The Oregon men’s track and field team will compete in the Mt. SAC Relays this weekend before heading home for the Oregon Invitational on April 23-24 at Hayward Field.
The Ducks will see action in five events during the Walnut, Calif. meet, highlighted by Tommy Skipper competing in the pole vault and Eric Mitchum running the 110-meter hurdles on Sunday.
Skipper, who cleared 17 feet, 5 inches at the Pepsi Team Invitational on April 10 at Hayward Field, said that Oregon pole vaulters are focusing on improving their technique for bigger meets, such as the Oregon Invitational or the Pacific-10 Conference Championships in May, rather than worrying about height.
“We’re trying different things,” Skipper said after the Pepsi Team Invitational. “We’re all trying to improve our technique right now. None of us are worried about our height at this point. Obviously it’s nice to come out and jump 18 feet every day but that’s not what we’re trying to do.”
Skipper broke the Oregon pole vault record when he cleared 18 feet, 8 3/4 inches during the indoor season in Nampa, Idaho. The previous Duck record of 18-6 1/2 was set by Kory Tarpenning in 1985.
Also competing in the pole vault for Oregon will be Trevor Woods, Jon Derby and David Moore.
Woods, an All-American from Coos Bay, finished second (16-9 1/4) to Skipper at the Pepsi’s.
On the track, Mitchum is coming off a successful showing at the Pepsi’s where he won the 110 hurdles (13.70 seconds) and 400 hurdles (51.47). The Calumet City, Ill. native had added motivation down the stretch of the 400 hurdles as teammate
Brandon Holliday finished a close second (51.52).
“It always helps to have someone there with you,” Mitchum said.
“It helps to push you.”
Holliday and A.K. Ikwuakor will compete in the 400 hurdles Sunday. Ikwuakor finished third in the 110 hurdles (14.39) at the Pepsi’s, just behind Travis Brandstatter of Minnesota (14.37).
Ryan Andrus will compete in the 10,000 meters for Oregon on Friday. The Orem, Utah native’s personal best of 29:11.04 came during the 2003 NCAA Championships.
The senior transfer from Wisconsin, who was also a 2002 cross county All-American, is coming off a sixth place finish in the 1,500 (3:49.64) at the Pepsi’s.
Oregon will also compete in the 4×400-meter relay. Potential relay members include Travis Anderson, Scott Lamb, Kedar Inico and Holliday. The quartet finished second (3:11.38) at the Pepsi’s.
Inico, a transfer from Barton Community College in Great Bend, Kan., anchored the quartet during the Pepsi’s and the Texas Relays.
Anderson is coming off a win in the 400 (47.04) at the Pepsi’s, while Lamb, a junior transfer from Mt. Hood Community College, is a former NWAACC champion in the 400.
Other Pacific-10 Conference schools expected to compete at the meet are Arizona, Arizona State, UCLA, Stanford, Washington State and Southern California.
While several Oregon athletes are competing at the Mt. San Antonio College meet, the Ducks will send freshman Travis Ramme to the Long Beach Invitational to get some extra work in the 100 and 200 this weekend.
A Eugene native, Ramme was one of the area’s top sprinters coming out of Sheldon High School in 2003. He placed in the 100 (fourth, 11.08), 200 (third, 22.09) and anchored the 4×400 (3:21.16) state champion in the 2003 4A Oregon state championships.