Ducks Host Sixth Annual Bill Dellinger Invitational

Courtesy: GoDucks.com
Release: 09/28/2011

The second-ranked Wisconsin men, three defending conference champions and a pair of individual league winners - not to mention the homestanding Ducks - highlight the sixth annual Bill Dellinger Invitational, which will be contested Saturday at the Springfield Country Club. The women's 5,000 meter race opens the day at 10:30 a.m., followed by the men's 8,000 meter run at 11:15 a.m. Admission to the meet is free.

The potent Badgers highlight the men's competition, having won the Big Ten title in 2010 and finished third at the NCAA Championships. Wisconsin returns a number of star runners, including Mohammed Ahmed, Reed Connor, Maverick Darling and Elliot Krause. At the NCAA Championships, Ahmed ran 12th with Darling 13th. Ahmed finished fourth at the Big Ten meet, while Krause was fifth and Darling was sixth. A year ago at the Dellinger meet, Darling placed fourth, with Krause sixth and Connor seventh.

Not to be outdone, the eighth-ranked Ducks have NCAA third-place finisher Luke Puskedra on the roster, as well as sophomores Ben DeJarnette and Parker Stinson. Puskedra was the Dellinger runner-up in 2010, while Stinson ran 11th and DeJarnette 13th.

Other men's entries include former Duck Chad Hall (Big Bear City, CA), now a senior at UC Riverside. Hall was the Big West runner-up in 2010 and an NCAA Championships qualifier. Markus Geiger of Idaho finished third at the 2010 WAC meet, while teammate Barry Britt was sixth. Dallas Eborn took seventh at the Summit League Championships a year ago for Southern Utah.

The women's race finds a pair of defending team conference champions in Idaho (WAC) and Wichita State (Missouri Valley) and a pair of individual league winners in Oregon's Jordan Hasay (Mission College Preparatory Catholic HS, San Luis Obispo)(Pac-10) and Southern Utah's Jamie Smith (Summit League). Hasay was also the 2010 Dellinger champ and went on to place third at the NCAA Championships. The Ducks were dominant at the Dellinger a year ago with Anne Kesselring taking fifth, Lanie Thompson was sixth, Bronwyn Crossman ninth and Claire Michel 10th in addition to Hasay's win.

The women's competiton will also feature NCAA Championships qualifier Caitlin Comfort of Wisconsin, who was 54th in Terre Haute last year and sixth at the Big Ten Championships. The entries also include WAC fourth-place finisher Lauren Schafer and sixth-place runner Hannah Kinsler, both of Idaho.

BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL WOMEN'S RACE
Time: 10:30 a.m. PDT
Length: 5,000 Meters
5K Course Record: 16:22.92, Sheila Reid, Villanova, 10-2-09
Results: www.goducks.com.
Teams (11): UC Irvine, UC Riverside, Cal State Fullerton, Idaho, Oregon, Oregon State, Portland, Portland State, Southern Utah, Wichita State, Wisconsin.
Rankings: A number of women's team come into the Dellinger meet holding a regional ranking. The Ducks are No. 17 nationally and No. 4 in the West, Wisconsin is No. 6 in the Great Lakes region, Southern Utah is No. 10 in the Mountain, Portland is No. 11 in the West, Idaho is No. 13 in the West, Wichita State is No. 13 in the Midwest and Oregon State is No. 15 in the West.
Oregon Entries: The Oregon women include 2010 Dellinger champ Jordan Hasay, who went on to win the Pac-10 title and finish third at the NCAA Championships as a sophomore a year ago. The Ducks also boast an experienced roster with seniors Bronwyn Crossman and Claire Michel, juniors Becca Friday, Anne Kesselring, Sarah Penney and Taylor Wallace and sophomore Lanie Thompson among their entries. Kesselring was fifth at the Dellinger meet in 2010, while Thompson was sixth, Crossman was ninth and Michel was 10th. Oregon also lists three runners who could debut for the Ducks on Saturday in freshmen Molly Grabill (Rancho Bernardo HS)and Allie Woodward and redshirt freshman Megan Patrignelli.
Opponent Entries: Among the visiting entries for the Dellinger meet are a pair of conference champions - Idaho (WAC) and Wichita State (Missouri Valley) as well as NCAA Championships qualifier Caitlin Comfort of Wisconsin, who was 54th in Terre Haute last year and sixth at the Big Ten Championships. The entries also include the reigning Summit League individual champion in Jamie Smith of Southern Utah and WAC fourth-place finisher Lauren Schafer and sixth-place runner Hannah Kinsler, both of Idaho. Additionally, former Duck Chloe Steinbeck of Oregon State is in the field.

BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL MEN'S RACE
Time: 11:15 a.m. PDT
Length: 8,000 Meters
8K Course Record: 22:55.14, Galen Rupp, Oregon, 10-31-08
Results: www.goducks.com.
Teams (9): UC Irvine, UC Riverside, Cal State Fullerton, Idaho, Oregon, Portland State, Southern Utah, Wichita State, Wisconsin.
Rankings: Wisconsin is ranked No. 2 in the nation, while the Ducks hold down the No. 8 spot. The Badgers are the top-ranked team in the Great Lakes region, Oregon is No. 2 in the West, Southern Utah is No. 8 in the Mountain and Idaho is No. 12 in the West.
Oregon Entries: Senior Luke Puskedra is the most experienced Duck and was the Dellinger runner-up to teammate Matthew Centrowitz a year ago before going on to finish third at the NCAA Championships. But Oregon's roster is primarily stocked with freshmen and sophomores. The sophomores include Tim Costin, Ben DeJarnette, Mac Fleet (University City HS, San Diego), Mitchell Hunt, Brian Shrader and Parker Stinson. Stinson was 11th at the 2010 Dellinger, while DeJarnette was 13th. The freshmen entries include Chris Brewer (Rancho Buena Vista HS, Vista), Jeramy Elkaim, Chad Noelle, Matt Jablonski, Matthew Melancon and Ryan Pickering, along with redshirt freshmen Boru Guyota, Cole Watson and Daniel Winn. The Ducks also have juniors Walker Augustyniak and Bryce Burgess and senior Travis Stanford.
Opponent Entries: Wisconsin, the 2010 Big Ten champs and NCAA third-place finishers, returns a number of star runners, including Mohammed Ahmed, Reed Connor, Maverick Darling and Elliot Krause. At the NCAA Championships, Ahmed ran 12th with Darling 13th. Ahmed finished fourth at the Big Ten meet, while Krause was fifth and Darling was sixth. A year ago at the Dellinger meet, Darling placed fourth, with Krause sixth and Connor seventh. Other entries include former Duck Chad Hall, now a senior at UC Riverside. Hall was the Big West runner-up in 2010 and an NCAA Championships qualifier. Markus Geiger of Idaho finished third at the 2010 WAC meet, while teammate Barry Britt was sixth. Dallas Eborn took seventh at the Summit League Championships for Southern Utah.

KIDS' FUN RUN
After the men's race, kids 12 and under are invited to participate in a brief fun run on the Springfield Course that will conclude at the finish line. Members of the Oregon track and field team will assist with the Kids' Fun Run that is being co-sponsored by City of Eugene Recreation.

AWARDS CEREMONY at Noon.

SCORING
The place of the first five finishers counts toward the team score. First place is worth one point, second place two points, etc. Low score wins.

PARKING
Spectator parking will be at the Mohawk Elementary School on Sunderman Road. Shuttle buses will then transport spectators to the course at the Springfield Country Club. The shuttles will run continuously from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Please allow sufficient time to use the park-and-ride shuttle.

To reach the Mohawk Elementary School:

Take 105E/126E and stay on 126E for 7 miles.
Take the 42nd Street/Marcola exit and make a left on 42nd street for 0.4 miles.
Make a right on Marcola for 5.5 miles, going 1 mile past the Springfield Country Club.
Turn right on Sunderman Road.
The Mohawk Elementary School will be on your right after ¼ mile.
Signs will be posted on the roads directing traffic to the park-and-ride lot at Mohawk Elementary School.

