Oregon women, Florida men win NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships

Oregon's women and Florida's men turned the final day of the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships into a true daily double.

Sophomore Jordan Hasay won two events Saturday as the Oregon women used their superiority in the distance events to easily capture their second consecutive national championship, running away from the field at Texas A&M's Gilliam Stadium. Oregon finished with 67 points, while Texas was second at 38.

The Ducks grabbed the team competition by the throat in the day's first running event, when Hasay led a 1-3-4 finish in the mile. Although the team title was assured, Hasay returned to win the 3,000 meters to wrap a green and gold bow around the team championship.

They were the first individual NCAA titles for Hasay.

"I don't know what to say," Hasay said. "I'm just honored that I could do it for Oregon. That was the most important thing. I just wanted to score points so we could win the team title."

The meet also produced a repeat champion in the Florida men, whose prowess in the sprints and jumps allowed the Gators to hold off Texas A&M. Florida finished with 52 points, while the Aggies won the concluding 1,600 relay to take second at 40.

Florida surged into the lead late in the day when juniors Will Claye and Christian Taylor took first and second in the triple jump. The Gators also got a fifth-place finish from Omar Craddock to score 22 points in the event.

University of Houston senior Chris Carter, a former Hearne standout, finished fourth in the triple jump despite fouling on all but his first attempt.

The women's race was drained of drama when Hasay (4:33.01), Zoe Buckman (4:33.76) and Anne Kesselring (4:34.96) formed a Ducks sandwich around second-place finisher Kate Van Buskirk of Duke (4:33.71) in the mile. They pushed Oregon's lead in the team standings to 47-23 over Texas.

It was sweet redemption for Hasay, who had been out-kicked on the final leg of the distance medley relay Friday night as Villanova nipped the Ducks by less than half a second.

"It was an emotional whirlwind," Hasay said. "Last night I was real upset about the DMR, but we pumped each other up to come back today and we were really pleased with the mile. I'm in shock. I can't believe it."

Coming into the meet, Oregon's chances of repeating were believed to be damaged because junior Alexandra Kosinski could not run due to a back injury. Kosinski had been expected to produce points in the 3,000 and 5,000.

"Every team is going into a big competition with things that don't go right," Oregon head coach Vin Lananna said. "It's really a testament to the character of the team to overcome that. They know how to win. When you have a team that knows how to win and wants to win, you kind of get out of the way."

Hasay felt tightness in her calf before the 3,000 meters, and she avoided eye contact with coaches who might keep her from running. Then she won the race with a time of 9:13.71, edging Villanova senior Sheila Reid (9:13.86), who beaten Hasay to the line in the distance medley relay.

Florida's men did not score in the 1,600 relay, but didn't need to. While the near-capacity crowd of 4,487 roared its approval of the home team winning the event, the Gators already had secured enough points to ensure a round of Gator chomps from the top podium when the team trophy was awarded.

Sophomore sprinter Jeff Demps got the Gators' second-day charge going by winning the 60 meters in 6.53 seconds, helping gain ground on Brigham Young. