior Cyrus Hosteteler was named the USATF athlete of the week. He's the third Duck to honored by USATF this season, following Ashton Eaton on Feb. 3 and Galen Rupp twice - Feb. 17 and March 17.
Men's Field Athletes of the Week: CYRUS HOSTETLER, OREGON (Jr., Newberg, Ore.). Hostetler set meet, Oregon and Pac-10 records in the javelin with his winning throw of 272-10 at the Pepsi Team Invitational. That mark is the best in the world in 2009, and ranks fourth all-time on the NCAA's top 10. It was the longest throw by a collegian in nearly 10 years.
Women's Track Athlete of the Week: AMBER PURVIS, OREGON (Fr., Hercules, Calif.). Purvis broke a pair of 20-year-old school records in leading Oregon to a record-setting win at the Pepsi Team Invitational. Ran 11.41 (w+1.4) in the 100 meters to break Rosie Williams record of 11.58, and then came back to win the 200 in 23.09 (w+1.6). That eclipsed Williams' 23.39 time and also broke the meet record of 23.13, set by Carol Rodriguez of USC in 2007. Purvis' time in the 200 currently leads the NCAA, while her 100 time is ninth overall and leads the Pac-10. Purvis also led off Oregon's winning 4x100 meter relay team (45.35) as the Ducks scored a Pepsi meet record 233.5 points.
Women's Field Athlete of the Week: JAMESHA YOUNGBLOOD, OREGON (So., San Pablo, Calif.). Youngblood won the long jump event at the Pepsi Team Invitational with a leap of 20-8. That mark is an NCAA regional qualifier, ranks third nationally and leads the Pac-10. Youngblood also ran the third leg on Oregon's winning 4x100 meter relay team (45.35) as the Ducks scored a Pepsi meet record 233.5 points.
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