AUTOGRAPH SESSION
Immediately following the men's race, there will be an autograph session with Oregon coaches and student-athletes near the finish line.

THE COURSE
The Springfield Country Club will be the site of the Bill Dellinger Invitational. Athletes will race entirely on grass and mostly on fairways on the back nine holes along the Mohawk River. The course consists of three relatively flat loops-an outer loop, and inner loop, and a finish loop. The outer loop is approximately 2,320 meters in length, the inner loop is approximately 2,150 meters in length, and the finishing loop is approximately 1,350 meters in length. Fans are reminded they are NOT allowed to walk on greens or tee boxes, and are asked to stay off fairways as much as possible.

THE HISTORY
Since its inception, the Bill Dellinger Invitational has drawn top-ranked teams from around the nation to compete in Track Town, USA.

The men have entertained the likes of Wisconsin, Alabama, Texas, Duke, Villanova, Texas-El Paso, Brigham Young, Penn State, Ohio State, Wake Forest, Georgia and Portland, in addition to Pac-10 rivals UCLA and Washington. The tradition went international in 2010 with the University of Guelph from Ontario, Canada.

The women have welcomed Villanova, Arkansas, Duke, Penn State, Baylor, Indiana, Wisconsin, Brigham Young, Wake Forest, Georgia and Texas-El Paso as well as Pac-10 rivals Oregon State, UCLA and Washington. Like the men, the women had an international field in 2010 with the University of Guelph.

THE WINNERS
The Oregon men have four team titles at the Dellinger, while the UO women have three. The Ducks were dual winners in 2010, capturing both titles at Alton Baker Park.

Eventual NCAA champion Villanova was the 2009 women's Dellinger winner, which followed Oregon's back-to-back wins in 2007-08. Arkansas captured the inaugural women's crown in 2006.

The Men of Oregon took the first three titles from 2006-08 before Alabama snapped the men's three-year winning streak in 2009.

Individually, Jordan Hasay of Oregon won the 2010 women's race. Sheila Reid of Villanova was the 2009 medalist, while Oregon women won in 2008 (Alexandra Kosinski (Oak Ridge HS, El Dorado Hills, CA)) and 2007 (Nicole Blood (Royal HS, Simi (see-me) Valley, CA)). Kassi Anderson of Brigham Young won the first Dellinger women's title in 2006.

For the men, Oregon crowned its first medalist in 2010 when Matthew Centrowitz led his teammates across the line. Josh Rohatinsky of Brigham Young won the initial title in 2006, Matt Withrow of Wisconsin won in 2007, David Kinsella of Portland claimed the 2008 title and Tyson David of Alabama was the 2009 medalist.

2006 BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL
Pre's Trail, Alton Baker Park, Eugene, Ore. (Sept. 29, 2006)
Men (8k)
1, Oregon, 47. 2, Portland, 89. 3, Brigham Young, 102. 4, Alabama, 135. 5, Cal Poly, 144. 6, California, 163. T7, Washington, 183; Butler, 183. 9, Texas, 189. 10, Duke, 243. 11, Utah State, 270. 12, American, 325. 13, Wake Forest, 356.
Individual
1, Josh Rohatinsky, Brigham Young, 22:58.37. 2, Galen Rupp, Oregon, 23:09.03. 3, John Moore, Portland, 23:19.09. 4, Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott, Oregon, 23:28.18. 5, Scott Overall, Butler, 23:31.41.
Women (6k)
1, Arkansas, 35. 2, Brigham Young, 55. 3, Wake Forest, 117. 4, Washington, 119. 5, Duke, 132. 6, Butler, 158. 7, Indiana, 170. 8, California, 179. 9, Portland, 231. 10, Oregon, 247. 11, Utah State, 264.
Individual
1, Kassi Anderson, Brigham Young, 19:54.09. 2, Michelle Sikes, Wake Forest. 20:10.91. 3, Emily McCabe, Duke, 20:31.68. 4, Dani Parry, Arkansas, 20:39.99. 5, Amy Fowler, Brigham Young, 20:43.43.

