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SPORTS EDITOR: JEFF SMITH Smittside@aol.com
Cross country teams prepare for Pac-10 meet
The stretch run
begins for the
Oregon cross
country team
with thePac-10
championships
this weekend
By Robbie McCallum
Oregon Daily Emerald
One of the last vestiges of
the old-fashioned style of in
tercollegiate cross country is
the conference champi
onship race.
On a day when most
NCAA Division I sports are
moving towards BCS stand
ings and postseason tourna
ments, the sport of cross
country holds on to the tradi
tions of years past.
The championship has lit
tle effect on the postseason.
While small in comparison
to high-caliber meets, the
conference championships
offer the Pacific-10 Confer
ence schools a low-key meet
prior to the ever-important
Western Regional Meet two
weeks later.
The meet also is a chance
to garner bragging rights in
the running world on the
west coast. Rivalries between
Oregon, Stanford and other
Pac-10 powerhouses are
rekindled there every year.
The No. 13 Ducks come
into this season’s conference
championship in Seattle
ranked third in the Pac-10.
“The conference meet
doesn’t have much standing
as far as the NCAA meet, but
it’s a meet where teams want
to do well,” head coach Mar
tin Smith said. “Momentum
on a season depends on how
well you do throughout the
season and you want to keep
doing well.”
If Smith’s team is to pull an
upset and win the Pac-10 ti
tle, it must unseat perennial
powerhouse Stanford and
Arizona, the conference’s de
fending champion.
Leading the Oregon pack
are sophomore Jason Hart
mann and senior Michael
Kasahun. The duo has been
impressive in both Oregon
meets this season, placing in
the top echelon of runners at
the Roy Griak Invitational
and the Pre-NCAA meet.
At the Pre-NCAA meet in
Ames, Iowa, Hartmann and
Kasahun finished fifth and
sixth among Pac-10 runners
while placing 30th and 36th,
respectively.
The two will have plenty of
competition despite the small
field. The top returning Pac-10
runner is Stanford’s Thomas
Murley, who placed second at
the Pre-NCAA meet. The Car
dinal also features two
Olympians in Gabe Jennings
and Michael Stember.
Other competition in
cludes Arizona’s Mike
Cramer, Arizona State’s Gar
rett Jensen and California’s
Turn to Men’sXC, page 8A
■The Duck Harriers will run
their third 6,000-meter race this
season at the Pacific-10
Conference championships
By Robbie McCallum
Oregon Daily Emerald
The NCAA’s switch from 5,000 me
ters to 6,000 meters as the standard
distance in women’s cross country
has been a rough one for some teams
— especially Oregon.
Last year, the NCAA cross country
committee decided to lengthen the
standard distance by 1,000 meters.
Most applauded the move, saying it
was the next logical step. But as more
6,000-meter races are run, coaches
across the nation are finding that
teams are responding in very differ
ent ways to the switch.
Oregon’s inaugural 6,000-meter
race was mediocre at best. Then
ranked 12th in the nation, the Duck
Harriers placed seventh at the Roy
Griak Invitational in St. Paul, Minn.
Many of the Oregon runners mis
judged the new distance and either
faded in the last portion of the race or
went out too conservatively.
Three weeks later, the Ducks, now
ranked No. 22, traveled to Ames,
Iowa for the Pre-NCAA meet. .Their
second 6,000 meter race of the season
was even less successful, as the
Ducks placed 21st. Although they
beat out 35 other schools, Oregon lost
credit with the NCAA selection com
mittee by losing to teams ranked low
er than the Ducks.
“We had an absolutely miserable
performance at Pre-nationals,” Ore
gon head coach Tom Heinonen said.
“Our performance was far below our
expectations. I think it was no indica
tion of what we were capable of.
“We’ll be very lucky to make the
NCAA meet,” Heinonen added. “It’s
still possible since 31 teams qualify,
and we did beat a few teams that
might help us later on.”
The Ducks have not missed an
NCAA meet since 1996 and have
qualified for 23 of the last 25 meets.
The Ducks make their third ven
ture on a 6,000 meter course this
weekend at the Pacific-10 Conference
championships in Seattle.
The women’s race begins at 11 a.m.
in Lincoln Park, near the Washington
campus.
