Oregon Ducks cross country gets glimpse of future at Bill Dellinger Invitational
SPRINGFIELD — Duck after Duck after Duck crossed the finish line at the front end of the Dellinger Invitational men’s cross country meet Friday morning.
They just weren’t always the easiest to spot.
Four Oregon runners finished in the top 10 and 10 finished in the top 23 during the 8,000-meter race at Pine Ridge Golf Club, though only four among that group were actually competing in a team uniform.
Coach Jerry Schumacher wanted to get a glimpse of the future — long term and immediate — with his men’s team Friday, and that’s what he got.
The No. 15 Ducks finished second to champion Cal Poly, 41-58, in the standings of the 14-team, 136-runner event, with the majority of their top finishers racing unattached to preserve their season of eligibility.
That included No. 3-finisher Simeon Birnbaum, No. 4 Josh Edwards, No. 10 Archie Noakes, No. 14 Giuliano Scasso, No. 18 Izaiah Steury, No. 23 Tayson Echohawk among the nine unattached Ducks, who would’ve won the meet in a rout with 26 points if their top five finishers all counted.
“The opening meet is more about learning about who you are and what you are and trying to figure out where those pieces can come together later in the season,” Schumacher said. “So it was a good opener. I liked what I saw.”
Especially from Quincy Norman.
The junior from Forest Grove was the runner-up with his finish in 23 minutes, 43.8 seconds — roughly 4 seconds behind winner Davis Bove of Cal Poly who crossed in 23:40.1.
“It was a solid race,” Norman said. “I didn't know how it was gonna unfold and I ended up getting to the front early and then I just hovered there for a while. Some people made some move that I couldn't really cover, but I just closed well. I had a big summer so I feel strong and fast right now.”
Oregon’s other point scorers were No. 7 Elliott Cook (24:00.6), No. 20 Abdinasir Hussein (24:16.4), No. 22 Benjamin Balazs (24:18.8), No. 29 Kutoven Stevens (24:23.9) and No. 30 Josh Schumacher (24:26.0).
Oregon women's team places second
The No. 7 Oregon women dropped their top-10 showdown with No. 6 BYU as the Cougars — with seven finishers in the top 15 — won the 14-team, 6K race with 42 points. The Ducks were second with 78 points.
Maddy Elmore led the way for Oregon with her seventh-place finish in 20:12.7, and Izzy Thornton-Bott, the 2021 Dellinger Invitational champion, was ninth in 20:23.0.
“It’s the first rust-buster, so a little shock to the system, but that’s what the first race is about,” said Elmore, the South Eugene High alum.
Also scoring for the Ducks were No. 11 Anika Thompson (20:36.9.), No. 25 Katie Clute (20:50.1) and No. 34 Klaudia Kazimierska (21:10.5).
“I would say it's solid,” Oregon coach Shalane Flanagan said. “I’m not super overwhelmingly happy with the results because my top-two runners are capable of a lot more than that.”
The race began with 142 runners and ended with 134 and Oregon State all-American Kaylee Mitchell dusted them all.
The senior recorded an 18-second victory with her finish in 19:37.2.
Mitchell was 18th at the NCAA cross country championship meet last fall but admitted she is competing this season with all eyes set on next summer’s U.S. Olympic Trials when she expects to be a 3,000 steeplechase contender for the Summer Games in Paris.
“So I'm using cross as a way to practice working on my weaknesses and you know, turning them more into strengths, going out of my comfort zone, challenging myself mentally and physically,” she said. “Just want to give myself the best shot to make the team this summer.”
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This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Oregon Ducks cross country competes at Bill Dellinger Invite
