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Past, Present, Future Ducks Shine At Oregon Twilight Meet

Published by
Oregon Twilight   May 9th 2015, 12:15pm
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by Rob Moseley
Editor, GoDucks.com

EUGENE, Ore. — The past, present and future of Oregon track and field was on display at Hayward Field on Friday, as UO legend Brianne Theisen-Eaton set a personal best in the long jump and Ducks recruit Matthew Maton ran the third-fastest mile ever by an American high school boy during the Oregon Twilight.

The Future: Maton, a senior at Summit High in Bend, capped the evening by crossing in 3 minutes, 59.38 seconds. He became the sixth U.S. boy ever to break 4 minutes, and trails only American record-holder Alan Webb and the first boy to do so, Jim Ryun.

In Friday's field, he trailed Oregon runners Eric Jenkins (3:57.09) and Will Geoghegan (3:57.53), and by a wide enough margin down the stretch that Maton wasn't sure he'd broken 4:00. "I was just really worried it was going to pop up and be four-oh-oh," Maton said. "It's fast, but you don't get put on that list. I was just really glad it wasn't."

Maton became the 430th runner to break 4 minutes at Hayward Field, and the 442nd American. "It was definitely rough, going to school every day (this week)," Maton said. "A normal race, I'll just be like, relax, it'll happen on the race day. This week I couldn't sleep, just kept thinking about 4 minutes. I know you're not supposed to think about it, but I couldn't stop. It was my ultimate goal for this year, so it feels good to get it."

The Present: For the much of the Oregon contingent, Friday's meet was a tune-up for the start of championship season, as the Pac-12 meet looms in a week. The Ducks feted their senior class, but they also provided several victorious efforts.

Ashlee Rowlee won the women's 100 in 11.80 seconds, Lauren Crockett enjoyed a successful senior night by winning the high jump at 5 feet, 10 inches,Brittany Mann put the shot 54 feet, 1/2 inch and Jillian Weir was first in the hammer throw at 211-4.

On the men's side, not only did Jenkins win the mile but Edward Cheserek took the 3,000 in 7:57.97, Jackson Darland was first in the 3,000 steeplechase in a personal-best time of 8:59.95 and Johnathan Cabral passed over the 110 hurdles in 13.75. In the field events, Chance Whitehurst triple jumped 48 feet,Ryan Hunter-Simms threw the discus 177-2, Greg Skipper threw the hammer 227-5, Sam Crouser won the javelin with a mark of 252-0, and Cole Walshcleared 17-2 3/4 in the pole vault.

In a comment typical of the UO contingent, Cabral said Friday's race illustrated a technical detail he's working on, in his case the start of the 110 hurdles. "I'm just going to focus on that this week, make sure I get my three strong steps and turn it over quick," he said.

Cheserek used the 3,000 as a speed workout for the conference meet next week, and likewise Johnny Gregorek prepared by running a 1,000-meter race Friday, and finishing second. The 4x100 relay got around with three clean passes, crossing in 40.29 with the help of UO football players Charles Nelson and Tony Brooks-James.

The Past: Theisen-Eaton's PR in the long jump, on her second attempt, highlighted a night of rousing performances by alumni of the program. "I actually was really surprised," she said. "Not that I didn't think I could jump that far, but we're trying out something new. I told myself before I started, you just have to trust it and see what happens. My first jump really felt awful, and I saw how far I was and thought, OK, I trust it."

Theisen-Eaton's husband, decathlon world record-holder Ashton Eaton, participated in two of the night's most competitive events. Eaton took second to Bryshon Nellum in the 400, a photo finish in which Nellum crossed in 46.26, one-hundredth of a second ahead of Eaton. In the 100, Joe Morris was first in 10.11 and Eaton was second in 10.20.

On a night when many of the middle-distance runners commented on wind in the backstretch, Mac Fleet edged Gregorek to win the 1,000 in 2:21.25. In the 800, Matthew Centrowitz crossed first in 1:48.46, just ahead of Andrew Wheating in his first race of the season. "We were joking like the college days" before the race, Centrowitz said. "It's always fun to race teammates, and obviously teammates of Wheating's caliber. It makes things fun. It's what you want."

Up Next: Oregon's combined events athletes will kick off the Pac-12 Championships this weekend in Los Angeles, with the main meet held there next weekend.



Read the full article at: www.goducks.com

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