emerald
sports
ASU in the fast lane
Devils will top IVSU distance, UCLA depth points
By John Haaly
OIWmEmfld
It's a long road to the Pac-10 track and field crown
Arizona State. Washington State and UCLA know
how long that road is, because the trio appears to be the
cream of the Pac-10 this year
But there the similarities end
The Sun Devils have become one of the best teams
in the country by following the fast lane They boast
probably the deepest set of sprinters in the country, and
because of the ability of their sprinters to run two, three
or even four events, Arizona State is able to score big
points with few competitors.
Meet schedule
Friday
4:00 ~ Hammer Trials and Final
4:40 — Long Jump Trials and Final
4:50 — Pole Vault Final
5.-00 — 4 X 100-meters Relay Trials
5:05 — Javelin Trials and Final
5:15 — Steeplechase Final
5:30 — 1,500-meters Trials
5:50 — 110-meters Hurdles Trials
6:05 - 400-meters Trials
6:20 — 100-meters Trials
6:30 — Shot Put Trials and Final
6:35 — 800-meters Trials
6:50 — 400-meters Hurdles Trials
7:10 — 200-meters Trials
7:30 — 10,000-meters Final
Saturday
1:30 — High Jump Trials and Final
2:00 — Tripie Jump Trials and Final
2:05 — Discus Trials and Final
2:30 — 4 X 100-meters Relay Final
2:40 — 1,500-meters Final
2:55 — 110-meters Hurdles Final
3:05 — 400-meters Final
3:15 — 100-meters Final
3:25 — 800-meters Final
3:40 — 400-meters Hurdle Final
3:55 — 200-meters Final
4:05 — 5,000-meters Final
4:25 — 4 X 400-meters Relay Final
s
WSU have gone the other route to the Pac-10's
heights Washington State is loaded with distance
runners and weightmen, and that combination will
decide how far the Cougars will be able to carry their
hopes for a title.
UCLA has taken a middle course, stockpiling plenty
of talent, but not the quality of the other two The Bruins
are deep, probably more so than any other team in the
conference Then there's Oregon
The Ducks don't have the depth this year,
especially in the distance events, but the athletes they
do have are championship quality Oregon could take
home five individual wins this weekend, but it’s doubtful
they will take home the team trophy
The teams, in order of their projected finishes, and
their projected point totals:
ARIZONA STATE -125
Ron Brown, Howard Henley, Lamonte King, Leon
Tubbs and Willie Jones could provide the Sun Devils
with as many as 70 points, which is a higher point total
than most of the teams hope to score Brown and
Henley will anchor the 100, King and Henley the 200,
and Tubbs and Jones the 400 Henley was the confer
ence 400 winner last year, while King won the 200 and
long jump, events in which he should repeat as the
winner
Arizona State s two relay teams should win the
conference meet easily, and may be the best quartets in
the country The Sun Devils also have some strength in
the 800 and 1,500, with three runners under 1:49 10 in
the 800 — all three should score — and defending 1,500
champ Dan Baby, who won't finish higher than sixth
unless the pace is slow in the final
John Lenstrohm provides point potential in both
hurdles races, and he should be able to pick up a
second and a third in the intermediates and highs,
respectively.
UCLA-118
The Bruins depth should allow them to edge Wash
ington State, since the Cougars must rely on fewer
athletes and hence their margin of error is narrower
UCLA should score in 16 of the 21 events that
comprise the Pac-10 track and field championships, but
in only three of those events will the Bruins claim the top
spot Eric Brown, the 100 winner last year, will repeat,
and a pair of runner-ups last year — Dokie Williams in
the triple jump and Anthony Curran in the pole vault —
appear to be the best in the conference in their respec
tive events
But those three wins equal only 30 points, so if they
Bruins want to have even a remote shot at the leaders,
they must get good performances from just about
everyone •
WASHINGTON STATE -117
Chaplin has again based his title hopes on foreign
v r
Photo by Bob Btkmr
Duck coach Blit Dellinger's club doesn't have the
depth to challenge for the crown.
athletes But he has diversified this year, moving away
from relying strictly on African distance runners And
with the added flexibility, the Cougars will move into the
Pac-10's top spot if the Sun Devils slip just a bit
In the events the Cougars will score in, they will be
ringing up big numbers, as in the 5,000 (14 points),
10,000 (14 points), steeplechase (12 points), hammer
(20( points), and javelin (18 points) That's 78 points in
five events
The best of the Cougars are distance runners Peter
Koech (who should win the 5,000 and 10,000 with ease),
Richard Tuwei (the steeplechase winner), Laslo Babits
(a win in the javelin). Brent Harken (a clear choice in the
high jump), and Tore Gustafson (first in the hammer)
But the Cougars face the same problems the Ducks do
— they have quality, but not enough of it
OREGON - 87
The Ducks appear to have clear-cut winners in four
events — Dean Crouser tn the discus and shot put,
David Mack in the 800 and Hill in the 1,500 Beyond
those 40 points — and whatever Hill and Bill McChesney
can pick up in the 5,000 — Oregon will have to rely on a
home track advantage and luck to challenge any of the
top three
Crouser, with bests this year of 68-3V* and 208-3 in
the shot put and discus, respectively, won't be chal
lenged at the conference meet It's doubtful anyone will
be up to challenging Mack, either, as he is the two-time
800 titlist and has a career best of 1 46 03 Although Hill
has a slower time than Pricker in the 1,500 (3:40 42 to
3:38 9), he ran a 3:56 41 in the Twilight Meet last week,
which converts to a 3:39 1,500
The only other solid favorites to score points are a
Continued on Page 11
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