For Oregon decathlete Billy Pappas, the third time was the charm.
In his final appearance in a Pacific-10 Conference meet, the Roseburg native came from behind and won the event in convincing fashion. In his two previous meetings at the Pac-10 Championships, Pappas earned fourth in 2000 and a year later, he took home third.
Now, in his senior season, Pappas has climbed to the top.
After placing second on Saturday with 3,795 points, Pappas overtook USC’s Russell Silvers to capture the coveted honor. The Oregon star finished with 7,532 points, while Silvers was close behind at 7,254.
Not only was the point total a personal best for Pappas, it puts him in elite company. His brother, Tom, was a star competitor at Tennessee and was the 1999 NCAA champion in the event.
En route to the win, Pappas earned marks of 44 feet 11.5 inches in the shot put and 23-00 3/4 in the long jump — and his throw of 195-11 in the javelin on Saturday was second only to UCLA’s Octavius Gillespie.
Following up Pappas, junior Jason Slye, a ninth place finisher in last season’s Pac-10 Championships, improved to fifth Sunday. His point total of 6,996 was just behind USC’s Shelton Davis but far enough ahead of California’s Jason Gatewood for a comfortable lead.
However, Slye also had to come from behind to earn fifth place. After the first day, a disappointing ninth place slot was waiting for the Salem native. He finished with 3,454 points during his second day, an improvement of only two points — but enough to vault him four spots ahead.
Finishing up the day for the Ducks, junior Jake Horner, in his first appearance at the Pac-10s, took ninth (6,570) but suffered a disappointing finish after early success during the first day.
Horner, through a strong first day, was able to finish fourth, but slipped to his final spot during the second day.
Horner and Slye finished with personal bests in the decathlon.
On the women’s side, senior Jenny Kenyon, the lone Oregon representative, placed fifth in the heptathlon.
After finishing third during the first day, Kenyon — who finished sixth in 1999, fourth in 2000 and fifth in 2001 — equaled last season’s finish but improved her point total to 5,169.
That total was good enough for a personal best and moves her into fifth place on the all-time Oregon record list.
Currently, the Oregon men stand in first place in the Pac-10 Championships with 14 points. The women, supported only by Kenyon, are tied for third with four points.