Sports Editor:
Hank Hager
hankhager@dailyemerald.com
Thursday, April 29, 2004
Oregon Dailv Emerald
SPORTS
Best bet
NBA Playoffs:
Dallas vs. Sacramento
7:30 p.m., TNT
Mindi Rice
The girl and the game
Husky
softball
remains
on swing
When Oregon and Washington met two
weeks ago on the field at Husky Softball
Stadium in Seattle something was differ
ent from last year's meeting in Eugene.
It wasn't just the confidence of Oregon.
It wasn't just the Washington head coaches.
It was the entire Husky bench. They were
happy — they smiled during the game and
they were laughing in the dugout
The Huskies were a dramatically different
team than the one that came to Eugene for
a Friday game one year ago. Now the team
that has fun during games comes to town
for two more at Howe Field this weekend.
Collegiate sports scandals have gotten
more press in recent years. From Colorado
to Georgia, Baylor to St. John's, these scan
dals have taken on every shape and size.
Washington, however, takes the cake.
As if the school didn't already have
enough problems from former head foot
ball coach Rick Neuheisel, former head
softball coach Teresa Wilson filed a lawsuit
in U.S. District Court in Seattle that alleges
sex discrimination, violation of due process,
breach of contract and wrongful discharge.
The suit was made public the day before
the findings of an internal investigation re
garding the misuse of medicine within the
softball team were made public.
All of this, right in the midst of a softball
season, could very well be what threw Wash
ington off course over last we Pacific-10 Con
ference loss was a 2-1 loss to Oregon until
this weekend, lost three games — one to No.
5 California and two to No. 8 Stanford.
This season's success, while on-par
with last season, is healthier. Stories came
out in the investigation ranging from
players "swimming" on the dugout floor,
to one player who did not remember
falling off the bus and into Wilson's arms.
Turn to RICE, page 14
Jumping a different bar
Kirsten Lanvin had aspirations to become a gymnast before her path ted to Oregon track
Erik R. Bishoff Photographer
Senior Kirsten Larwin is Oregon’s top returning pole vaulter this season.
By Alex Tam
Sports Reporter
Kirsten Larwin once had no hope whatsoever of becoming a
track and field athlete.
The 22-year-old Eugene native didn't even expect to attend
Oregon. As a teenager, she had big plans of attending Oregon
State.
"1 always wanted to go to Oregon State because they have a
gymnastics team," Larwin said. "It was kind of my dream as a
little girl."
I lowever, a back injury sidelined Larwin during her sophomore
year in high school. After 13 years of aspiring to become a gym
nast, she realized the two stress fractures in her back would force
her to relinquish her dream.
"That was pretty hard," said Larwin, a senior majoring in
French. "It's not like I quit because 1 didn't love it anymore. 1 had
so many high goals for myself that I was devastated. Then 1 got re
ally lucky and got another chance."
The chance came from South Eugene High School track coach
John Gillespie, who was aware of Larwin's gymnastics experience.
Gillespie encouraged her to give the pole vault a try, which he
hoped was an easy transition for her.
Her attitude at first was not optimistic. She felt she wouldn't
succeed after starting a new sport so late.
"Being 15, even though I knew I wasn't old, I just felt old to find
another sport because everybody starts when they're very young,"
Larwin said.
Gillespie's hope was fulfilled, and Larwin capped her prep
career by finishing fourth at the Oregon 4A state meet when
she cleared 10 feet, 8 inches. She ranked seventh in the state as a
senior. With some convincing from her mother and a talk with
former Oregon women's head coach Tom I leinonen, she had
her sights set on Oregon to continue her pole vault career.
This year, she returns as Oregon's top pole vaulter and has
already qualified for the Pacific-10 Conference Championships
in May. Larwin will be one of several Oregon women compet
ing at the Oregon Twilight meet at I Iayward Field on Saturday.
The determination to succeed in gymnastics at a young age car
ried over to the pole vault. Her coaches and teammates agree that
her desire to be die best is what sets her apart.
"She's our leader and she leads by example," women's pole vault
coach Mark Vanderville said. "She's really motivated to achieve
her goals, and she's really driven."
That drive has also been passed to her teammates. Fellow pole
Turn to LARWIN, page 16
Oregon ends time at Pac-lOs in 7th
Justin St. Clair led Oregon’s contingent by tying for
14th; the Ducks’ regional hopes are now on thin ice
By Brian Smith
Freelance Reporter
Members of the Oregon men's golf team found themselves being blown
around the course Wednesday.
But not by the competition — by the wind.
Thunderstorms and gusty winds around the par-72, 7,435-yard Gallery
at Dove Mountain course drove up final round scores for all teams but one
at the 2004 Pacific-10 Championships.
"We played pretty darn good considering how the conditions changed
during the round," Washington head coach Matt Thurmond said. "It was
an advantage to the teams that went out first and did not have many holes
Turn to SEVENTH, page 14
The QB behind the QB
Johnny DuRocher is set to serve as Oregon's backup quarterback, an important piece of the Ducks' offensive puzzle
By Hank Hager
Sports Editor
Johnny DuRocher doesn't regret it one bit. He
doesn't mind that he missed his last few months at
Bethel High School in Washington — at least he at
tended his senior prom.
If he had to do it again, he wouldn't change a
thing.
Well, maybe.
"If I had to do it all over again, I might have
come in the winter instead of the spring," the
redshirt freshman said.
DuRocher left the high school life behind for the
Ducks last spring. Instead of waiting up early for
classes, he woke up to study plays. The parties so
prevalent in high school were now hosted by Ore
gon coaches — in the film room.
He became part of a recent trend in college
football of high school players who leave during
their senior year to enroll in collegiate programs.
DuRocher got a jump on the rest of the com
petition, earning him a chance to be the team's
No. 2 quarterback.
And the consensus is that he's in the lead for that
spot.
"I think Johnny's definitely got the advantage be
cause he's been here, and so much of playing quar
terback is mental work you've got to get through,"
Oregon quarterback Kellen Clemens said. "It's going
to be a battle. It's going to be fun to watch all the way
through summer and in the fall."
If the backup situation seems eerily familiar to last
season, it might just be. Oregon head coach Mike
Bellotti hesitated to name a definitive No. 1 at the
position, opting instead to go with a platoon of
Turn to DuROCHER, page 14
Johnny
DuRocher
(left) is
expected to
be Oregon's
backup
quarterback
when the
2004
season
begins.
Adam Amato
Photographer