Oregon Track & Field Takes on Pac-10`s Best in MPSF Championships

Freshman Keshia Baker anchored UO to a 4x400m school record last meet (3:38.92). Photo: goducks.com

EUGENE - The University of Oregon men’s and women’s track and field teams return for their final weekend of indoor action as a full squad this weekend in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation Championships, hosted Friday-Saturday, by the University of Washington in the Dempsey Indoor Center.

The Ducks have tentatively entered 21 women’s and 27 men’s sprinters, distance runners, jumpers and throwers in the quasi-conference championships that also includes a host of top athletes from several of the best teams from the Pac-10 (Arizona, Arizona State, California, Stanford, Oregon, UCLA, Washington and Washington State) and Big West Conferences (UC Irvine and Long Beach State).

The meet is tentatively scheduled to run Fri., from noon – 8:20 PM, and Sat., from 10:00 AM – 3:15 PM, and this year’s meet schedule has been significantly revised compared to past years in that only two running events -- the 60m and 60m hurdles -- have prelims and finals.

Every other race (including distance events) is an event final, with seeding between sections based on season bests.

More meet information and a tentative meet schedule is available at the www.gohuskies.com website.

UO's Seattle travel party includes one returning NCAA champion, sophomore Rebekah Noble, and seven other returning All-Americans -- seniors Britney Henry, Lauryn Jordan and Brian Richotte, juniors Dana Buchanan, Irie Searcy and sophomores Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott and Galen Rupp.

Four other NCAA veterans are among UO’s entries -- seniors Emily Enders, juniors Kasey Harwood and Michael McGrath and redshirt sophomore Kalindra McFadden.

In this week’s MPSF event seedings, the Ducks sport three men’s and entries ranked first in their respective events -- Rupp (5,000m, school record 13:38.62), the 4x400m relay of juniors Phillip Alexander and Marcus Dillon and freshmen Chad Barlow and Ashton Eaton (first, 3:09.92) and senior Brian Richotte (weight throw, 67-4 1/4).

Five other men and six other women stand top four and a list follows: Men - Alexander (400m, second, 47.18), Dillon (400m, 48.05), distance medley relay (second, 9:41.64), Eaton (long jump, fourth, 24-3; heptathlon, fourth, 5,370); Women - Noble (800m, second, 2:08.42), the 4x400m of junior Kavina Hall, sophomores Leah Worthen and Noble and freshman Keshia Baker (second, 3:38.92), the distance medley relay of Buchanan, Noble, Hall and freshman Nicole Blood (second, 11:30.60), Jordan (long jump, second, 20-4 1/2) and Henry (weight throw, third, 65-6).

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