2007 BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL
Springfield Country Club, Springfield, Ore. (Sept. 29, 2007)
Men (8k)
1, Oregon, 54. 2, Wisconsin, 73. 3, Alabama, 111. 4, Portland, 137. 5, UCLA, 147. 6, Texas-El Paso, 148. 7, Washington, 176. 8, Cal Poly, 183. 9, New Mexico, 221. 10, Ohio State, 292. 11, Colorado State, 302. 12, Duke, 330. 13, Utah State, 343. 14, Marquette, 352. 15, Georgia, 369.
Individual
1, Matt Withrow, Wisconsin, 23:20. 2, Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott, Oregon, 23:24. 3, Emmanuel Bor, Alabama, 23:26. 4, Augustus Maiyo, Alabama, 23:30. 5, Austin Ramos, (Jesuit HS, Carmichael) UCLA, 23:37.
Women (6k)
1, Oregon, 65. 2, Arkansas, 90. 3, Washington, 93. 4, Colorado State, 95. 5, Brigham Young, 104. 6, Georgia, 163. 7, Portland, 178. 8, Wake Forest, 187. 9, Marquette, 301. 10, New Mexico, 302. 11, UCLA, 323. T12, Montana, 324; Oregon State, 324. 14, Utah State, 361. 15, Texas-El Paso, 403.
Individual
1, Nicole Blood, Oregon, 20:04. 2, Katie Follett, Washington, 20:17. 3, Alexandra Kosinski, Oregon, 20:24. 4, April Thomas, Colorado State, 20:27. 5, Katie Bowen, Brigham Young, 20:31.

2008 BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL
Springfield Country Club, Springfield, Ore. (Oct. 4, 2008)
Men (8k)
1, Oregon, 49. 2, Portland, 56. 3, Alabama, 62. 4, UCLA, 106. 5, Cal Poly, 144. 6, Weber State, 158. 7, Texas-El Paso, 166. 8, Colorado State, 186. 9, Penn State, 221.
Individual
1, David Kinsella, Portland, 24:02.68. 2, Alfred Kipchumba, Portland, 24:05.48. 3, Luke Puskedra, Oregon, 24:06.90. 4, Augustus Maiyo, Alabama, 24:12.70. 5, Shadrack Kiptoo-Biwott, Oregon, 24:14.41.
Women (6k)
1, Oregon, 23. 2, Arkansas, 60. 3, Penn State, 107. 4, Wake Forest, 115. 5, Brigham Young, 126. 6, Portland, 7, Cal State Fullerton, 175. 8, Colorado State, 177. 9, Texas-El Paso, 236.
Individual
1, Alex Kosinski, Oregon, 20:19.90. 2, Melissa Grelli, (Presentation HS, CA; Georgetown) Oregon, 20:20.51. 3, Catherine White, Arkansas, 20:30.55. 4, Nicole Blood, Oregon, 20:39.56. 5, Bridget Franek, Penn State, 20:43.96.

2009 BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL
Springfield Country Club, Springfield, Ore. (Oct. 10, 2009)
Men (8k)
1, Alabama, 53. 2, Brigham Young, 63. 3, Oregon, 71. 4, Portland, 73. 5, Villanova, 99. 6, Cal Poly, 173. 7, Texas-El Paso, 196. 8, Colorado State, 207. 9, Weber State, 238. 10, San Francisco, 261.
Individual
1, Tyson David, Alabama, 23:37.71. 2, Moses Kiptoo, Alabama, 23:38.38. 3, Miles Batty, Brigham Young, 23:39.61. 4, Matthew Centrowitz, Oregon, 23:39.87. 5, Hugo Beamish, Villanova, 23:40.96.
Women (5k)
1, Villanova, 22. 2, Oregon, 41. 3, Baylor, 86. 4, Texas-El Paso, 109. 5, Colorado State, 131. 6, San Francisco, 172. 7, Weber State, 178. 8, Oregon State, 195. 9, Portland, 224. 10, Hawaii, 264.
Individual
1, Sheila Reid, Villanova, 16:22.92. 2, Alex Kosinski, Oregon, 16:25.55. 3, Tara Erdmann, (Flowing Wells HS, Tucson, AZ; Loyola Marymount) Unattached, 16:29.51. 4, Amanda Marino, Villanova, 16:30.76. 5, Nicole Shappert, Villanova, 16:33.82.

