Photo by Bruce Landrey
rre outlasted doubling Ngeno in three-mile .
Brigham takes decathlon
“I was satisfied, really pleased,” said
Craig Brigham after winning the first Pac
8 decathlon competition ever held. “I think
I’m capable of scoring 7800 in the NCAAs,
now, if everything goes right.”
Actually Brigham took the Pac-8 con
frontation with a 7673 point total, 549 ahead
of his nearest challenger, Kenny Kring of
Stanford. Sam Albanese from UCLA took
third at 6852, Bill Hodgson of Washington
State followed with 6333 and pre-meet co
favorite Bo Sterner of USC finished in fifth
spot at 5978.
“I really enjoyed this decathlon,” said
Brigham. “The best I’ve ever had.”
"I even liked the competitors who were
here.” In setting his lifetime decathlon
best, Brigham missed three tries at 16-5 in
the pole vault, settling for a 15-9 vault. “I
had a close shot at that vault,” said
Brigham. “I thought I had it going over but
I didn’t and that’s the breaks.”
Brigham’s 15-9 was easily good enough
to take the decathlon pole vault, followed
by a 14-7*/4 for Albanese of UCLA.
Sterner was eliminated from the list of
challengers when he fouled three times in
the discus ring and could only post a 13-1 Vis
in the pole vault, the meet’s next event.
In the javelin, which followed the pole
vault, Brigham’s best event, Oregon’s
premier decathlete got off a 190-7 V2 throw,
which, although enough to score 738 points,
could not rival a 228-5 mark by Hodgson.
Stemer’s 197-4 was also a better discus
mark but after the pole vault was over, the
decathlon was too. Brigham was the
inevitable winner.
Before competing in the meet’s final
event, Brigham had already qualified for
the NCAAs and had the victory in the bag.
“I went out fast,” said Brigham. “It had to
be the hardest 1500 meters that I’ve ever
run. It really hurt.” Putting an anti
climactic ending to a fine all-around
performance, Brigham came home in the
1500 with a 4:47.4 time which was second
only to Kenny Kring who clocked a 4:26.9.
Brigham’s 7673 is the second best for the
country this year and clearly establishes
him as a clear contender for the NCAA
decathlon crown. Brigham points out that
after the Pac-8 meet, “I’ll improve at the
NCAAs. I’ve got a lot more experience
now and there’s even a possibility I could
win it.”
“I don’t think the lack of a partisan
crowd will hurt me at the NCAAs,” said
Brigham. “With two days of competition
and ten events, it really doesn’t make as
much difference as a single race on a
single day does.
“My 1500 meters was interesting on
Saturday. I leaned for the tape at the end
of the race, lost my balance and fell. I
really didn’t collapse like everyone makes
it out to be, I was just very tired,” said
Brigham. “Mac (Wilkins) called it more of
a hamburger effort than anything else.”
Preparing now for the NCAA cham
pionships in Baton Rouge, Louisiana,
Brigham speculates the top competition to
be defending titlist Ron Evens from
Connecticut, and Roger George of Fresno
State. “Evens is a tough competitor,” said
Brigham. “It should be a great meet. It
just depends on who’s up and who’s down.
But he has to be the favorite.
“I need improvement in the hurdles,
long jump, 400 meters and 1500 if I’m going
to win,” said Brigham. “It should take a
high 7800 performance to take it all. I
think, if I can improve, I could do it. ”
“At least I’ll give it a try.” Brigham,
only a freshman, could not have much
more expected of him. He has already
done well and much more.
Oregon
distance
runners
certainly
aren’t
supreme
By MERLIN MANN
Of the Emerald
The nation’s track capital is under seige.
Until Saturday afternoon, Eugene was the
track capital of the country.
Some enthusiastic local track buffs even
went to far as to. call it the world track
capital during the Olympic Trials last
summer.
Most specifically though, Eugene has
been called the distance running capital,
but coming off the performances in the
Pacific-8 track and field championships,
Washington State is attempting to seize
such distinction. (Imagine the distance
running capital of the country out in the
sage brush and dry rolling hills of out-back
Washington.)
Nevertheless, if such title needs many
performances to take hold WSU certainly
laid solid groundwork last weekend.
Oregon’s distance runners, supported by
a home crowd, were supposed to offset the
UCLA dominance in other areas and make
the Pacific-8 championships more than a
UCLA warm-up for the NCAAs.
But where were Oregon’s distance
runners?
Buried under a landslide of Cougar
points in the three-and six-mile races.
It had to be very embarrassing to' proud
Eugene.
Four WSU runners picked up 32 points
the first day on a six-mile sweep of the top
three places and a second place in the
steeplechase. Three bounced back with
sparkling doubles the next day and took 2
3-4 behind Steve Prefontaine in the three
mile for another 20 points.
In the end Oregon scored 100 points for
third, UCLA ran away as expected with 156
and USC took second with 111.
Washington State was a close 88 behind
Oregon.
Oregon’s distance runners in the
steeplechase, three-and six-mile sewed 21
points for the Ducks, Mac Wilkins scored
20 himself in the discus and shot) while
WSU took 52 points in the three races.
John Ngeno, a freshman Pac-8 cross
country champion, led two-time cross
country All-American Dan Murphey and
1971 All-American Phil Burkwist across in
the six-mile finish an event expected to be
taken by Oregon’s Mike Long and Bob
Grubbs.
Happy WSU assistant coach John
Chaplin said indignantly to the Emerald
“Yeh, and according to you guys we were
supposed to get lapped out there.” (He was
referring to the headline in the Emerald’s
Friday morning special edition distributed
at the stadium which proclaimed Long and
Grubbs the favorites in the race.)
Long managed fourth behind the WSU
trio; Grubbs, a non-sewing eighth.
Dean Clark, another member of
WSU’s Pac-8 winning cross-country team
the last two years, took second in the
steeplechase after Oregon’s Todd Lathers
and Gary Williams hung themselves on the
first hurdle on the final lap.
Ngeno, Clark and Murphey bounced
back for 2-3-4- placings in the three-mile
for very respectable doubles.
Oregon’s doublers Grubbs and Knut
Kvalheim couldn’t finish. Randy James
also couldn’t finish. Pat Tyson finished
tenth for no points.
Kvalheim had a very legitimate excuse.
Just an hour before the 3-mile, Kvalheim
battled Oregon State’s Hailu Ebba in a
thrilling photo-finish mile run. Ebba won
in 3:57.9, a mark equalled by Kvalheim,
but effects on his fast mile on a hot af
ternoon took their toll in the three-mile.
UCLA coach Jim Bush, worked before
the meet, had said, “Oregon can score 100
points in the distances.”
And after it was over, another 50 would
have made the team chase quite in
teresting.
une distance race in wrncn uregon
didn’t fall on its face was the mile. Mark
Feig followed Ebba and Kvalheim across
with a 3:59.5, his first sub-four minute mile
and Oregon’s 12th ever to go under the
barrier.
Watching Feig dance across the infield
when he found out his time, it was hard to
believe him when he said, “It really
wasn’t that important, but I’m glad I
made it now. It takes off some pressure.”
Mac Wilkins kept Oregon in the meet,
scoring the Pac-8’s first double win ever in
the shot put and discus. His 63-7 shot heave
was nearly four feet farther than his
previous best. His 199-9 discus throw broke
the meet record.
Photo by James Link
Exhausted Craig Brigham collapsed after winning the grueling decathlon