If Saturday’s Oregon Preview was any indication, the Oregon men’s track team is going to have a good year.
With its sprint corps depleted from the departures of standout seniors like Eric Mitchum, Travis Anderson, Jordan Kent and Richard Del Rincon, the Ducks featured two brand new 4 X100 and 4X400 relay teams at their outdoor season debut.
In the 4X100, Marcus Dillon, Ashton Eaton, Phil Alexander and Jared Huske ran away with first place, clocking in at 40.74.
“It was a good opener for us,” Huske said. “We’re a new team, but for the most part, these guys all ran relays in high school and at their community colleges. We’ve got good chemistry right now, and everything seems to be going well.”
It was the same story in the 4X400. This time, Oregon’s A team of Alexander, Chad Barlow, Eaton and Dillon took first place in 3:16.88. The Ducks’ B team – Zach Ancell, Huske, Ryan Waite and Tanner Targett finished third with a time of 3:30.79.
Oregon also benefited from some impressive early-season individual performances.
Senior javelin thrower Ryan Brandel took the javelin title with a winning throw of 64.98m.
In the 400m, Oregon ran to a 1-2-3 finish, with Dillon clocking in first at 47.55, followed by Alexander in second place, and Barlow in third.
Huske, a sophomore hurdler from Topeka, Kan. clinched his first individual title at Hayward Field when he won the 110m hurdles in 14.35.
“It was definitely a good start to the year,” Huske said. “It was a little hard because indoor you only run five hurdles, and outdoor you double it and run 10.
“So I was a little tired and lost my form toward the end of the race.”
Distance runner Mike McGrath felt differently en route to first place in the 1,500m.
McGrath’s 3:44.25 was his fastest time as a Duck, and meant that he automatically met the 3:47.80 regional qualifying standard.
“I felt really good,” McGrath said. “I’ve been in really good shape all season, and I felt real comfortable the whole way. I think it bodes well for my season.”
Oregon Director of Track and Field Vin Lananna said the men’s strong outing on Saturday helped to assuage any fears he might have had about replacing last year’s stars.
“At the beginning of the academic year, I have to say I was particularly concerned, especially on the men’s side, with the number of guys, a lot of point-scorers, who’ve graduated,” Lananna said.
“As I watched today, I was less concerned about the that because you can see a lot of bright sparks here,” said Lananna, who highlighted all the first place finishes as boding well for Oregon this season.
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