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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (June 4, 2001)
R. Ashley Smith Emerald Oregon freshman Sarah Malone finished seventh in the javelin with a heave of 164-9. Malone only scorer for Oregon women ■ Despite competing in their own backyard, the four Duck women came and went quietly in their events By Peter Hockaday Oregon Daily Emerald For the first time since 1985, the Pacific-10 Conference was repre sented as the winner of the NCAA women’s track and field title. In fact, the Pac-10 dominated the women’s NCAA Track and Field Championships with the top-three team finishers, one more top-10 fin isher and two more top-20 finishers. All this came at Hayward Field, home of the Pac-lO’s Oregon Ducks. The Ducks, though, were nowhere to be found this week. Four Oregon athletes qualified for the NCAAs at Hayward, but only one scored points for the Ducks, who finished tied- for-60th place overall. Even those two points came in disappointing fashion, as Sarah Malone finished seventh in the javelin despite being ranked sec ond in the nation before the event. Oregon’s bad luck began Wednesday, when sophomore dis cus thrower Mary Etter failed to make the finals of that event. Etter fouled her first two throws, then threw one 139 feet, 2 inches. That toss was well below her season best of 175-9 and her Pac-10 Champi onships throw of 168-8. Friday was equally unkind to the Ducks. Junior Niki Reed started the pole vault competition with some pressure as Oregon’s best-ever vaulter and school-record holder. Reed passed at 12-3 1/2, then missed three attempts at 12-91/2 for a no-height. “I felt like I was running and tak ing off well,” Reed said. “I just start ed rocking back, and I wasn’t getting into positions I needed to get to. ” Reed’s season-best also tied her own school record, at 13-5 1/4, and her Pac-10 Championships jump was 12-11. Freshman Malone had perhaps the highest expectations heading into the championships. She was ranked second in the nation, had a throw nearly as long as the national leader and has thrown well at Hay ward all season. “You win some and you lose some,” Malone said. “I’m disap pointed today, but I’m not disap pointed with my season.” Malone threw her best distance of 164-9 on her first throw, but said she wasn’t happy with it and knew she probably wasn’t going to do much better. “Usually, if I don’t get a big throw on my first or second chance, I know it’s not going to happen,” Malone said. Sophomore Charyl Weingarten also threw in Friday’s javelin competition, finishing 19th overall. Weingarten tossed the implement 136-8 in her first throw, then fouled twice and failed to make the final. That throw was short of her personal best of 155-6. “I can’t speak for [Weingarten] but I know we’re both disappoint ed with our throws,” Malone said. Disappointment was the common theme for the Ducks at this year’s NCAA Championships, but the team that head coach Tom Heinonen has always called “young” will have an other shot for success at next year’s NCAAs in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Berryhill achieves ‘dream’ ■Oregon native Bryan Berryhill’s dream of becoming a Duck didn’t come true, but he’ll settle for a national title By Adam Jude Oregon Daily Emerald Since he was a child growing up in Central Point, Ore., Bryan Berryhill dreamed of donning green and winning an NCAA title in front of friends and family at historic Hayward Field. Berryhill accomplished his goal Saturday, but it turns out he was wearing the wrong shade of green. The Colorado State senior led from start to finish in the 1,500 meters at the final day of the NCAA Track and Field Champi onships, winning the second title of his collegiate career with a time of 3:37.05. “I couldn’t dream of a better ending to my collegiate career,” said Berryhill, a five-time state champion at Crater High School who was over-looked by Oregon coaches. “I looked at the sched ule long ago and knew my last NCAA meet would be here. I tru ly did want to come here (for col lege]... but it’s worked out the best for me.” After finishing the 1,500 third in the last three NCAA champi onships, Berryhill set the tone early in front of 5,932 fans Sun day, sprinting to the lead from the gun. “This was as nervous as I’ve ever been before a race,” Berryhill said of running in front of about 50 friends and family. “The fans were loud. It was hard to tell if they were cheering for me to fin ish or cheering because it was go ing to be a good race. ” r Jon House Emerald Colorado State senior Bryan Berryhill, who competed at this year’s Prefontaine Classic, came back to town less than a week later to win the 1,500 meters NCAA title. In the final 300 meters, Stan ford’s Gabe Jennings, the defend ing 1,500-meter champion, made a strong kick, but could not catch Berryhill in the final stretch. It I couldn’t dream of a better ending to my collegiate career. Bryan Berryhill senior runner, Colorado State “I gotta hand it to Berryhill,” said Jennings, who finished in 3:37.56. “He’s one tough son-of-a gun.” Alabama’s David Kimani, run ning a step behind Berryhill for most of the race, was third and Stanford’s Michael Stember and Don Sage rounded out the top five, respectively. “You don’t have to wait for Alan Webb’s generation [to see Ameri can distance running return to glo ry],” Jennings said. “We’re going to take this thing to the top.” Jennings also finished third in the mile behind Berryhill at the NCAA Indoor Championships in March. Berryhill won that race with a time of 3:56.84. Berryhill and Jennings, along with Webb — the 18-year-old sensation from Virginia who broke Jim Ryun’s 36-year-old high school record in the mile at the Prefontaine Classic last weekend — will return to Hay ward Field in three weeks for the U.S.A. Track and Field Champi onships. “I feel like I’ve really been on this year,” Berryhill said. “I’ve run PRs in my last five races and I hope I can keep it going and make the World Championship team.” 1 ZUU1 110 Summer Session Oasses Begin June 25. Register Now! N’s Not Too Late. BookYour Summer in Oregon Pick up your free summer catalog today in the Summer Session office, 333 Oregon Hall, or at the UO Bookstore. You can speed your way toward graduation by taking required courses during summer. University of Oregon Summer Session http://uosummer.uoregon.eiUi/
