Athletes of the Oregon women’s track and field team met a high level of competition at the Drake Relays this weekend. The Ducks were unable to capture a top finish in any event during the two-day spectacle in Des Moines, Iowa.
On Saturday, Oregon ran its first sprint medley relay of the season. In its running order, Sofie Abildtrup, Julie Schmidt-Scherer, Michelle Donovan and Sara Schaaf made up the quartet that took fifth place with a time of 3:59.31. Rice stopped the clock at 3:52.77 to win the 1,600-meter race.
Oregon’s hammer throwers engaged in a reality check competition as well on Saturday. Redshirt junior Brittany Hinchcliffe threw 181-feet to finish eighth, well below her season-best. Redshirt senior Katie Kersh couldn’t get her weight to soar beyond 160-4, which dropped her to 21st in the field.
The Ducks’ highest finish in any event came from senior Bree Fuqua’s second-place push of 51-9 3/4 in the shotput on Friday. South Florida’s Chandras Brewer claimed the event with a 52-8 heave.
Also on Friday, Oregon’s Sarah Malone finished third in the javelin with a 174-2 throw on her second attempt.
— Stephen Miller