10A
THE DAILY ASTORIAN • THURSDAY, AUGUST 16, 2018
CONTACT US
FOLLOW US
facebook.com/
DailyAstorianSports
Gary Henley | Sports Reporter
ghenley@dailyastorian.com
MEMORIES OF HAYWARD FIELD | PART 3
A little ‘Pre’ history at Hayward Field
By NEIL BRANSON
For The Daily Astorian
T
he precursor to the Pre-
fontaine Classic was the
1973 “Hayward Field
Restoration Meet,” staged to
raise money to replace the old
west grandstands.
In 1975, a name change
was made to the Bowerman
Classic to honor the universi-
ty’s legendary coach.
I was also in my second
year of teaching and coach-
ing at Mohawk High School,
north of Springfield, in 1975.
It was late May and our
track season was over, so with
an open evening I went to the
Twilight Meet at Hayward
Field and watched Steve Pre-
fontaine win the 5,000 meters.
It was his last race.
Turning on my radio
the next morning, I heard
“and Steve Prefontaine will
be greatly missed.” What?
Where is he going?
Shortly after that the report
confirmed that Pre was killed
in a single-car accident. There
was a palpable pall hang-
ing over Eugene and the sur-
rounding area. I did not go to
the candlelight vigil at Hay-
ward that night, or the other
services.
Instead, after having not
run for a couple of years, I
laced up my old running shoes
and went out for an easy run,
to ease my mind.
Hayward Field came alive
again with track and field. It
could not quit. Pre never quit.
Six days after Pre’s death
the Bowerman Classic was
changed to the Prefontaine
Classic.
It became a stop on the
IAAF Grand Prix of interna-
tional track and field tour and
is now one of the 14 Diamond
League events that are staged
on five continents.
The Pre Classic brings in
the heavy hitters. Nowhere
in Oregon, if not the United
States, is there a collection of
such world talent in any sport.
Listening to the introduc-
tion of competitors for each
event is to hear a who’s who
of that particular discipline.
An example was this year’s
400 meters.
It featured Rio gold med-
alist Shaunae Miller-Uibo
and current World champion
Phyllis Francis, lining up with
gold and silver medalists from
Oregon senior Laura Bobek, an Astoria High School
graduate, prepares to let loose another throw in the
discus finals at Hayward Field in 2014.
the world indoor champion-
ships, Courtney Okolo and
Shakima Wimbley, respec-
tively, plus the 2014 World
outdoor champion Stephanie
Ann McPherson.
Among entries for most
all events are those hold-
ing world-leading marks and
Mariners place ace Paxton
on DL with forearm bruise
Associated Press
OAKLAND, Calif. — The
Seattle Mariners have placed
ace James Paxton on the dis-
abled list with a forearm bruise,
one day after the left-hander
was struck by a line drive.
Paxton was facing the
third batter in the first inning
Tuesday night when Jed
Lowrie lined a ball back up
the middle, hitting the pitcher
hard. Paxton walked toward
second base in obvious pain
as a team trainer and manager
Scott Servais rushed onto the
field.
Paxton was replaced by
Felix Hernandez.
After the game, Paxton
told reporters he felt tight-
ness in his arm and could not
AP Photo/Ben Margot
Seattle Mariners pitcher James Paxton has been placed
on the disabled list after being hit by a line drive.
grip a baseball. X-rays were
negative.
Paxton is 10-5, including a
no-hitter against Toronto, and
a 3.68 ERA. Hernandez, who
allowed two runs over 5 2/3
innings, is likely to take Pax-
ton’s turn in the rotation.
Right-hander
Christian
Bergman was recalled from
Triple-A Tacoma to fill Pax-
ton’s roster spot.
Gordon breaks scoreless tie
with HR in 12th, M’s top A’s
Associated Press
OAKLAND, Calif. — Dee
Gordon doesn’t have many
home runs this season. Two
to be exact. So when Seat-
tle’s light-hitting utility player
muscled up in the 12th inning,
he celebrated by kissing both
biceps as he stood in the dugout
after crossing home plate.
It was a good-natured ges-
ture toward a few of Gordon’s
teammates who were ribbing
him as he rounded the bases. It
was also an expression of relief
Kamara leads
way for
playoff hopes
for the Mariners, who lost the
first two games of this series
after sweeping first-place Hous-
ton on the road.
Gordon homered off Yus-
meiro Petit to break a score-
less tie, and the Mariners beat
the Oakland Athletics 2-0 on
Wednesday to avoid a three-
game sweep.
“I got lucky,” Gordon said.
“It’s evening out. I’ve been lin-
ing out so much the last month.”
Jean Segura had four hits to
help the Mariners close within
2½ games of the A’s for the sec-
Seahawks running back Penny
has surgery on broken finger
Associated Press
Associated Press
Kei Kamara seems to have
found a home.
The 33-year-old striker is in
his first season with the Van-
couver Whitecaps, his third
Major League Soccer team
since 2015. He’s settled in as
the team’s leading scorer with
nine goals, while also becoming
a leader to the young squad that
includes 17-year-old emerging
star Alphonso Davies.
