The title of Pacific-10 Conference decathlon champion can now be added to Tommy Skipper’s already impressive athletic résumé.
The freshman from Sandy, who was a last-minute wild card addition to the field in Tucson, Ariz., won the decathlon with an automatic NCAA qualifying total of 7,589 points.
Despite a lack of training in many of the 10 events, Skipper used two second-day event wins to move up from fourth place and defeat Arizona State’s Joshua Kinnaman by 105 points (second, 7,484).
Skipper’s second-day wins came in the pole vault and javelin — the two events with which he is most familiar. His pole vault clearance of 17 feet 4 1/2 inches was nearly a foot better than the rest of the field, while his top javelin mark (203-10) was his collegiate best and 18 feet better than the rest of the field.
More impressive, however, was Skipper’s ability to succeed in the rest of the events, many of which marked his collegiate debut. He finished first in the 100-meter dash (10.69 seconds) and the shot put (44-6 3/4), second in the high jump (6-5 1/2) and discus (143-4), third in the 400 (50.26) and ninth in the long jump (20-6.5) and 1,500 (5:21.46).
“I was doing some great jumping, with the help of our trainers (who got) the whole team ready by giving massage workouts,” Skipper said. “Coach (Bill) Lawson is the man. He really gets the team fired up to compete.”
Skipper said the pole vault will remain his focus when it comes time for the NCAA Championships.
Along with Skipper, Oregon saw three other decathletes finish in the top five and reach the NCAA provisional standard (7,000). Redshirt sophomore Andy Young finished third (7,372) with a 193-point personal best. The Newberg native, who entered the decathlon ranked No. 1, finished the second day with a win in the 1,500 (4:21.94), part of a 1-2-3 Oregon event sweep.
Four of Young’s second-day marks were decathlon personal bests (discus, pole vault, javelin, 1,500), including a more than seven-inch improvement in the pole vault (second 16-4 3/4).
Redshirt senior Gabriel LeMay followed in fourth place with a 158-point personal best (7,333). The Yoncalla native finished strong on both days, winning the 400 Friday (48.78) and finishing second in the 1,500 Saturday (4:25.94). LeMay entered the decathlon ranked No. 2, four points behind Young.
Redshirt sophomore Ryan Voge finished fifth with a 191-point personal best (7,245). The Hillsboro native recorded three personal decathlon bests on the first day, including high jump (6-9), shot put (40-10 1/4) and long jump (23-8).
“The team’s camaraderie really is good,” Skipper said. “We work well together.”
On the women’s side, redshirt senior Abby Andrus finished third (5,325) in the heptathlon with a 21-point personal best as Oregon’s only entrant.
The Peoria, Ariz. native moved up from fifth after Friday’s competition on the strength of her performance in the 800. Entering the heptathlon’s final event, Andrus was in a three-way battle for third with Washington’s Grace Vela and Washington State’s Julie Pickler, but distanced herself from the competition with a winning time of 2:18.48.
Andrus trailed only a pair of top five ranked collegians in final standings — Arizona State freshman Jackie Johnson (first, 5,603) and California junior Brooke Meredith (second, 5,475).
“It was a good day for Abby, and bless her heart because she earned every point,” assistant coach Rock Light said. “I was not surprised one bit because she was determined to get third for the team’s sake, even though she was ranked fifth beforehand. She got a personal best score, and that’s all you can ask.”