Basketball teams host “Midday Madness”
Saturday is the first day that college basketball teams nationwide can officially practice, and the Ducks are kicking it off at 4 p.m. with a fan-oriented event at McArthur Court.
“Midday Madness” will feature scrimmages by the men’s and women’s basketball teams. An autograph session will follow the scrimmage. Both teams and coaches will be available for autographs.
The first 500 fans in the doors of Mac Court will receive a free “Midday Madness” T-shirt.
Fans will also have the opportunity to have their picture taken with Oregon cheerleaders and the Oregon Duck. Free popcorn and soda will be given out to fans during the event.
Graduate students from the University’s Warsaw Sports Marketing Center and EA Sports are giving away prizes throughout the afternoon. Giveaways include video games made by EA Sports. March Madness 2004, Madden 2004 and NCAA College Football 2004 will be among the games given out at the event.
The “Midday Madness” event is free to attend. Doors open at 3:30 p.m. at Mac Court.

— Mindi Rice

Cross Country sends

nine runners to Pre-NCAAs
The Oregon men’s cross country team travels to Cedar Falls, Iowa, on Saturday for the 2003 Pre-NCAA Invitational. It will be the first race for the men since they ran in the Roy Griak Invitational on Sept. 27.
The men’s team takes on an elite field, featuring many of the teams it faced earlier in the season when it finished fourth at the Roy Griak.
The women’s team will only send two runners. Standouts Magdalena Sandoval and Eri Macdonald are looking to take their team-leading times against some of the nation’s most highly regarded harriers in anticipation of an eventful season.
Sandoval has been Oregon’s leading runner since she returned to the team a week before the Sundodger Invitational on Sept. 27.
The senior also ran well for the team at the Willamette Invitational on Oct. 4., finishing second overall.
Macdonald finished the Sundodger Invitational in fifth place overall with a mark of 17 minutes, 22 seconds. She finished behind two professional runners and was the third collegiate finisher. When the team traveled to the Willamette Invitational, Macdonald finished 14th overall.
The Pre-NCAA’s first race is scheduled for an 11 a.m. start time. It is hosted by Northern Iowa.
However, both the men’s and the women’s races are divided three ways because of the explosion in popularity.
Oregon will send nine runners to the event. Included are Oregon’s most dominant harriers: Ryan Andrus, Brett Holts and Eric Logsdon. The Ducks will also send three true freshmen, Kyle Alcorn, Alec Wall and Patrick Werhane, will also run.
The men’s team did not compete in the same race a year ago, while the women sent their entire squad and finished 18th overall.
The race features 74 teams, seven of which are in the most recent top-10 poll, along with 20 top-25 teams.

— Scott Archer