The Oregon track and field team kicks off its outdoor season at home with the Oregon Preview tomorrow.
The Ducks are looking to capitalize on momentum built off one of their most successful indoor seasons in recent history.
Both Oregon men’s and women’s teams each set four school indoor records, finished in the top 25, and brought home five combined All-America honors.
Men’s track and field
The Oregon men’s No. 3-ranked recruiting class makes its home debut tomorrow.
This year, the Ducks added three junior standouts to an already strong core of distance runners. The group features freshmen A.J. Acosta (1,500m, 2-mile), twin medley relay runners Eric and Matthew Dettman, and Diego Mecado, a 10,000m specialist.
Oregon has also put together an entirely new corps of sprinters. Derrick Jones is the only returning member of last year’s 4X100m relay team that placed first in the Pac-10 Championships, and with Richard Del Rincon, Matt Scherer and Jordan Kent gone, the Ducks will have to start from scratch.
Kent is currently preparing for the NFL Draft, and Director of Track and Field Vin Lananna said he wasn’t planning on Kent’s presence on the team this year even though it was “certainly a possibility.”
“The 4×100 will be an interesting mix between a couple of the athletes from the football team, and some new guys,” Lananna said.
Instead, newcomers Phil Alexander, Ashton Eaton and Jared Huske will attempt to pick up where last year’s team left off.
“I’m not sure that I could expect that they’d win the 4 X100 again this year, but I do think we’ll be competitive,” Lananna said.
Women’s track
Oregon fans should look out for the remodeled women’s 4×400 meter team. Freshman Keshia Baker and transfer Kavina Hall join Rebekah Noble and Leah Worthen for a record-setting quartet.
The group set the school record during the indoor season with a time of 3 minutes, 37.48 seconds and came close to the outdoor record of 3:33.11.
What’s the difference from last year?
“Speed,” says Worthen, the sophomore sprinter from Coos Bay.
Saturday will be their first chance to perform before Eugene track and field faithful at Hayward Field.
“I think the fans are going to be really impressed by them,” Worthen said.
Hall arrived from San Francisco State and Baker from Fairfield High in Sacramento, Calif.
“I always wanted to come to a Pac-10 school,” Hall said. “I heard about this track team all my life and the opportunity presented itself so I just jumped on it.”
Noble is coming off a personal best of 2:04.70 in the 800 in the NCAA indoor championships. She’s competing in the 4×400 for sure and is likely to run the 800.
“If the sun’s shining and the weather’s nice she’ll take a crack at running a good 800,” Lananna said.
[email protected] and [email protected]