Author Archives | Maggie Vanoni

Oregon softball edges Hofstra and Florida Gulf Coast in second day of Unconquered Invitational

Sophomores Mia Camuso and Shannon Rhodes provided power in No. 6 Oregon’s (18-3) undefeated second day of the Unconquered Invitational in Tallahassee, Florida.

At the JoAnne Graf Field on Saturday, Oregon earned the victory against the Hofstra Pride, 2-1, in the morning and against the Florida Gulf Coast Eagles, 5-1, in the afternoon. The wins earned the Ducks their seventh and eighth straight wins and their fourth straight win in the Invitational.

After outscoring Florida Gulf Coast 5-0 on Friday, Oregon once again scored five runs against the Eagles (13-4) for the second day in a row.

At the top of the third inning, the Ducks’ bat power surged, earning four of their five total runs.

Senior Jenna Lilley started the inning with a single to right field. A bunt single from Alexis Mack got the pair on first and second base. Senior Gwen Svekis then loaded the bases with her second walk of the game. Freshman Mary Iakopo brought home the front pair of runners with her two-RBI single out to left field.

Mia Camuso followed suit, with her two-run single bringing home both Svekis and Iakopo for a 4-0 lead over FGCU. The inning ended with all nine batters taking a turn on the plate for the Ducks.

Three innings later at the top of the sixth, Camuso made her way to third on an Eagle throwing error. Lauren Lindvall’s left-field RBI double brought Camuso home and got the Ducks up to their final score of 5-1.

Innings one through two remained quiet, as both teams left players stranded out on bases. FGCU made minimal noise, scoring its only run at the bottom of the fifth with a leadoff solo home run to left field.

Oregon’s pitcher, Maggie Balint (4-1), earned her fourth win of the season, starting in her second game of the day and allowed just one run on five hits with five strikeouts.

Iakopo finished 2-for-2 with RBIs and hit her first career triple at the top of the fifth, while Lindvall earned her third double of the year. Camuso and Iakopo were both responsible for bringing home a pair of runs.

The Ducks showed similar dominance in their early Saturday morning game against the Hofstra Pride.

After five runless innings into their battle against Hofstra (10-6), both teams were tied with a run each.

Shannon Rhodes broke the silence by blasting a game-winning home run to open the top of the 11th inning, giving Oregon the winning lead over the Pride.

Rhodes also helped score Oregon’s first run of the day in the top of the sixth inning. Her bunt base hit down the third base line, quickly advanced Lilley from second to third. Lilley found her way home thanks to an RBI fielder’s choice from Svekis, evening the scoreboard 1-1.

The Pride scored the first run of the game in the bottom of the fifth. With loaded bases and a double walk play, Hofstra Pride’s Michaela Transue’s run snapped 23.2 straight scoreless innings for the Duck pitching staff. After the run, Balint was relieved by Miranda English.

Oregon’s 2-1, 11-inning victory over the Pride, marks the team’s longest game so far this season.

Elish’s seven full innings earned her a team-best eighth win on the mound, now 8-0. She stroke out nine players and allowed only three hits and two walks, for her 32nd straight inning without allowing a single run. Elish improved to 20-0 in her career and to a 0.14 ERA this season.

Rhodes led Oregon on the plate with two hits, on top of hitting her fourth home run this season. The game also marked Darya Kaboli-Nejad’s first start of the season, the second of her career.

The Ducks will conclude the Unconquered Invitational by playing No. 13 Florida State Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni

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Oregon loses to Washington State 76-78, falls to seventh in the Pac-12

With 04.1 seconds remaining, MiKyle McIntosh waited for the precise moment to pass to an open Payton Pritchard. Oregon was down two and needed everything to fall into place to force overtime.

Pritchard received the pass and made his move along the sideline, dribbling through Washington State defenders, but his three-point attempt at the buzzer missed.

Oregon’s 76-78 loss to WSU (12-17, 4-13) Thursday night in Pullman, dropped the Ducks (19-11, 9-8) to seventh in the Pac-12 and eliminated almost all chance of earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. 

Elijah Brown led the Ducks with 18 points and Troy Brown Jr. followed with 17. Pritchard scored 16, while McIntosh added seven points, seven rebounds and four assists. Kenny Wooten’s three blocks moved him to fourth on Oregon’s single-season block list. His 80 total blocks this season, moved him ahead of Chris Boucher’s 79 from last season.

