TRACK
Photo by Michael C lapp
Brian Crouser, the 1982
NCAA javelin champion,
returns for his senior track
and field season as one of the
stalwarts of the Ducks*
weight corps.
jBill Dellinger, Oregon men’s track
coach, isn’t sure whether his team can
defend its NCAA outdoor track and
field championship this year, but he is
sure the cupboard isn't bare.
Several factors will make the Ducks’
job of repeating as national champions
difficult. The first and most obvious is
the void left by Joaquim Cruz,
Brazilian Olympic gold medalist and
double NCAA champion. Cruz has not
had a break from competition since the
beginning of 1984, and therefore will
redshirt this season and rejoin the
Ducks in 1986 as a junior.
The second reason Oregon will be
hard pressed to repeat their national
championship is the fact that the
NCAA meet will be held in Austin,
Texas, and not Eugene as it was last
year.
The Ducks will be minus Cruz and
Jim Hill, who finished third in the
NCAA 5.000 meters, but they will still
be strongest in the distances as the
Dellinger tradition continues.
Dub Meyers, a two-time All
American and third place finisher in
last year’s NCAA 1500 meters leads
the way for the Ducks in the middle
distances. John Carlotti will add depth
Tracksters
try harder —
for Oregon in both the 800 and 1500
meters.
John Zishka, Mike Blackmorc and
Jim Hamilton will lead the way for the
Ducks in the 5000 and 10000 meter
races. All three have shown flashes of
brilliance, but it may be a newcomer
who steps to the forefront for Oregon
in the longer distances. Highly-touted
freshman Tracy Garrison is coming off
a good cross country season and Dell
inger has high hopes for him.
Other cross country runners who
might step to the front of the pack in
clude Doug Benevento, Knut Hegvold.
and Rich Bcrgesen.
The steeplechase may be the event
where Oregon has the most talent and
depth. The Ducks have NCAA ex
perience back in Matt McGuirk,
Harold Kuphaldt, and Will Kimball.
Racketeers show promise
ictory — then defeat. The men's
tennis team opened their season last
weekend tasting a little of both, with a
6-3 win over Eastern Washington
University Friday, and a 9-0 loss Satur
day to the University of Washington
Huskies.
But the loss doesn't leave Oregon
coach Buzz Summers very worried. •
His enthusiasm about his team is
apparent.
“This year's team is much stronger
than last year's.” he says..
Summers says he owes that strength
to the combination of exceptional .
recruits and three strong returnees —
Wade Judy, Murph Dysart and Wiley .
Smith.
He adds that the emphasis this-year .
is on doubles play, as last year.' . -
‘.‘Judy and Dysart arc the only tested
doubles team we've got. They're the
only veterans on the team as far as
doubles go," Summers says. “They
were -7-12 a year ago and w;ill have that
year’s experience of playing together. “
Dysart, a second-year Duck, agrees
with Summers’ optimism about the
team.
“This year we might come out with
a winning record,” he says. “Our
competition is almost the same as last
year and we have a lot of depth."
Smith, who joins with freshman Sean
Campbell to make Oregon’s number
two doubles team, says that the team's
winning attitude as well as its stringent
practices makes the Ducks’ strength.
The loss of two recruits, Mike Ball
and Peter Schumacher, for Financial
reasons, dropped the team from 12
players to 10. The loss may weaken the
team, but only for back-ups.
Injuries and academics dragged down
last year’s team, hut Summers says he
doesn’t anticipate any problems this
year.
“The players this year are much bet
ter than last year’s,” he says.
More practice matches were added to
the winter workout schedule, sharpen
ing the players’ competitive drive.
“The kids wanted to do it.” Sum
mers'says. refering to the winter mat
ches. .“They’re more serious about
their games.”
Kurt Lidtkc. a freshman from Salem,
joined the Ducks early last spring and
is expected to compete well this year.
Junior college transfer Scott Peery is
the teams pre-season number one
singles player.- Peery suffered an elbow
injury Saturday and was unable to com
pete against the Huskies.
Freshman Chris Brilhante, a number
one, doubles player while in Hawaii,
will team with Peery this year.as
Oregon’s number three doubles team.
Left-hander Mark Scndelback, a
freshman, has done “extremely well”
in preliminary matches. Summers says.
David Smith, a freshman, is con*
sider.ed one of the smartest court
players on the team.
Summers enters his 18th season as
the Ducks head coach with 214 vic
tories. Summers has been nationally
ranked nine times. In 1981, Summers
was undefeated and top-ranked in the
Pacific Northwest 45-and-over singles
division. r
The Ducks will compete today at 3
p.m. against Whitman College at the
University’s East 15th Street courts,
weather permitting.
Story by Mary Lichtenwalner
Garth Morrisette has shown the poten
tial to be an effective performer in the
steeple. Dellinger is also happy about
the prospect of Olympic Trials qualifier
Cory Randall returning to Oregon after
having some academic difficulties.
Randall is enrolled at Lane Community
College and should be back in the
Ducks’ fold by spring.
’’The steeplechase is definitely a
strong point for us,” Dellinger says.
In the sprints, the Ducks should be
able to make up some ground in an
area where they were weak last year.
Kevin Vixie will return after a
frustrating year of injuries that kept
him out of competition most of last
year. Adding depth will be former
Oregon state high school champion
John Frazier. Football player Elliott
Dunning, who finished third in the
California state meet in the 200 meters,
will also boost the sprint corps.
In the hurdling events, Oregon will
be rebuilding with the loss of seniors
Lamar Hurd in the high hurdles and
Don Ward in the intermediates. Both
gave the Ducks solid points in the dual
meet season, and qualified for the
NCAAs.
J. J. Birden and junior college
transfer Rod Green will try to fill the
A
— to stay
Number One
void left by Ward and Hurd in the high
hurdles, but the Ducks have virtually
no experience in the intermediates.
In the field, the Ducks will also
return strength with Kory Tarpenning,
1984 NCAA pole vault runnerup, and
Brian Crouser, 1982 NCAA javelin
champion and three time All-American.
Ken Flax has made early season waves
throughout the nation with his incredi
ble 241-2 toss in the hammer throw.
Flax, an All-American last year,
shattered the school record with his
toss by 11 feet. Flax is now the all
time leader in the hammer among
American-born collegiates.
In the jumps, Oregon appears to be
strong as they return all three of their
high jumpers from a year ago. Todd
Post, Walt Reynolds and Keith
Washington have all shown they can
compete well, but Dellinger would like
to see some more consistency from the
trio.
In the triple and long jumps, the
Ducks will have returning experience
in Birden and Uchenna Agu. Again
they will miss the services of Hurd, but
Dellinger does not think the gap will be
as great as in the hurdles.
“An athlete of Hurd’s ability is go
ing to be missed in any program, but
we feel pretty good about our prospects
in the jumps,” Dellinger says.
The weight events will be a bright
spot for the Ducks. In addition to Flax
and Crouser, the Ducks picked up
some fine recruits to bolster their line
up.
Jeff Hultberg is strong in both the
shotput and discus. Karl Gates was the
top ranked prep jdvelin thrower in the
nation last year. Kevin Carr and foot
ball player Greg Aitkenhead will also
give Oregon more depth in the weights.
Bobby George returns in the javelin.
“We feel that we should be com
petitive in almost all our dual meets
and all the way up to the NCAAs,”
Dellinger says. “The key as always
should be staying injury free and com
peting to our potential.”
Story by Robert Collias
PbrtiB by Steven Wall
The Duck men’s tennis squad returns for spring
season with three veterans from the ’84 team,
and high hopes for its newcomers. The Ducks
will be playing at home today at 3 p.m.
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