The Whitecaps currently sit
in seventh place in the West-
ern Conference standings, just
outside the playoff picture.
But they’re coming off a hard-
fought draw against NYCFC at
Yankee Stadium and a road win
over the Timbers last week-
end that snapped Portland’s
15-match undefeated streak.
ond AL wild-card spot.
“We needed to get this ball-
game today,” Seattle man-
ager Scott Servais said. “It’s
not going to get any easier, but
we’re starting to play with our
confidence again and have some
swag to our team.”
Seattle’s Mike Leake
pitched eight innings of
two-hit ball with six strike-
outs and one walk. Oak-
land’s Brett Anderson went
7 2/3 innings without allow-
ing a run in his longest outing
since June 16, 2015.
RENTON, Wash. —
Seattle Seahawks first-round
pick Rashaad Penny had sur-
gery Wednesday to repair a
broken finger.
Head coach Pete Carroll
said the surgery went well and
Penny isn’t expected to miss
more than a couple of weeks.
“He can already move it
and it’s not going to be in a
cast or any of that kind of stuff,
so he’s in pretty good shape,”
Carroll said. “We got a great
report on it. He’s not going to
be out very long at all.”
The rookie running back
out of San Diego State was
injured during pass-block-
ing drills Monday and left the
field with trainers.
Carroll said he believes
Penny can still be ready for
the start of the regular season.
“I don’t have any doubt
about what he’s capable of
doing. I really don’t,” Car-
roll said. “We just got to make
sure he’s in great shape and let
him play ball.”
Penny carried eight times
for 16 yards in his preseason
debut Thursday against the
Indianapolis Colts. He also
caught two passes for seven
yards. He has been the sec-
ond backup in the team’s rota-
tion behind Chris Carson,
who had gained the starting
job last year after being a sev-
enth-round selection out of
Oklahoma State.
“It was tough,” Carson
said of Penny’s injury. “You
could tell by the look on his
face that he was hurt about
it. But he’s a tough kid. He’ll
bounce back.”
national record-setters.
The Pre Classic is the cen-
ter of the world for the best of
milers. This year the Interna-
tional mile kicked off the Pre
Classic’s doubleheader of
miling, providing the meet’s
400th sub-4 (winner Luke
Mathews) and the stadium’s
500th (sixth-placer Riley
Masters) as 12 runners broke
four minutes.
American record holder
Alan Webb was on hand to
present both with plaques
honoring the milestones. Tim-
othy Cheruiyot raced away to
win the Bowerman Mile to
give the meet and stadium its
24th sub-3:50 performance at
3:49.87. In fourth, Jakob Inge-
brigtsen ran a four-second PR
3:52.28 to become the fast-
est-ever 17-year-old.
Sixteen times the NCAA
Championships have been at
Hayward Field. In that span,
the Oregon men have won five
times and the women twice.
In 2015 both the women and
men won on their home turf.
In 2014, the Oregon
women were in a quest for
their first outdoor champion-
ship since 1985. The first day
of competition was shaky at
best and coach Robert John-
son let the team know it was
time to suck it up.
The next day, Astoria High
School graduate Laura Bobek,
in her final meet for the Ducks,
produced a herculean effort,
adding 12 feet to her personal
best to throw the discus 184-
feet, 8 inches, and toppling the
University of Oregon school
record set in 1985.
That effort and the six
points she earned was a
spark that ignited the wom-
en’s team that had been
underperforming.
Last year for the Oregon
women, it was win the 1,600-
meter relay or hand the team
title to Georgia. With the
crowd behind them, the ladies
were in a dogfight with USC
from gun to wire. In a break-
neck finish, the Ducks edged
the women of Troy 3:23.13 to
3:23.36. A scant 0.23 seconds
earned the Ducks the title.
With the restoration of
Hayward Field, the NCAAs
are moving to Austin, Texas
for at least the next two
years. The where and when
of the Pre Classic is yet to
be decided. A decent venue
for the Pre will draw the ath-
letes and the fans because of
the synergy that comes from
both groups’ enthusiasm for
the sport. My suggestion —
attend the meet and start your
own list of memories.
Neil Branson is a longtime
cross-country and track coach
at Seaside High School.
NASCAR driver Kahne retiring
Associated Press
CONCORD, N.C. —
NASCAR driver Kasey
Kahne says he is retiring from
full-time racing. The 38-year-
old Kahne announced his
intentions Thursday on Twit-
ter, saying “I’m not sure what
the future holds for me, but
I’m at ease with the decision
that I have made.”
The former Hendrick
Motorsports driver has 18
victories in 15 years in the
Cup Series, including a play-
off-clinching one last season
at famed Indianapolis Motor
Speedway. That win came
amid speculation that Hen-
drick would part ways with
Kahne following six seasons.
Hendrick made it official two
weeks later.
Kahne signed on with
Leavine Family Racing for
2018. He has one top-five fin-
ish in 23 starts for Leavine. He
had been offered a ride with
Leavine next year, but plans
to spend his time with his
young son, Tanner, and with
his sprint car team.