Friday, June 9
Eugene, Ore.
All Day
University of Oregon
at
NCAA Championships
Photo by: Eric Evans/GoDucks.com
King Highlights Uneven Day For UO Men
06/09/17 | Track and Field, @GoDucksMoseley
Senior Kyree King took fourth in the NCAA Outdoor championship meet's 100 and 200 finals Friday at Hayward Field.
EUGENE, Ore. — With 400 meters left in Friday's final of the 1,500 meters in the NCAA Track and Field Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field, junior Blake Haney of Oregon was positioned comfortably in the middle of the pack, preparing to kick his way toward the front.
But as Haney navigated the first turn on his final lap, another runner tripped him up, and his stride was broken. By the time he recovered, Haney was well off the pace, and the crossed the finish line in 11th place.
It was that kind of day Friday for the Oregon men, who entered the championship meet's penultimate session with hopes of scoring around 30 points, perhaps good enough for a podium spot among the top four teams. Instead, a championship season that began with the unfortunate news of Edward Cheserek's back injury ended with a ninth-place team finish, and 19.5 points. Florida won the title Friday with 61.5 points.
Senior transfer Kyree King capped off a memorable spring in his only year at Oregon, finishing fourth in both the 100 and 200 meters. But the Ducks otherwise underperformed in relation to their own expectations.
"Definitely a different feeling being here on this day," UO head coach Robert Johnson said. "Usually we'd be out there nervous, counting up the points, trying to figure out where we are. This is easier in a way. Not a feeling I want to get accustomed to, that's for sure."
Johnson figures to be back in his comfort zone Saturday. The UO women are favored to win the NCAA Outdoor team title, and complete a "Triple Crown" of championships after winning cross country and NCAA Indoor titles already this academic year. The feat has been accomplished by two men's program, but never on the women's side.
"We control our own destiny," Johnson said. "That's the great thing about tomorrow — we don't need anybody to slip up. We just need to go out there and be Oregon."
The UO men needed quite a bit of help Friday to become a factor in the team race. It didn't develop, though King did his part to give any partisan fans at Hayward Field something to cheer about.
King ran the 100 in 10.20 seconds despite a headwind of 2.1 mps, and crossed in 20.61 despite an even stiffer headwind of 3.1 mps in the 200. Johnson said the Ducks had thought King could scored nine team points in the two races; he did that one better, scoring 10.
"The crowd is what got me going," King said. "I just had to keep going and do it for them."
King was pleased with his start in the 100 — "finally," he joked. But the day belonged to Tennessee's Christian Coleman, who followed by his collegiate record in the 100 on Friday by winning the 100 in 10.04 and the 200 in 20.25, against those stiff headwinds.
"I finally put together a good start, but all those boys were fast," King said. "Sometimes you take an 'L,' but I'm OK with it."
King also helped the Ducks' 4x100 relay take sixth in 38.81 seconds. That relay was anchored by senior Marcus Chambers, who returned to the track shortly after and finished sixth in the 400 meters in 45.28 seconds, running out of the unfavorable lane eight.
"It wasn't one of my best races," Chambers said. "It was just a learning experience, and I've got to move on. I did what I could do. I did what my body could do. No complaints; I gave it everything I had."
In the discus, Ryan Hunter-Simms did not advance to the final. His only legal throw was 174 feet, 1 inch; he felt much better about one of his two throws that was a foul, but it nicked the netting on the side of the ring and couldn't be measured.
Haney, who was third in the 1,500 in 2015, seemed in position to challenge for a similar finish Friday — if not better. He raced off the line at the start to get a favorable position at the front of the pack on the rail, then settled just off the lead for the next two laps.
As the race became more physical with 600 meters left, Haney went wide to avoid trouble. But he was tripped up early in the final lap, and crossed in 3:50.51.
"I was right where I wanted to be, on the shoulder," Haney said. "I thought I had a chance at that point. I was ready to go…. A lot goes through your head when that kind of stuff happens. I tried to catch back up to the pack, but it didn't happen."
New Mexico sophomore Josh Kerr won the 1,500, and empathized with Haney's plight afterward.
