With a series of crucial late-season meets quickly approaching, Oregon track and field put several hard weeks of training on the line at the Oregon Relays this weekend. The meet, which featured competitors from the high school, collegiate and professional ranks, took place on Friday and Saturday at Hayward field.
“The last two weeks have been a huge training phase for everyone, all events. For everyone,” Associate Athletic Director Vin Lananna said. “I mean, lots and lots of volume. Hopefully we’re in good shape and ready to get going into these next meets, between the Pac-12 Championships here, going to the NCAA Championships, and whoever can last going into the Olympic Trials.”
FRIDAY
Friday’s performances were headlined by a professional — Sally Kipyego of Oregon Track Club Elite, who ran the world’s fastest outdoor time in the 1,500 meters this season. Despite a stiff wind whipping around the oval, the native Kenyan wowed 6,718 fans in attendance by crossing the finish line in 4:08.59. @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPID=243&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205417115@@
Oregon junior Jordan Hasay, a former Pac-10 Champion in the 1,500, made her 2012 outdoor debut in the event. Hasay was the top collegiate finisher and ran the third-fastest time in the NCAA this season (4:15.00). @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=4365&SPID=243&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=3759217&Q_SEASON=2011@@
Oregon went 1-2-3 in the men’s 200 meters, with freshman Arthur Delaney (20.95) edging out teammates Joeal Hotchkins (21.26) and Mike Berry (21.35) at the line. Delaney’s time was the ninth-fastest in school history.
Also on Friday, the men’s 1,500 meters produced a pair of personal-record performances from OTC Elite’s Tyler Mulder and the Ducks’ Trevor Dunbar. Mulder won in 3:42.53, with Dunbar — a sophomore transfer and two-time NCAA cross country All-American — finishing second in 3:43.12. Several Oregon competitors set personal bests in the event, including senior Travis Stanford (3:46.97) and freshmen Colby Alexander (3:47.13) and Chad Noelle (3:47.15). @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=4365&SPID=243&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=205359029&Q_SEASON=2011@@
Senior Brian Schaudt led the Ducks in the field events. The Philomath, Ore., native recorded a season-best 51-0.25/15.55m in winning the triple jump. Sophomore sprinter Phyllis Francis claimed the women’s 200 meters in 23.58, barely edging fellow Duck Lauryn Newson, who crossed the line in 23.67. Francis’ effort was the eighth-fastest time in school history.
Sophomore Parker Stinson put the cap on a successful Friday for the Ducks by winning the 5,000 meters in 14:02.93.
SATURDAY
On Saturday, Oregon continued to show significant progression in a series of events. On the track, senior heptathlete Brianne Theisen and sophomore sprinter English Gardner impressed for the No. 1 Oregon women. In the field, Chancey Summers and Lauryn Newson logged eye-opening performances as well.
The No. 13 men witnessed a multitude of personal and seasonal bests, headlined by a freshman sensation (hurdler Johnathan Cabral), a football player (sophomore Dior Mathis in the 100 meters), and the 2010 Gatorade boy’s track and field athlete of the year (freshman Sam Crouser in the javelin). @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=4365&SPID=243&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=204971326&Q_SEASON=2011@@
For the women, Summers finished the college section of the meet with a bang. The freshman cleared 6-0/1.83m on her first attempt in the high jump, good enough for the fifth-best clearance in the NCAA this season. The mark is also the fourth-highest clearance in Oregon history.
Competing in her first-ever triple jump, Newson surely exceeded expectations. The senior recorded 39-8.5/12.10m on her opening jump before improving to 40-11/12.48m on her third attempt. But her final jump would be her best, scoring 41-5.25/12.63m. That mark ranks as the third-best in school history.
On the track, Theisen — a two-time NCAA champion in the heptathlon — continued to garner positive results in her effort to shave valuable seconds off key events. A day after logging a personal best in the 200 meters (23.99), the senior from Humboldt, Sask., Canada, was a surprise winner in the women’s 400 meters, finishing in 53.72. That time was a personal record and ranks 10th on Oregon’s all-time list. @@http://www.goducks.com/ViewArticle.dbml?SPSID=4365&SPID=243&DB_LANG=C&DB_OEM_ID=500&ATCLID=1279849&Q_SEASON=2011@@
“Now, since we know we have a lot of strength for all the running, it’s just to maintain that,” Theisen said of her continued training in the heptathlon. “Whatever I have now is what I have for the rest of the year. (I need to) maintain it so I can can shape in the technical events and get ready for the Pac-12s and then June, July and August.”
Theisen, a strong candidate to represent Canada at the 2012 Olympics in London, said she’d continue work on her technical events at the Payton Jordan Invitational. The meet takes place in Stanford, Calif., on April 29. @@http://www.goducks.com/SportSelect.dbml?&DB_OEM_ID=500&KEY=&SPID=243&SPSID=4364@@
Gardner ran her first 100 meters of the 2012 outdoor season and won in a wind-aided 11.28 (the eighth-fastest time in the nation). While the effort was solid for an outdoor debut, the sophomore from Voorhees, N.J., wasn’t totally pleased with her time.
“Personally, I’m a little disappointed,” Gardner said. “Had my goals set a little bit higher. First one of the season, can’t ask for more. Came out with a good time.
“I wanted to just get out there, just compete, and run a little bit better than I have for you guys. Came up a little short, but hopefully the next one will be the one that moves me forward.”
Oregon swept the short hurdles on the strength of speedy efforts by Cabral and Lyndsay Pearson. Cabral won the men’s 110-meter hurdles in 13.83, while Pearson took the women’s 100-meter hurdles in 14.18. Both runners returned to sweep the 400-meter hurdles, with Cabral winning in a personal-best 52.78 and Pearson crossing the tape in 1:00.86.
Mathis, a sophomore from Detroit, ran his fastest 100 meters as a collegiate competitor (10.65) to claim victory. Despite grueling spring practices for football, Mathis said balancing the two sports is something he’s learned to do over time.
“I’ve been doing track and football since high school, back and forth,” Mathis said. “So I’m used to it, but college is definitely different from high school — it’s something to get used to a little bit, but I’m good.
“When I get back out there and actually start training, I know I can run a faster time than I even did today.”
Crouser, a freshman from Gresham, Ore., won the men’s javelin with a best effort of 243-8/74.27m. The highly decorated prep looked ready to step into the limelight as a collegian.
Overall, this weekend gave the track and field program a chance to gauge their training and solidify their team makeup going forward. Lananna said that lineup security, more than results, were the focus at the Oregon relays.
“That’s what the cool thing about these kind of meets are,” Lananna said. “It allows an opportunity to take a step back and look at what we need to do to be prohibitive favorites for the Pac-12s, and make sure we have every event covered. I will predict right now that the Pac-12s will be an incredibly competitive meet on both sides.”
What’s Lananna’s approach to winning the conference meet?
“We have to fire on all cylinders, so we’ll do some cool stuff as we get into the Pac-12s,” Lananna said. “We’re going to try to maximize every point we can.”