Starting in the first half, the Ducks were slow to find their groove. It wasn’t until seven minutes in that a Pritchard three-point play sparked some energy.

An Elijah Brown and-one dunk at the 11 minute and 13-second mark, capped a 14-0 Oregon and put the Ducks ahead by nine.

But the momentum didn’t last.

With four minutes remaining in the half, four Ducks had earned two fouls each. Going 7-7 on free throws, the Cougars played through a 6-0 run and took a 37-35 lead at the half.

With Paul White and Wooten each with four fouls, Oregon went down by as much as 10 to the Cougars with less than ten minutes remaining in the game. But in the closing minutes of the second half, Pritchard and Brown both made three-pointers to get Oregon within one. 

Even through a 13-2 run, the Ducks could not find the extra power needed to get ahead of the Cougars and ended the game down two.

Flynn led both teams with 28 points and eight rebounds.

For their final Pac-12 game of the season, the Ducks will play the Washington Huskies for the No. 6 spot in the Pac-12 Tournament on Saturday at 1:30 p.m. in Seattle.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter @maggie_vanoni

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Seniors propel Ducks in physical 98-93 upset over No. 14 Arizona

A complete rollercoaster of emotion. A game unlike any other this season. A team with everything on the line against another with everything to prove.

And when the seconds ran down, there was no doubt Oregon senior Elijah Brown’s screams were of pure and utter elation.

In its most aggressive, and arguably best-played game of the season, Oregon (19-10, Pac-12 9-7) beat No. 14 Arizona (22-7, 12-4) in overtime, 98-93 at Matthew Knight Arena on Saturday night for the team’s last regular season home game.

“It was a real intense environment,” Oregon’s MiKyle McIntosh said. “The crowd was into it, the coaches were into it, the players were definitely into it. It was a tit-for-tat game.”

Taking his signature step-back behind the arch, Brown released a perfect three with 9:08 remaining in the game. With the swish of the basket, Brown gave Oregon its first lead, earning an instant standing ovation from the crowd.

To add to the senior-night domination, redshirt senior McIntosh made Oregon’s final three-pointer with 1:07 remaining in overtime, giving Oregon its biggest lead of seven points, 95-88.

“I’m really happy for those two seniors,” head coach Dana Altman said. “They did a tremendous job.”

In a first half starting with an Arizona 7-0 run and included Oregon trailing by 13, no one expected Oregon’s bench to help re-route the team to victory.

“[They were] a big factor,” Altman said of Keith Smith and Abu Kigab. “They got the crowd in it, got some of those turnovers started … I thought the energy they brought, I was impressed.”

All five Oregon starters ended in double-digits points, with Brown at the top with 30 points. McIntosh followed with 20 points and Payton Pritchard ended with eight assists.

As a team, the Ducks played just as well. Committing only four turnovers to Arizona’s 17, Oregon outscored the Wildcats 20-4 in points off turnovers, with the help of their 11 steals (eight more than those of Arizona) and 20 assists.

Knowing that an Arizona victory would give them a running chance at the Pac-12 title, both teams played with aggression.

Oregon ended with a total of 21 personal fouls, a technical on McIntosh and three players with four fouls. The Wildcats ended with 19 fouls, including a fouled-out Dylan Smith and two technicals; one on the team and one on sophomore Rawle Alkins.

“Arizona is a great team,” Smith said. “We knew they were going to come out with fire and wanting to prove something, we just knew we had to protect home court and make sure they didn’t here and steal the show.”

After some heavy blows to the Wildcats, including the indefinite suspension of Allonzo Trier and the federal allegations of head coach Sean Miller and DeAndre Ayton, the team lost momentum in the final minutes on the court. Ayton led the Wildcats with his double-double of 28 points and 18 rebounds.

Ayton was one of the first Wildcats to leave the court when time ran out, and Oregon students rushed the court in celebration.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni

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Oregon outplays ASU for 75-68 win to complete season sweep of Sun Devils

The crowd at Matthew Knight Arena watched as an Oregon six-point lead quickly faded away. With a 5-0 run, the Arizona State Sun Devils had crept back up to even the scoreboard with 34 seconds remaining in first half.

The half’s final possession was given to Oregon, and forward Payton Pritchard stalled with the ball at the top of the arc.

He looked to the right and found Elijah Brown in the corner. Brown swished in a three-pointer, giving Oregon a 43-40 lead at the half. A lead that would last the game.

