Just call him Shoeless Eric Logsdon.
Oregon middle-distance runner Logsdon, a redshirt freshman who had never run the 5,000-meter race before Friday, ran the fastest Oregon rookie time in the event since 1980
— and did it with only one shoe.
Logsdon ran the last mile of the Cardinal Invite 5,000 with only one shoe after another athlete inadvertently clipped him and sent one of Logsdon’s shoes flying off the track. His time of 14:04.85 qualified him for the Pacific-10 Conference Championships in the event, landed him on the NCAA provisional list and was the fastest time for a Duck freshman since Jim Hill ran 13:48.39 in 1980.
“I came in wanting to run 14:05 or so,” Logsdon said. “Considering the circumstances, I was pretty happy overall.”
Logsdon had already qualified for the Pac-10 1,500 after a personal best at the Oregon Invitational. His time in the 5,000 was the fastest outdoor time by an Oregon athlete this season, and he finished third overall in Friday’s race.
Also at the Cardinal Invitational on Friday, steeplechaser Brett Holts notched a personal best in the event and moved up to third on the Pac-10 list. Holts’ time of 8:57.33 was three seconds short of the NCAA provisional mark.
“I tried to stay smooth and composed early and was able to build through the race,” Holts said. “Every race I learn something new, so I just tried to stay focused and do my best to be ready for anything.”
Holts and Logsdon weren’t the only ones to run well on Friday. In the 5,000, senior Adam Bergquist and sophomore John Lucas both paced Logsdon and ran to outdoor bests. Bergquist’s time was a personal best.
“Early on I wanted to key off Adam and John since they were more experienced,” Logsdon said.
On Sunday, a handful of Ducks competed at the Jesse Owens Track Classic in Columbus, Ohio. Of the 15 Oregon athletes that competed in the meet in both track and field events, only two notched season bests.
But the biggest story was the successful return of senior Simon Kimata, an NCAA qualifier who has been hampered by an injury in his most recent meets. Kimata beat a field of 21 runners in 1:47.25, a time that is less than one second slower than his season and career best. The senior from Nyeri, Kenya, will head into the Pac-10 meet later this month as a favorite to win the conference 800.
The Ducks’ individual season bests came courtesy of Terry Ellis in the 110 hurdles and James March in the discus. Ellis ran a 14.18 to finish fifth, three spots behind teammate Micah Harris. Ellis’ time was 0.27 seconds off the NCAA provisional time and 0.14 seconds short of his personal best.
March notched a personal best in the discus by almost six feet. The 166-foot-6-inch throw was two feet short of the Pac-10 qualifying mark.
Oregon’s 4×100 and 4×400 teams also improved on previous bests. The 4×100 team, which has football players Allan Amundson and Samie Parker now concentrating on track full-time, ran its race in 40.66 seconds, a time that is 0.56 seconds slower than the NCAA provisional mark.
The Ducks will return home for the Oregon Twilight meet on Saturday. The meet starts at 3:30 p.m. at Hayward Field.