Although the meet does not count
toward NCAA qualification, the
Ducks have much to gain — or lose
— at the meet.
“This is our chance to get back on
track and near the big four teams in
the conference,” Heinonen said. “We
want to make this be a good step to
wards regionals in two weeks.”
The meet that counts toward
NCAA qualification is the Western
Regional meet on Nov. 11 in Fresno,
Calif.
“If we can be a solid fifth at West
ern Regionals, we stand a much
Turn to Women’s XC, page 8A
Well be
very lucky
to make the
NCAA meet
It's still
possible
since 31
teams
qualify, and
we did beat
a few teams
that might
still help us
later on.
Tom
Heinonen
Oregon head
coach yy
Photo by Emerald
Junior defender Molly Stemp (20), freshman midfielder/defender Ann Westermark and the rest of the Ducks are
ready to tangle it up with their Northwest rivals in the final home games of the 2000 season.
Washington schools visit UO
The Ducks
look to give
their fans a
treat in their
final two
home
games of
the season
By Peter Hockaday
Oregon Daily Emerald
There will be plenty of emotion
flowing out on Pape Field this week
end.
First off, the Oregon soccer team (4
11-1.1-3-1 Pac-10) will face Washing
ton State (10-5-0, 2-4-0) today in a
game that has traditionally been a 90
minute battle.
Sunday, the Ducks will face the sec
ond-best team in the country —
Washington (15-1-0, 6-0-0) — in its
last home game of the year. It will
mark the final time that the four sen
iors on the team will play in front of
their fans.
On Tap
Who: Oregon soccer vs. Washington
State, Washington
When: Friday at 3 p.m„ Sunday at 1 p.m.
Where: Pape Field
The Ducks will try to create a little
excitement in a season that has been
simply mediocre up to this point.
“It’s going to be a challenge for us,”
said Chalise Baysa, the team’s leading
scorer. “And it’s about time we step
up to the challenge.”
The emotion and intensity the
Turn to Soccer, page 8A
Energized Ducks may have
a surprise for Pac-10 foes
■The Oregon volleyball squad will put its
confidence and two-match winning streak on the
line against No. 4 USC and No. 8 UCLA
By Adam Jude
Oregon Daily Emerald
“Why not this week?”
Those were the words ut
tered by Oregon head coach
Carl Ferreira in reference to
his team’s tough, two-game
home stand, which begins
tonight against Southern
California.
Why can’t the Ducks com
pete with No. 4 USC and
No. 8 UCLA in the sweet
confines of McArthur Court?
While it may seem im
probable for the Ducks (9-10
overall, 1-9 Pac-10) to de
feat two of the country’s
finest, Ferreira said he has
been emphasizing to his
team that nothing is impos
sible.
“It’s my job to make this
team believe that they can
beat them,” Oregon’s first
year coach said. “If we can
understand that, and contin
ue to work hard and exe
cute, we can be successful.”
The new and improved
Ducks — who are re-ener
gized after sweeping Oregon
State and California-River
side last weekend — can’t
wait to show the Los Ange
les kids their fresh attitude.
“Most teams don’t expect
much from Oregon volley
ball,” junior outside hitter
Monique Tobbagi said.
“Most people think they can
just roll over us. But they’re
in for a big surprise this
week.”
In the first road trip of the
season, the Ducks showed
little competition against the
Pac-lO’s top teams, getting
swept in both matches. The
loss at UCLA (14-5, 9-2) was
Oregon’s most disappointing
performance of the season,
Ferreira said.
“When we went down
there, we were still stinging
a bit from the first three con
ference losses,” Ferreira
said. “Against UCLA we had
our worst day of the year,
there’s no doubt about that.”
As a team, the Ducks hit
just .041 from the floor
against UCLA — their worst
hitting percentage of the sea
son.
“We’re anxious to face
UCLA again,” Tobbagi said.
UCLA showcases one of
the nation’s best talents in
junior hitter Kristee Porter.
She leads the Pac-10 in kills
and is a National Player of
the Year candidate.
Additionally, the Bruins’
Elisabeth Bachman’s 1.41
Tu rn to Volleyball, page 8A
VOLLEYBALL
On Tap
Who: Oregon
volleyball vs.
USC, UCLA
When: Friday
and Saturday, 7
p.m.
Where:
McArthur Court