Oregon Kicks Off Indoor Track Season in Seattle

On the men’s side, Jordan Stray earned an Oregon victory with a weight throw of 17.30m.

Keshia Baker scored a win in the 300m dash Saturday. Photo courtesy: goducks.com

SEATTLE - The University of Oregon opened its track & field season on Saturday with the UW Indoor Preview at Seattle’s Dempsey Indoor facility.

Nearly 50 men and women represented the Ducks against primarily Northwest schools.

“We wanted to work on some things, get the rust off and enjoy a low-key competitive atmosphere,” said Associate Head Coach Dan Steele. “The kids competed hard. We saw some good things and remained healthy.”

On the women’s side, Keshia Baker earned a victory in the 300 meter dash, outdistancing her nearest challenger by more than a second with a time of 38.34. Kavina Hall (fourth, 40.66), Leah Worthen (fifth, 40.67) and Jamesha Youngblood (sixth, 40.76) finished in the top six for the Ducks.

“Keshia Baker did a great job. She ran really well in the 300 meters,” said Coach Steele.

Megan Maloney scored a second-place finish with a weight throw of 17.09m, while Mandy White’s 60-meter run of 7.80 and Nicole Blood’s 4:42.74 mile were each good for third-place finishes. Blood just held off Alexandra Kosinski, who came in fourth for the Ducks (4:42.79).

Oregon’s three women’s 4x400 relay teams finished in the top three spots, including a winning time of 3:57.50.

The Duck men followed up with a 1-2 finish of their own in the 4x400 relay, recording times of 3:17.42 and 3:17.51 respectively. The Oregon men also claimed the distance medley with a time of 9:44.22.

Also on the men’s side, Jordan Stray earned an Oregon victory with a weight throw of 17.30m. Also finishing in the top four were Steven Johnson (third, 16.66m) and Scott Penny (fourth, 15.98m).

Five Ducks finished in the top seven in the 300m dash. Philip Alexander earned second (33.42) behind Washington’s Jordan Boase (33.14), while Ashton Eaton (third, 33.93), Marcus Dillon (fifth, 34.32), Chad Barlow (sixth, 34.42) and Jared Huske (seventh, 35.18) rounded out the Ducks’ top seven finishers.

“Phil Alexander ran a very good 300 meters,” said Coach Steele. “That’s a very fast time, so we’re happy with that.”

Eaton’s 8.10 in the 60m hurdles ranked third, while Huske finished in fifth place with a time of 8.17.

The Ducks return to the track February 1-2 for the University of Washington Invitational in Seattle.

“We’re excited about the meet in two weeks,” said Coach Steele. “That’s when we’ll let everyone run their normal events and kick the season off in a big way.”

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