The Oregon women’s track rivalry with Washington, which will continue Saturday on Hayward Field at the Washington Dual Meet, is more than just a Northwest scrimmage. Even the word “rivalry” doesn’t do it justice.
It’s history.
Every year since 1977, the Ducks and Huskies have faced off in a bitter, and often very close, dual meet. For many of the athletes involved, the meet marks the only time they will compete directly against another team all year.
“It’s our oldest rivalry,” Oregon head coach Tom Heinonen said.
Literally. That Oregon-Washington dual meet in 1977 was the first in Oregon women’s track history, and it also marked the first co-ed meet.
The Ducks on this year’s track team may remember only the recent history of the meet, which has been good and bad. Last year, Oregon edged Washington 80-74 at Hayward Field. In 1999, the Ducks took on both the Huskies and the Cornhuskers of Nebraska and finished third. In 1998, Washington crushed Oregon in Seattle, 85.5-68.5.
If this year’s meet were scored purely on best times from this season, the Ducks would win by four points. But of course the meet isn’t about season records before Saturday. It’s about scoring personal records on Saturday.
“What we need to understand is that everybody has to hold their own,” sophomore sprinter Lucretia Larkin said. “It’s our responsibility to compete as best as we can on that day.”
Once again, the two teams should match up well Saturday. The Ducks should own most of the field events, while Washington will make up ground in the sprints. The meet could be decided in the hurdles and middle-to-long distance races, where the two teams are evenly matched.
“The event winners will be fairly easy to predict,” Heinonen said. “What happens behind them, though, will be what decides the meet. It’s likely to be really close.”
The Ducks may as well tally their points in a few events before the meet even starts. No Washington athletes can touch Mary Etter’s 168-foot throw in the discus, Maureen Morrison’s 177-foot throw in the hammer, Jenny Brogdon and Rachael Kriz’s 5-7 high jumps, Niki Reed’s 12-11 1/2 pole vault or Sarah Malone’s 165-11 javelin toss.
On the flip side, Washington has Jamara Smith’s 100-meter time of 12.07 seconds, Chelsie Pentz’s 55.47 in the 400, Anna Aoki’s 4:35 in the 1,500 and the 4×100 relay time of 46:56.
The races to watch include the 800 meters, where Oregon’s Eri Macdonald and Annette Mosey should lock horns with Washington’s Nicole Robinson. The 100 hurdles should be close, with exciting Oregon freshman Ann Sullivan going toe-to-toe with Washington junior Kelsey Sheppard. The triple jump and long jump could also be nail-biters, with Oregon’s Deborah Lee and Amanda Brown trying to jump farther than Washington’s Brittiny Roberts and Zee Ogarro, respectively.
“We’re all out there to do our best,” Brown said. “If we all go out there and do our best on that particular day, we’ll exceed what Washington is doing.”
The first event of Saturday’s meet is the women’s javelin, starting at noon. A ticket to Saturday’s meet will also get you into the softball doubleheader against Oregon State at Howe Field.