Oregon Track and Field hosted its first meet of the season Saturday April 9 welcoming Penn State, USC and Washington for a full day of competition. The men’s meet resulted in a tie between Oregon and Penn State at 181.5. The Oregon women’s team won handily, earning 173 points with the next closest team, Penn State, coming in at 166.
“I freakin’ hate ties,” head coach Robert Johnson said. “I hate losses even more; a tie kind of feels like that.”
But the day wasn’t a total bust.
The Ducks brought home five meet records, beginning with a school and meet record-breaking run in the women’s 4×100 meter relay.
The team of Jasmine Todd, Deajah Stevens, Hannah Cunliffe and Ariana Washington won by nearly a second at 42.88.
“For them to do that this early in the year is definitely phenomenal,” Johnson said.
Other standouts of the day included Devon Allen and Raevyn Rogers.
Allen competed in four events for the Ducks: two relays and two hurdles. He set a meet record in the 110 hurdles, won the 400 hurdles and contributed to the 4×100 meter relay victory.
Rogers not only won the 800 meter race — finishing two seconds ahead of second place — but she also helped the women’s 4×400 meter relay to a meet record of 3:32.07. The victory earned the women’s team the final points of the day.
The men’s team suffered losses in a few keys areas.
Coach Johnson cited the long jump and pole vault as areas where the men could have captured necessary points but failed.
In the men’s 5000, the Ducks took an unexpected defeat when Edward Cheserek settled for a second place finish against his Washington opponent — sophomore Colby Gilbert.
Even with a tie, Johnson was proud of the outcome. He said he’s excited for the next opportunity for his team to compete in a meet. Next weekend, Oregon will host the Oregon Relays.
“For us to compete the way we did today, this weekend bodes well for us as we move forward,” Johnson said
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