With the help of Brown’s scoring and Pritchard leading the team in assists, Oregon (18-10, Pac-12 8-7)  beat ASU (19-8, 7-8) 75-68 on Thursday night at Matthew Knight Arena. The win ties Oregon with Washington for sixth in the Pac-12, ends the Ducks’ two-game losing streak, and completes the sweep of the Sun Devils 2-0.

“Our formula for this team hasn’t changed much,” head coach Dana Altman said. “If we out-rebound people and hold them under 70, our success rate has been pretty high.”

As a team known for taking outside shots, the Ducks focused on staying inside the paint during tonight’s game. Oregon scored 36 of their 75 points in the paint and kept ASU down to 14.

To start the second half, Oregon went on a 13-0 run. Brown scored seven of those points in a minute to put Oregon up by double digits for the first time in the game.

“I was just trying to shoot every shot like I shoot in the gym by myself,” Brown said. “A lot of my career I find myself stepping outside the three-point line. The more I’m able to mix my game up, the more my career will open up.”

Brown led Oregon with 19 points and a season-high seven rebounds. Following him was MiKyle McIntosh with 16 points and Paul White with 11. Pritchard led the team with six assists, as Oregon had a season-low seven turnovers.

With four blocks from Kenny Wooten, Oregon held strong defense against the Sun Devils. The freshman’s 76 blocks rank sixth on Oregon’s career all-time list. The mark also surpasses Robin Lopez of Stanford (2007) for third in the all-time Pac-12 freshman season block list.

“Kenny was different tonight,” Altman said comparing Wooten’s performance from the weekend prior. “He changed the game for us defensively. I mean they were looking over their shoulders when they were bringing it in. His activity is a big big part in our defense, no doubt about that.”

Thanks to an early 5-0 run, ASU held the lead for the majority of the first half. Yet, with a lack of baskets from two of their starters, senior guard Tra Holder and redshirt freshman Romello White, the Sun Devils went down by as much as 13 points to Oregon in the second half.

The Ducks will have to keep up this success for a trip to March’s NCAA Tournament. Knowing what’s on the line, Oregon will test itself on Saturday against No. 14 Arizona in the regular season’s last home game.

“At this point, every game is a new game for us,” Pritchard said. “We don’t got many games left to worry about getting better. We move on to the next one and hopefully take care of Arizona.”

 Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni

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UO club wrestling President Katie Kelly has the team back on the mat

The mat room, hidden in the back hallways of the University of Oregon Student Recreation Center, smells of sweat and dirty socks.

It’s 6 p.m. on a Tuesday evening and Katie Kelly sits on the mat. She puts on her wrestling shoes and ties her long, wavy hair into a braid.

With her hair secured, Kelly gets up and joins the men as they warm up for UO wrestling club practice.

“None of this would have been possible without Katie working to establish the team,” said Payton Bruni, a member of the club wrestling team.

Kelly is not just the only woman at practice tonight, she is the only woman in the club. In fact, she is the president of the club and one of the main reasons the wrestling club is rejuvenated and competing again.

When she was in eighth grade, Kelly joined her middle school’s wrestling team. She quickly became passionate about the sport and its physicality.

“I’m super uncoordinated, in terms of hand-eye coordination,” Kelly said. “Ball sports have never been my forte. But I was a rambunctious kid, and so it was really nice having that kind of physical outlet.”

Oregon junior Katie Kelly practices with a partner during wrestling club practice. (Adam Eberhardt/Emerald)

In both middle school and high school, she found strength in being the only woman on her team. She competed and practiced against men in the 145 and 152-pound weight classes. In her five years wrestling before college, she only competed against women four times in dual meets — outside of all-girl tournaments like the Girls State Wrestling Tournament.

As an eighth grader she finished second in Girls State, taking home the first-place title her senior year of high school.

“I think being on the team with guys made me a much better wrestler,” Kelly said. “I think that benefitted me as a wrestler, because when you are wrestling bigger, more talented people, you get better. Being on a team with all guys, when I went to go wrestle another girl it was way easier.”

She joined the UO wrestling club during her sophomore year at Oregon. The small group of wrestlers mainly just “rolled around” at the rec center and wrestled one another, Kelly said. She realized that in order to have the opportunity to compete, the club would need to reorganize. So, she took it upon herself to step up and become the club’s president.

“No one else was going to do it,” Kelly said. “There wasn’t going to be a club if I didn’t do it.”

Thanks to Kelly, the wrestling club has competed in a handful of tournaments so far this year.

