The Oregon men’s and women’s cross country seasons begin in earnest today as the No. 3 Duck men and the No. 5 Duck women compete at the Notre Dame Invitational, held at the Notre Dame Golf Course in South Bend, Ind.
Four of the top five women’s teams, as ranked by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll, are among 11 ranked schools in the 24-team women’s field. The men’s team features 19 schools, eight of which are ranked in a competitive early test for the Ducks.
Five Oregon cross country All-Americans — junior Luke Puskedra, senior Matthew Centrowitz and senior Danny Mercado for the men, and senior Alex Kosinski and sophomore Jordan Hasay for the women — will make their season debuts in South Bend, along with program veteran seniors A.J. Acosta and Zoe Buckman.
Head cross country coach Vin Lananna, in his quest to determine the Ducks’ top five men’s and women’s runners, has a stable of freshmen looking to make cases for themselves. Oregon is expected to run five freshman women (including redshirt freshman Lanie Thompson) and five freshman men (including redshirt freshman Ben DeJarnette).
The women’s race will begin at 1:15 p.m., encompassing 5,000 meters. The men’s 5-mile race follows at 5 p.m. Eastern.
Seven Ducks to compete at Charles Bowles
In addition to the Ducks at the Notre Dame Invitational, a seven-man cadre will compete at the Charles Bowles Invitational on Saturday. Hosted by Division III Willamette University in Salem, the 8,000-meter men’s race will take place in Bush Park and Willamette’s McCulloch Stadium.
All three NCAA divisions, the NAIA and the NJCAA will be represented in the Charles Bowles field, with 13 men’s teams competing. Seven Division-I schools, including Portland and Portland State, will field runners in the men’s race.
Oregon will be represented by senior Ken Scoggin, juniors Spencer Carter and Travis Stanford, sophomore Walker Augustyniak and freshmen Tim Costin, Mitch Hunt and Hank Morrison.
Dellinger Invitational moved to Pre’s Trail
The 2010 Bill Dellinger Invitational, to be held on October 16, has been moved from Springfield Country Club to Pre’s Trail in Alton Baker Park.
The change was made in conjunction with Oregon Track Club Elite’s annual fundraiser, the Pre’s Trail X-C Challenge, according to an Oregon media release. Part of the funds raised from the OTC event goes toward maintenance of Pre’s Trail.
Oregon will face off against No. 6 Wisconsin and No. 9 Portland in the men’s race, along with Idaho, Portland State, Willamette and the University of Guelph (Ontario, Canada). The Duck women will compete against Idaho, Portland, Portland State, Willamette and Guelph.
The 6,000-meter women’s race will begin at 11:45 a.m., with the 8,000-meter men’s race following at at 12:30 p.m.
[email protected]