Entering an athletic event as the favorite can be a double-edged sword.
On the positive side, an athlete can intimidate his or her opponents before the event even starts. On the downside, being recognized as the one on top places a giant target on an athlete’s back.
In this year’s Pacific-10 Conference Championship decathlon, however, it will be a school with a target on its back instead of an athlete.
Oregon sports three of the conference’s top five decathletes, with competition scheduled for today and Saturday.
Redshirt sophomore Andy Young (first, 7,179 points), redshirt senior Gabriel LeMay (second, 7,175) and redshirt sophomore Ryan Voge (fifth, 7,054) set conference-qualifying marks at the Mike Maynard Wildcat Combined Events decathlon during spring break. The trio is determined to finish 1-2-3 at Pac-10s, but expects to have plenty of competition.
“I don’t think we’ll have the respect of our opponents,” Young said. “I think they’re going to think the same thing that we think about them. They think that we can be beaten and we think they can be beaten. That’s all there is to it.”
A native of Newberg, Young is the team’s top returning finisher, placing fifth as a freshman at last year’s Pac-10s (7,017). Young’s strengths are the pole vault and the 1,500 meters.
LeMay is the oldest in the group and is confident he can close his final season at Oregon on a positive note. The Yoncalla native is a second-year transfer from Lane Community College who excels in the 400 and recently set a personal record in the pole vault at the Oregon Invitational (16 feet 1 1/4 inches).
LeMay said the Ducks are well prepared for Pac-10s because they face top-notch competition every day in practice.
“It’s awesome,” LeMay said. “Practicing with that kind of competition makes you learn to react to pressure.”
Regardless of how he finishes, Voge has had a successful year by just getting to where he is now. A walk-on who transferred from New Mexico, Voge’s spring break performance in Tucson was a 606-point personal best. The Hillsboro native’s best events are the long jump and the high jump.
While each Duck decathlete wants the personal glory of being crowned Pac-10 champion, the trio’s main goal is to do well as a team and make it to nationals.

“I want to beat both of them badly,” Voge said. “But I don’t wish them to not perform well. I want them to do as well as they can but I hope in doing that, I still beat them.”
Oregon will also use one of its three wild card entries to get freshman Tommy Skipper into the field. The Sandy native will make his event debut after focusing on the pole vault this year.
“I’d like to be in a little better shape, especially running-wise,” Skipper said. “But I can’t worry about it. I have to go out and do my best.”

Andrus leads UO women
On the women’s side, in the heptathlon, the only Oregon competitor at the Pac-10 Championships will be redshirt senior Abby Andrus.
Andrus, a Peoria, Ariz. native, said she is excited about the two-day competition that begins Friday.
“Right now, physically I feel great and prepared and technically sound,” Andrus said.
She competed in the heptathlon at the Oregon Invitational meet two weekends ago, where she finished in fourth place with 5,060 points. The score ranks her seventh regionally and places her 31st nationally this season. It is also the fourth-best conference mark of the season behind California’s Brooke Meredith at 5,511 points.
Andrus is also coming off a strong weekend at the Oregon Twilight after winning two events. She won the 100-hurdles in 14.16 seconds and the 400-hurdles in 59.9 seconds. Both times were season bests and Pac-10 qualifiers.
“My hurdles were really strong the last meet,” Andrus said. “The hardest for me is staying mentally prepared and not getting too excited.”

Andrus added that she hopes her successful performance from the Oregon Twilight can carry over into the conference championships.
“I’m happy,” Andrus said. “It was a solid effort and it gave me confidence heading into this weekend.”