“This year, it feels more real,” club treasurer Tony Munoz said. “Last year it just felt like a bunch of people just getting together, but now it feels like a team.”

As the club’s first female president, Kelly is laying the foundation for something much bigger than any weight class competitor.

“The end goal is bringing back a wrestling team to the University of Oregon,” Kelly said. “Which won’t happen in the time that I am here. But the end goal is not to have my name on a plaque, the end goal is for the team to come back.”

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter @maggie_vanoni

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Oregon up to No. 8 in AP top 25 ahead of matchup with No. 10 UCLA

After a thrilling double-overtime 80-74 win against USC on Friday night, Oregon jumped a spot to No. 8 in the latest AP top-25 poll.

UCLA, Oregon State, and Stanford were all also ranked in the top-25, coming in at No. 10, No. 12, and No. 16 respectively.

The Ducks have their final regular-season matchup against UCLA on Monday, in a highly anticipated top-10 matchup against the No. 10 Bruins. The game tips at 7 p.m.

Oregon will rely on powerhouse forward Ruthy Hebard to defend their 15-1 home-court record against the Bruins.

Hebard led Oregon’s victory against the Trojans on Friday with 27 points on 12-for-12 shooting, a single-game Oregon record. She has now made an NCAA-record 30 consecutive field goals and leads the county in field goal percentage at 67.0 percent. Her shooting has helped the Oregon team shoot 49.7 percent this season, the second highest percentage for the team since the 1980-81 season.

In their final home game this season, the Ducks will celebrate seniors Lexi Bando (the team’s four-year starter) and Justine Hall (a junior-year transfer from Purdue) in Monday night’s Senior Night festivities. The team will also wear pink uniforms to benefit cancer research.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter @maggie_vanoni

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Ducks fall to UCLA in overtime, 86-78

Oregon didn’t lead for the majority of the game, but it did push the clock into its first overtime of the season.

Yet, Oregon didn’t win, UCLA did.

On Saturday night at the Pauley Pavilion, the Ducks fell victim to their ongoing battle with inconsistency as they lost to the UCLA Bruins 86-78 in overtime, leaving the Los Angeles road trip 0-2.

The game began with a strong Oregon presence in the first 10 minutes. Oregon forward Troy Brown Jr. stole the ball after a Bruin-won tip-off. He ran it down for a layup and got Oregon on the board first.

But the Ducks’ drive soon slowed after a 3-pointer from UCLA Bruin Prince Ali made the way for a six-point UCLA lead.

The Ducks ended the first half five under the Bruins, 35-40.

The second half wouldn’t start for the Ducks until the 11:45-minute mark when UCLA junior Aaron Holiday took his seat on the Bruin bench with his fourth foul.

It was as if Holiday’s absence recharged the Oregon team. The Ducks went on a 13-point run, starting with back-to-back 3s from MiKyle McIntosh and Payton Pritchard. Another 3 from Elijah Brown tied the game at 59-59.

The Ducks reclaimed their lead at 7:41 with a layup from Elijah Brown. Holiday was soon put back in the game, and the Bruins started to regain control.

After switching back-and-forth leading points, a McIntosh layup tied the game at 71 with 49 seconds left. The two battled it out, attempting shots on both sides as the clock ran out and overtime was declared.

In overtime, this time the Bruins would be the first to score. Another 3-pointer from Ali at the 3:51 mark sparked a UCLA surge.

Oregon only made three baskets in overtime. Those seven points did not hold up against the Bruins’ 10-2 point run as they claimed the victory with an eight-point deficit.

Pritchard led the Ducks with 23 points and five assists. Following him was Elijah Brown and McIntosh each with 19 points. Troy Brown Jr. ended with eight rebounds, seven assists and four steals.

The Ducks will return home to Eugene and play the Arizona State Sun Devils at Matthew Knight Arena on Thursday, Feb. 22 at 8:30 p.m.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni

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Oregon softball run-rules Rutgers and Texas during doubleheader in Mexico

With back-to-back run-rule victories and two innings with five answered runs, Oregon made sure senior Lauren Lindvall’s birthday was a good one.

In the second day of the Puerto Vallarta College Challenge, the Ducks (9-0) outscored Rutgers, 10-0, and the Texas Longhorns, 8-0, in Friday’s doubleheader.

Starting with its afternoon game against Rutgers (2-5), Oregon ignited its two-game spark early by scoring half of their total points in the first inning alone.