"That's just a nightmare," Kerr said. "In those kinds of races that's going to happen, but I feel bad for him."
But as Haney navigated the first turn on his final lap, another runner tripped him up, and his stride was broken. By the time he recovered, Haney was well off the pace, and the crossed the finish line in 11th place.
It was that kind of day Friday for the Oregon men, who entered the championship meet's penultimate session with hopes of scoring around 30 points, perhaps good enough for a podium spot among the top four teams. Instead, a championship season that began with the unfortunate news of Edward Cheserek's back injury ended with a ninth-place team finish, and 19.5 points. Florida won the title Friday with 61.5 points.
Senior transfer Kyree King capped off a memorable spring in his only year at Oregon, finishing fourth in both the 100 and 200 meters. But the Ducks otherwise underperformed in relation to their own expectations.
"Definitely a different feeling being here on this day," UO head coach Robert Johnson said. "Usually we'd be out there nervous, counting up the points, trying to figure out where we are. This is easier in a way. Not a feeling I want to get accustomed to, that's for sure."
Johnson figures to be back in his comfort zone Saturday. The UO women are favored to win the NCAA Outdoor team title, and complete a "Triple Crown" of championships after winning cross country and NCAA Indoor titles already this academic year. The feat has been accomplished by two men's program, but never on the women's side.
"We control our own destiny," Johnson said. "That's the great thing about tomorrow — we don't need anybody to slip up. We just need to go out there and be Oregon."
The UO men needed quite a bit of help Friday to become a factor in the team race. It didn't develop, though King did his part to give any partisan fans at Hayward Field something to cheer about.
King ran the 100 in 10.20 seconds despite a headwind of 2.1 mps, and crossed in 20.61 despite an even stiffer headwind of 3.1 mps in the 200. Johnson said the Ducks had thought King could scored nine team points in the two races; he did that one better, scoring 10.
"The crowd is what got me going," King said. "I just had to keep going and do it for them."
King was pleased with his start in the 100 — "finally," he joked. But the day belonged to Tennessee's Christian Coleman, who followed by his collegiate record in the 100 on Friday by winning the 100 in 10.04 and the 200 in 20.25, against those stiff headwinds.
"I finally put together a good start, but all those boys were fast," King said. "Sometimes you take an 'L,' but I'm OK with it."
King also helped the Ducks' 4x100 relay take sixth in 38.81 seconds. That relay was anchored by senior Marcus Chambers, who returned to the track shortly after and finished sixth in the 400 meters in 45.28 seconds, running out of the unfavorable lane eight.
"It wasn't one of my best races," Chambers said. "It was just a learning experience, and I've got to move on. I did what I could do. I did what my body could do. No complaints; I gave it everything I had."
In the discus, Ryan Hunter-Simms did not advance to the final. His only legal throw was 174 feet, 1 inch; he felt much better about one of his two throws that was a foul, but it nicked the netting on the side of the ring and couldn't be measured.
Haney, who was third in the 1,500 in 2015, seemed in position to challenge for a similar finish Friday — if not better. He raced off the line at the start to get a favorable position at the front of the pack on the rail, then settled just off the lead for the next two laps.
As the race became more physical with 600 meters left, Haney went wide to avoid trouble. But he was tripped up early in the final lap, and crossed in 3:50.51.
"I was right where I wanted to be, on the shoulder," Haney said. "I thought I had a chance at that point. I was ready to go…. A lot goes through your head when that kind of stuff happens. I tried to catch back up to the pack, but it didn't happen."
New Mexico sophomore Josh Kerr won the 1,500, and empathized with Haney's plight afterward.
"That's just a nightmare," Kerr said. "In those kinds of races that's going to happen, but I feel bad for him."
Players Mentioned
SP
/ Track and Field
DIS
/ Track and Field
MD
/ Track and Field
TH
/ Track and Field
SP
/ Track and FieldB1G Sweep: Oregon Cross Country Conference Champions Cinematic Recap
Wednesday, November 12
Aaliyah McCormick | NCAA 100M Hurdles National Champion
Thursday, June 19
Matti Erickson | NCAA 800M Runner Up
Saturday, June 14
Hayward Field History
Thursday, June 12
