Oregon swept the NCAA Indoor Championships in Birmingham, Alabama, Saturday evening, marking the third time in a row the Duck men have come out on top and an improvement for the women after taking second last year.
The men clinched the race midway through the final day, winning with 62 points. Arkansas took second (39) and Tennessee finished third (34).
The women won with 53 points, edging Arkansas, who finished with 50. Georgia took third with 45.
Amidst the team celebrations, Edward Cheserek took his place on the track. The junior was preparing to compete in the men’s 3000-meters race, trying to complete the triple after winning both the 5000-meters and distance medley relay running as the anchor on March 11.
At the gun Cheserek settled into the middle of the pack, as Willy Fink of Eastern Michigan jumped out to the lead. Fink led through the first 1600 meters. Cheserek made his move with three laps to go, moving into first.
He was able to hold on for the win, crossing in 8:00.40. Sean McGorty of Stanford took second (8:01.55) while Syracuse freshman Justyn Knight finished third (8:01.85).
Cheserek is just the second male athlete to ever win the 3k, 5k and DMR, joining former Duck and Olympian Galen Rupp.
The Oregon men picked up 13 points from Blake Haney and Sam Prakel in the mile. It was a slow start to the race, with the runners passing the halfway mark at 2:11. UTEP freshman Jonah Koech and Virginia junior Henry Wynne battled early, each attempting to take control of the race.
Wynn eventually emerged victorious, winning with a time of 4:06.63. Haney took second (4:06.75) and Prakel finished fourth (4:07.06).
Sophomore Raevyn Rogers was also able to collect an individual win. She finished first in the women’s 800-meter race with a time of 2:04.68. Rogers made a move with 150 meters left to take control of the race.
Devon Allen continued to make a statement after returning from injury, turning in an impressive victory in the men’s 60-meter hurdles. Behind early, and after clipping several hurdles, he was able to power through the final strides for a close finish and personal record of 7.56.
In the women’s 60-meter hurdles, Sasha Wallace took second place in 7.91, while teammate Alaysha Johnson scored a point by finishing eighth.
Oregon’s Alli Cash scored two points in the women’s 3000-meters, finishing seventh.
Duck sophomore jumper Nate Moore had a good showing in the triple jump, claiming fifth with a best mark of 53 feet, 6.25 inches.
The Oregon women scored key points in the 60-meters. Sophomore Hannah Cunliffe took second (7.12) while junior Jasmine Todd finished fourth (7.19).
Oregon multi-event athlete Mitch Modin finished 11th in the heptathlon, outside of scoring position. He finished the competition with 5,509 points, 663 behind first place. Zach Ziemek of Wisconsin won with 6,173.
Click here for a complete list of results.
Follow Christopher Keizur on Twitter @chriskeizur