The Ducks got on the board from a two-run double by Gwen Svekis in the first, bringing home both Alexis Mack and Jenna Lilley, to jump quickly ahead of Rutgers, 2-0. DJ Sanders capped the inning with her fifth home run of the season for a two-run hit in left centerfield, giving Oregon a 5-0 lead.

In the bottom of the third inning, Lilley drove a hit to right center for a two-run double and got the Ducks up by nine. Junior Darya Kaboli-Nejad hit the final scoring run for the Ducks, getting them to double-digits for the fifth time this season.

The victory over Rutgers gave pitcher Maggie Balint her third win of the season, after allowing two hits, four strikeouts and two walks in her five scoreless innings.

As a team, Oregon scored 10 runs on nine total hits. And on defense, the Ducks made three double-plays and no errors. Lilley led the Ducks at the plate with three RBIs and three runs. Including Lilley, five Ducks hit RBIs.

An hour and a half later, Oregon would do it all again against Texas (3-4).

After a scoreless first inning and two strikeouts from Oregon pitcher Miranda Elish, Oregon re-lit its spark in the bottom of the second inning.

Sanders was the first Ducks to score on a home run, giving her a team-best six total home runs so far this season. Oregon held on to Sanders’ energy throughout the rest of the inning. Mack’s RBI gave the Ducks another run and extended her team-best hitting streak to 15 games. With Lilley’s two-run double, Oregon ended the inning ahead 5-0 for the second time in consecutive games.

The top of the third came to close with a double play from Sanders. Cruse got her first hit of the season with a single to left field and later stole second. Lilley’s two-run single got Oregon to 7-0 against the Longhorns.

The only threat from Texas came in the fourth inning after hitting two singles to the infield, but Elish was able to hold down Oregon’s fort as she pitched another scoreless inning.

Sanders made Oregon’s final run for the day with after walking to first, stealing second and advanced to third on a Longhorn error. Iakopo got her home with an RBI double, giving the Ducks their 8-0 win.

Along with Balint, Elish picked up her third win on top of her seven strikeouts. Lilley was responsible for four of Oregon’s eight runs in the game as the team increased their win-game streak to nine.

Oregon will play one more game to conclude its stay in Mexico against No. 15 Ole Miss on Saturday at 6 p.m.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni

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Ducks end two-game wining streak, falling to Trojans 72-70

After a 17-minute lead in the first half, the Ducks couldn’t keep up with the Trojan pressure when it mattered most.

Oregon (17-9, Pac-12 7-6) saw its two-game win streak come to a close, losing a battle to USC (18-9, 9-5) Thursday night, 72-70.

With 17 seconds left, Oregon’s Troy Brown Jr. snagged a rebound from a MiKyle McIntosh missed shot and tied the game with a layup. The game would then come down to the wire.

With a second remaining in the game, Trojan Jordan McLaughlin made a clear pass from the outside to the open arms of Chimezie Metu. Metu went in for a layup, breaking USC’s three-game losing streak he secured the team’s victory at the Galen Center.

From the first minute of the second half to Metu’s final layup, the teams played through 12 score ties, eight USC lead changes and six Oregon turnovers.

For Oregon, the game energy intensified from the first half, where it led USC by as much as seven.

Halfway through the first, Oregon’s Payton Pritchard completed a layup. The two-point basket, combined with the two free-throws he had made just moments prior, gave the Ducks a lead of 19-12 over the Trojans.

Even after USC made a pair of threes for a brief lead, McIntosh made his own 3-pointer (shooting 4-5 from the 3-point range over the course of the game) and returned the lead back to the Ducks.

McIntosh and Pritchard ended the first half, each leading the team with 10 points.

Starting with scoring the first point of the game, McIntosh’s performance was a silver lining for the Oregon team. He ended the night with 23 points (his Oregon career high), five rebounds and a single assist, all on four personal fouls.

Combined with Pritchard’s 17 points, the players were responsible for 40 of Oregon’s 70-point final. Brown followed Pritchard with 11 points.

The Trojans were led by Jonah Mathews’s 20 points and Metu’s 18.

Oregon will remain in Los Angeles and play the UCLA Bruins on Saturday at 7:15 p.m.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter @maggie_vanoni

 

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Ducks split, find NCAA qualifying success in Washington and New Mexico

One team, two meets, two different states.

One weekend of success.

Oregon’s track and field team concluded its final competition before the postseason championships, taking home multiple records, wins and NCAA qualifying positions. The team competed in both the Husky Classic in Seattle, Washington, and the Don Kirby Elite Invitational in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Don Kirby Elite Invitational

In Seattle, the Oregon sprint women did what they do best: dominate.

