Sports Editor
Peter Hockaday
peterhockaday@dailyemercdd.com
Friday, April 25,2003
-Oregon Daily Emerald
Sports
Online exclusive
The UO tennis squads were in
action Thursday. Read about it
online atwww.dailyemerald.com.
Track welcomes hundreds to Hayward
MEN: The Ducks will send the
stars out in Saturday’s twilight
session of the Oregon Invite
Men’s track and field
Peter Hockaday
Sports Editor
If the Oregon Invitational were a myth
ical Japanese movie beast, it would be
Godzilla. Or maybe Mothra.
The Invitational is big. A total of 38 teams
from as close as Lane Community College
and as far away as Wake Forest will descend
on Eugene for a meet so big it needed to be
separated into four smaller meets. The de
cathlon and heptathlon portion started
Thursday and ends today. The men’s and
women’s 10,000-meter races will be run
tonightat 7.15. Saturday’s action includes a
day session scheduled to run from 10 a.m.
until 2 p.m. and a twilight section sched
uled to run from 3 p.m. until 8 p.m.
Saturday’s twilight meet is the only one
that requires tickets, and it is the event
with the most interest to Duck fans. Sev
eral Duck stars such as Jordan Kent,
Sarnie Parker and Adam Kriz will com
pete in the evening session.
Many of those stars have already quali
fied for the NCAA West Regional meet,
meaning they’re now just tweaking and
fine-tuning for the postseason.
“I’m still pushing myself that extra
inch,” Parker said. “I still want to do bet
ter than everybody else.”
Parker is one of 19 Ducks who have
qualified for the regionals in 13 events.
Nine other athletes have qualified for the
Pacific-10 Conference Championships
but not the regionals.
This weekend’s meet will be a prime
opportunity for those athletes to hit
NCAA marks in front of their home
crowd. Among those athletes are Terry El
lis in the 110 hurdles, Matt Scherer in the
400 hurdles, Teddy Davis and Chad Cla
son in the high jump and Jon Derby in the
pole vault. Those events are scheduled for
Saturday at 5:35 p.m., 12:25 p.m., 4:30
I___
Mark McCambridge Emerald
Jordan Kent will run the 200-meter dash Saturday for the first time as a Duck.
p.m. and 5:25 p.m., respectively.
But if Duck fans just want to see their
stars, they can catch Parker in the 100 at
6:05 p.m., Kent in the 200 at 7 p.m. and
Kriz in the hammer at 5:35 p.m. John
Stiegeler will throw in the javelin at 3:40
p.m., Trevor Woods will jump in the pole
vault at 5:25 p.m. and Brandon Holliday
will run the 400 hurdles at 6:47 p.m.
The Oregon Invitational also attracted
some top graduate competition. Several
athletes will participate in the event unat
tached, most notably Karl Keska, a former
Duck and Olympian. Keska, who ran at
Oregon from 1993-96, will highlight the
field in the men’s 5,000, the last event of
Saturday’s evening session.
Turn to Men's, page 6
WOMEN: Oregon gears for the home stretch of its
season against the competition at the Invitational
Women’s track and field
Jesse Thomas
Sports Reporter
The Oregon women’s track team has rounded the final turn
and reached the home stretch after a season that has flown by
like the strong wind of the backstretch.
The journey is coming to a close as the Ducks play host to
more than 1,000 entries for this weekend’s Oregon Invitational.
It’s the first of two final season regular tests before the champi
onship slate.
With the Oregon Twilight on May 3 and the Pacific-10 Con
ference Championships a mere two weeks away, the Ducks are
ready for the final gear down.
“We feel really good about where we are,” Oregon head coach
Tom Heinonen said. “This meet’s as big as we can let it get. It’s a
good level of competition for our athletes.”
Among the competition arriving at Hayward Field is a large
collegiate crowd from the West Coast, some post-collegiate en
tries, and elite distance squads from Northern Arizona, Wake
Forest and Weber State.
The 1,500-meter race should prove competitive with a long list
of elite talent, including NCAA indoor mile champion Johanna
Nilsson of Northern Arizona, who also won the Mt. San Antonio
College Relays in 4 minutes, 10 seconds.