2010 BILL DELLINGER INVITATIONAL
Pre's Trail, Alton Baker Park, Eugene, Ore. (Oct. 16, 2010)
Men (8k)
1, Oregon, 26. 2, Wisconsin, 38. 3, Guelph, 75. t4, Portland, 123. t4, Idaho, 123. 6, Willamette, 171. 7, Portland State, 191.
Individual
1, Matthew Centrowitz, Oregon, 23:38.11. 2, Luke Puskedra, Oregon, 23:38.13. 3, Danny Mercado, (West Covina HS, CA) Oregon, 23:42.15. 4, Maverick Darling, Wisconsin, 23:42.82. 5, Landon Peacock, Wisconsin, 23:44.73.
Women (5k)
1, Oregon, 18. 2, Guelph, 59. 3, Idaho, 74. 4, Oregon State, 105. 5, Portland, 134. 6, Portland State, 166.
Individual
1, Jordan Hasay, Oregon, 19:25.31. 2, Alex Kosinski, Oregon, 19:25.33. 3, Rachel Cliff, Guelph, 19:50.44. 4, Zoe Buckman, Oregon, 20:05.64. 5, Anne Kesselring, Oregon, 20:08.34.

COACHING LEGEND BILL DELLINGER
The meet is named for legendary University of Oregon track and field coach Bill Dellinger. The Springfield, Ore., native and two-time NCAA champion for the Ducks was a three-time Olympian and won a bronze medal in the 5,000 meters at the 1964 Olympic Games in Tokyo. He set two world indoor records and six American records during his career and in cross country, never lost a race at the high school, collegiate or post-collegiate level. As Oregon's cross country coach from 1968-98, Dellinger guided the Ducks to four NCAA men's titles and 12 top-three finishes. He also counted 13 conference and four district titles. Athletes under his mentorship received 45 cross country All-America honors and won eight Pac-8/Pac-10 championship and six regional crowns.

PAC-10 DOMINANCE
In the last half century, no other conference can match the league's combined 19 NCAA men's and women's team championships in cross country.
Combined NCAA Team Titles by Conference, 1958-present
19 Pacific-10 Conference
14 Big East Conference
13 Southeastern Conference
10 Big XII
9 Conference USA
8 Big Ten

LOOKING AHEAD
The Ducks have a return date with the Badgers at the Wisconsin adidas Invitational on Oct. 14 at the new Thomas Zimmer Championship Course in Madison, Wis. Following that meet, Oregon will compete at the Beaver Classic on Oct. 22 before the championship season begins with the Pac-12 meet Oct. 29 at Arizona State. That will be followed by the NCAA West Regional Nov. 12 at Stanford.

AN OVERVIEW OF THE TEAMS
WOMEN
The Ducks return eight talented letterwinners, including 2010 Pac-10 champion and NCAA third-place finisher Jordan Hasay, for the 2011 season. That's the good news for Oregon.

On the flip side, the 2010 season saw the closest conference race in league history, where the top four teams finished within six points of each other, and now 2011 welcomes distance power Colorado into the mix for the inaugural Pac-12 Championships.

It means that Oregon will need all of that talent and depth to once again challenge at the conference and national levels.

