Ducks aim to fly higher than ever before

By Adam Schneider, DyeStat Editor

Oregon comes into the NCAA Division 1 Indoor Championships with a chance to break the record for points (Texas scored 71 in 1988).

Unfortunately for strong Georgia and Arkansas, teams that could win in any other year, this is the reality of their situation.

Oregon has very talented young field event competitors that did not make the championship, so all of its points will come from the track. Arkansas has field and track entrants that could score points and Georgia has history-making performers in the field events.

When last season ended, Oregon had two sprinters that had gone to the Olympics and one was in the 200-meter final, Deajah Stevens (7th in 22.65). Ariana Washington had swept the 100 (10.95 wind-aided) and 200 (22.21) at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. There was a chance that both could have gone professional. That did not happen and they were joined by junior Hannah Cunliffe, a returning Pac-12 double champion (100 in 11.08 and 200 in 22.49).

Cunliffe suffered a hamstring injury at the NCAA West Regional outdoor meet last year. She realized she needed to focus more and “work harder and fix the little things I wasn’t paying attention to. It made me a better athlete and a better person all-around.”

Cunliffe was the runner-up at the NCAA Indoor meet last year in the 60-meter dash and third in the 200. This year at the New Mexico Don Kirby Invitational she ran 7.07 at altitude to set the collegiate record and ran a collegiate-leading 22.60.
Until that meet, Stevens had the collegiate lead at 22.65. Since producing that time at the Columbia East-West Challenge, Stevens has only run the 60-meter dash and a 4x400 relay leg at Don Kirby. Washington has struggled in the indoor 60. She was ninth in the 60 at New Mexico, but second in the 200 with a 22.80. At the MPSF Indoor Championships, Washington ran two solid 60 races and ran a PR in the final to place second in 7.25.

Freshman Katie Rainsberger led Oregon to an NCAA cross country team title in November with a fourth-place finish and coach Robert Johnson has complimented that group for how their success has inspired the track and field team this winter.

Rainsberger is the collegiate leader over 3,000 (9:01.21) and because of some injured runners and withdrawals, she has become the favorite. Cross country teammates senior Samantha Nadel (No. 7 seed) and junior Alli Cash (14th seed) will join Rainsberger in the 3,000. It will be a very competitive race and many of the same girls will be coming back from the distance medley relay duties the night before. Rainsberger ran a sub-4:31 DMR leg at the Columbia East-West Challenge to help Oregon set the collegiate record of 10:48.77. Second on the collegiate list this year is Indiana at 10:55.94.

Defending champion Raevyn Rogers faces a fast field in the 800 with her among four under 2:02 and the collegiate record holder, sophomore Jazmine Fray of Texas A&M (2:00.69). Rogers is also expected to run the DMR.

Senior Sasha Wallace is the collegiate leader in the 60-meter hurdles at 7.91 and faces another very competitive field. Sophomore teammate Alaysha Johnson is the No. 8 seed at 8.03. Maggie Schmaedick is the No. 7 seed in the 5,000 (15:52.28). Oregon is the No. 3 seed in the 4x400 relay at 3:29.85 when they ran at altitude in Albuquerque.

Georgia is overshadowed, even though senior Kendell Williams and junior Keturah Orji have been very successful. Williams hopes to become the first female to win four NCAA Indoor titles in the same event. She won at last year’s (4,703 points collegiate record) and then competed in the World Indoor championships in Portland, won outdoors and then competed in the Rio Olympics.

Orji is looking for her second indoor title and fourth overall. She set the American and collegiate records outdoors in finishing fourth (48-3.25, 14.71m) at the Rio Olympics and then indoors just set the American and collegiate records in winning the SEC championship at (46-11.75, 14.32m).  Orji is the third seed in the long jump with a best this year of 22-0.75 (6.72m) and Williams is fifth (21-4.75, 6.52m). Sophomore Kate Hall joins them as the No. 7 seed with a best of 21-3.25 (6.48m).

Georgia has the top two seeds in the high jump in a tough event. Junior Madeline Fagan and senior Tatiana Gusin have both cleared 6-2.75 (1.90m). Freshman Shelby Ashe is the No. 6 seed in the weight throw with a best of 21.76m. Freshman Louisa Grauvogel joins Williams in the pentathlon as an eighth seed (4,187).

Arkansas won the SEC Indoor title with good contributions from many events. Their headline event is the pole vault where sophomore twins Lexi Weeks and Tori Weeks are the top two vaulters. Lexi is the top seed at 15-1 (4.60m) and Tori is second at 15-0 (4.57m). Lexi won the indoor and outdoor NCAA titles and has had a slow start to the year after competing at the Olympics last year (she finished 19th at 14-7.25, 4.45m) and clearing a PR 15-5 (4.70m), at the Olympic Trials to make the team. Redshirt sophomore Desiree Freier (No. 6 seed) joins them in an event that could score a lot of team points.

Another high point event for the Razorbacks is the pentathlon. Junior Taliyah Brooks is the No. 2 seed (4,450), senior Leigha Brown is third (4,379), and sophomore Kelsey Herman is fifth (4,278). Brooks is also the ninth seed in the long jump (21-1.50).Arkansas senior Daina Harper is the No. 4 seed in the 400 (51.77) and leads the 10th-seed 4x400 relay (3:32.27).

Arkansas will have two milers, junior Nikki Hiltz (No. 11 seed) and senior Therese Haiss (15th seed), competing. They are also expected to race in the distance medley relay team that is seeded fifth (10:57.93). Freshman Taylor Werner is the No. 11 seed in the 3,000.