A group of post-collegiate entries include athletes from Nike,
Asics and Kathrine Berry of Britain.
The women’s 5,000 kicks off Saturday’s action at 10 a.m. where
redshirt senior Carrie Zografos will dust off her spikes and set her
sights on the 17-minute mark, the regional standard.
The cross-country All-American may be a little rusty having
not raced since the NCAA Cross Country Championships in the
fall because of a hip injury.
“She’s short on training so there is no guarantee,”
Heinonen said. “I don’t have a clue if she’s ready so we’ll take
what we can get.”
Senior Eri Macdonald will rekindle once again her rivalry in the
800 meters against Washington’s Courtney Inman. Macdonald
and Inman went head-to-head and side-by-side for 700 meters in
the Pepsi Invitational until Macdonald outsprinted the Husky for
the win and a season best of 2:07.40.
Macdonald earned a Pac-10 and regional qualifying mark
with that season-best time and is among a large group who
Turn to Women's, page 6
Golf sits ninth
at Pac-10 finale
Sophomore Johnna Nealy provides the lone spark
for the Ducks during the first round in Corvallis
Golf
Scott Archer
Freelance Sports Reporter
There was at least one silver lining for the Oregon women’s
golf team after the opening round of the 2003 Pacific-10 Confer
ence Championships.
The Ducks got off to a shaky start Thursday after the team
carded a 316 at the par-72,6,160-yard Trysting Tree Golf Club.
Currently, Oregon is one stroke ahead of tournament host and
in-state rival Oregon State, and 24 strokes behind day-one
leader No. 8 California, which scored a 292 opening round.
The lone bright spot for Oregon was sophomore Johnna Nealy,
who is participating in her second Pac-10 Conference Champi
onship tournament after competing as a true freshman last year.
Nealy finished the day tied for 14th overall with a 3-over 75.
The day didn’t start out well for Nealy as she bogeyed three times
in her first nine holes. She started the day on the back nine, but
was able to gain some momentum for the Ducks as she birdied
holes No. 13, No. 1 and No. 2. Just as things appeared to be head
ed in the right direction for Nealy, she shot par on the next three
holes before she struggled on the fifth hole, where she shot a dou
ble bogey. Nealy also bogeyed her final hole of the day, the ninth.
Despite her struggles in the opening and later holes of the
course, Nealy was able to put herself into position for a potential
top-10 finish. However, two more rounds of golf are still ahead for
the Nealy and the rest of the field.
Freshman sensation Therese Wenslow finished the opening
Turn to Golf, page 6
Softball faces
Arizona test
Oregon hosts top-ranked Arizona and No. 12
Arizona State this weekend at Howe Field
. Softball
Mindi Rice
Sports Reporter
Oregon softball has a difficult road to travel this weekend.
The No. 20 Ducks face their toughest remaining homes
tand of the season as they battle No. 1 Arizona and No. 12
Arizona State in three games beginning today at 2 p.m.
“It’s a couple tough games coming up,” head coach Kathy
Arendsen said. “We’ve got to work and finish the (Pacific-10
Conference) game and hopefully get some wins in there.”
Oregon traveled to Arizona in March, losing one game to
Arizona State before Arizona swept the Ducks in two games.
The Wildcats are ranked No. 1 in both national polls
with an impressive 41-4 record overall, including 10-1 in
the Pac-10.
“We have everything to gain and nothing to lose with
Arizona,” Arendsen said. “I thought we played one out
standing game against them in Tucson — a very hostile
field. I thought we struggled in the second game.”
In the first game, Oregon’s only run support was a solo
home run from senior Amber Hutchison. Freshman pitch
er Amy Harris struck out six in the 4-1 loss.
The Ducks were flattened the next day by Arizona. The
Wildcats scattered eight runs throughout the game, while
Oregon managed three hits.
Turn to Softball, page 8
Jeremy Forrest Emerald
Anissa Meashintubby and the Ducks are preparing to face No. 1
Arizona today and No. 12 Arizona State later this weekend.