On Saturday, Makenzie Dunmore and Hannah Waller ran personal-records (PR). Both sophomores ran NCAA qualifying times. Dunmore took first place with a time of 7.18 seconds in the 60-meters for the sixth-best time at Oregon. Waller won the 400-meters in 52.44 seconds, for Oregon’s third all-time best 400m time.

In Friday’s 200-meters, seven Ducks set PR’s in the event, with freshman Lauren Rain Williams finishing first overall with a PR of 23.26 seconds. Williams’ time is tied for 11th in the NCAA and ranks 15th in the world.

Junior transfer Briyahana DesRosiers finished second overall in 23.49, the ninth-best time in UO indoor history.

The five other women who ran personal-best in the 200m include Shae Anderson (23.70), Waller (23.86), Venessa D’Arpino (23.98), Rachel Vinjamuri (25.54) and Kaylah Robinson (24.59).

The defending NCAA Champion, Ariana Washington, finished fifth overall with a time of 23.73.

The Oregon women would finish the weekend in Seattle by winning the 4×400 meter relay. In a team of DesRosiers, Dunmore, Waller and Anderson, the Ducks completed the relay in 3 minutes and 30.18 seconds, the second-best time in the nation this season and the third-best all-time for Oregon.

The men of Oregon sprint team also took home the victory in the 60m and set PRs in the 400m on Saturday.

Junior Cravon Gillespie won the 60m in 6.68 seconds. In the 400m, Cameron Stone (46.37) and Orwin Emilien (47.08) ran PRs, with Stone’s time ranking third in Oregon indoor history.

In the men’s 200-meters on Friday, Gillespie finished second overall with a time of 21.08. Gillespie’s time moved him from seventh to fourth on Oregon’s all-time indoor list.

Representing Oregon in the jumps, Tristan James, a junior transfer from Lane Community College, won the men’s long jump with a top-jump of 25 feet and 6.25 inches (7.78 meters) Friday afternoon. His jump is not only a PR, but also the third-best mark in Oregon indoor history.

In the women’s triple jump, junior ChaQuinn Cook won with a jump of 43-0 (13.11m), improving her recently set school record.

Husky Classic

For the second consecutive meet, the men of Oregon placed four runners under the 4-minute mile mark. The Ducks finished 1-2, with senior Sam Prakel (3:56.89) taking the victory and freshman Reed Brown (3:57.23) finishing second. Senior Blake Haney broke the 4-minute barrier for the first time this season with a time of 3:59.01. Redshirt sophomore Mick Stanovsek placed sixth in 3:58.23

Prakel and Brown both ran NCAA qualifying times and PRs. The two moved into third and fourth on Oregon’s indoor mile list.

Known for a wide array of distance-running talent, Oregon set six personal bests over the two days.

In the 3,000-meters four Ducks ran PRs, each qualifying for the NCAAs.

In the women’s, Jessica Hull and Lilli Burdon joined former Duck Jordan Hasay, as the only three Ducks to ever break nine minutes. Hull (8:58.50) finished second overall on Saturday, with Burdon finishing third in 8:59.18.

On the men’s side, junior James West ran a PR of 7:51.23 and freshman Cooper Teare ran a PR of more than 20 seconds for a time of 7:53.66.

The Ducks also earned two NCAA Indoor Championship qualifying times in Friday’s 5,000-meters — both from redshirt sophomores and both personal best times.

Florida State transfer, Carmela Cardama Baez–finished eighth overall in 15:55.45, the ninth fastest time in UO indoor history. While Tanner Anderson finished fifth in a time of 13:43.43, the 10th best mark at Oregon.

King Ches reigns on

On the opposite side of the country, former Duck and seventeen-time NCAA champion, Edward Cheserek joined in on the triumph.

On Friday, running for Skechers Performance, Cheserek made history running the indoor mile in 3:49.44 at the David Hemery Invitational in Boston, Mass.

His wildly-impressive time is the second fastest in world history, a Kenyan record and the fastest time ran in the event since 1997. Cheserek is now just the fourth man ever to run a sub-3:50 indoor mile.

The Oregon track and field team will have one more chance to qualify for NCAA’s at the MPSF Indoor Championships on Feb. 23-24 in Seattle.

Follow Maggie Vanoni on Twitter: @maggie_vanoni

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