Oregon track and field announced this week that it will have 58 entries into the NCAA regional competition this weekend. The Ducks have 26 men’s entries and 32 women’s entries for the three-day regional meet that begins Thursday, May 26.
To qualify for the NCAA Championships in June, athletes must place in the top 12 in their respective event, including relays.
The Ducks have notable qualifiers in both the men’s and women’s field. But a group of well-known names demand attention.
Redshirt sophomore and Pac-12 men’s Athlete of the Year Devon Allen is set to compete in the men’s 110 hurdles, 200 meters and likely the 4×100 relay. In the 110 hurdles, Allen boasts the best time in the field (13.32).
On the women’s side, the Pac-12 Women’s Athlete of the Year Hannah Cunliffe will also be competing in two solo events as well as the short relay. In the 100 and 200 meters, Cunliffe holds the second fastest time in each. She is also part of the highest seeded women’s 4×100 meter relay, which ran an Pac-12 championship meet record two weekends ago.
Moving to the distance events, the Ducks boast four entries in the men’s 1500, including three in the top five. Matthew Maton, Sam Prakel and Blake Haney hold the second, third and fifth spots, respectively, with each qualifying time within a second of each other.
Oregon also has three athletes competing in the longer distances, 5,000 and 10,000 meters, and Junior Edward Cheserek will be competing in both.
Though the men’s side does have its’ top competitors, the women’s team has more mid-distance (800 and 1,500 meters) entries than any other school.
In the women’s 800 sophomore Raevyn Rogers hopes to keep her title. She has the second fastest time in the field, and is backed up by two other teammates in the race Annie Leblanc and Brooke Feldmeier.
In the 1,500, four Oregon women will compete for a chance at the finals. Each of the Ducks in that race fall between the ranks of No.10 and No.24, with times ranging between 4:18 and 4:20.
Though the women’s short relay will be the one to watch, the women’s 4×400 relay has the third place rank, just four seconds behind the No.1 Texas.
For off the track action, watch for Brittany Mann and Itohan Aikhionbare in the shot put, as well as the No.7 seed Cole Walsh in the men’s pole vault. Senior Greg Skipper will also be throwing for the Ducks in the men’s hammer throw where he has the third best seed, 70.34m.
Live video streaming of the event is available at KUAthletics.com.
Follow Madison Layton on Twitter @MadisonLayton01