Hasay, a junior from Arroyo Grande, Calif., had a dynamite sophomore season both on and off the track. She was named the Pac-10's cross country runner of the year, and her third-place showing at the NCAA meet last fall was the best by a Duck in nearly 30 years.

She'll lead a team that will have to overcome the graduation of two-time All-American Alex Kosinski and NCAA veteran Zoe Buckman.

Stepping up behind Hasay will be sophomore Lanie Thompson, who was the team's most consistent runner behind Hasay and Kosinski in 2010, including a 16th-place finish at the Pac-10 meet.

Oregon also has NCAA veterans in seniors Bronwyn Crossman and Claire Michel, junior Anne Kesselring and sophomore Sarah Andrews, while juniors Becca Friday and Taylor Wallace both have Pac-10 cross country championships experience.

The women also to look to be able to add depth from a pair of talented distance newcomers in freshmen Molly Grabill (Poway, Calif.) and Allie Woodward (Green Bay, Wis.).

There are also middle distance runners Phyllis Francis (Laurelton, N.Y.), Megan Patrignelli (Monroe, N.Y.) and Laura Roesler (Fargo, N.D.), who all redshirted the 2010 season, on the roster, as well as true freshman Claudia Francis (Laurelton, N.Y.).

The Ducks have also added senior transfer Kimber Mattox to the roster. The Bend, Ore., native was a Division III cross country All-American as a junior in 2010 for Willamette University.

MEN
Senior Luke Puskedra figures to lead a talented group of youngsters into the 2011 cross country season.

Puskedra, from Ogden, Utah, had his finest season as a Duck in 2010 as he finished third at the NCAA Championships and fourth at the Pac-10 Championships. He should again be positioned for a high finish at the conference and national meets.

Beyond Puskedra, the Ducks will largely be a team of freshmen and sophomores who will look to fill a number of openings left by the graduation of All-Americans A.J. Acosta, Matthew Centrowitz and Danny Mercado.

There are some experienced runners on the team, such as senior Chris Kwiatkowski who finished 24th at the Pac-10 Championships in 2010, as well as junior Bryce Burgess, a two-time Pac-10 competitor and a 2010 NCAA West Regional qualifier.

But the bulk of the team will be youngsters. Sophomores Ben DeJarnette, from Mechanicsville, Va., and Parker Stinson, from Austin, Texas, both ran in all three championship races for the Ducks as freshmen in 2010.

Fellow sophomore Brian Shrader was also a Pac-10 and NCAA championships performer last fall. Sophomore Mac Fleet redshirted the 2010 cross country season but was a Pac-10 competitor in 2009. Sophomore Mitchell Hunt also was a Pac-10 qualifier in 2010.

Oregon will have a bounty of freshmen and redshirt freshmen competing for roster spots. Highly touted newcomer Lukas Verzbicas (Orland Park, Ill.) leads that list. Other true freshmen to watch include Chris Brewer (Vista, Calif.), Jeramy Elkaim (Livingston, N.J.), Russell Hornsby (Williamsburg, Va.), Matthew Jablonski (Cockeysville, Md.), Matt Melancon (Eugene, Ore.), Chad Noelle (Greene, N.Y.) and Ryan Pickering (West Palm Beach, Fla.).
The redshirt freshmen include Colby Alexander (Strongsville, Ohio), Boru Guyota (Portland, Ore.), Cole Watson (Rogue River, Ore.) and Daniel Winn (Portland, Ore.).

In recent seasons, the men have experienced success on a national level rarely seen in Track Town, USA. Oregon won back-to-back NCAA titles in 2007 and 2008, and followed that with a runner-up finish in 2009. Those results harken back to the era of the legendary Steve Prefontaine, when the Ducks won national titles in 1971, 1973 and 1974, were second in 1970 and third in 1972.

TRACK TOWN, USA, HERITAGE
The last three years have certainly lived up to the heritage established by the legends of Track Town, USA. In 18 NCAA championships and 12 Pac-10 championships, the Men and Women of Oregon have won 11 championships and another 12 silver medals.

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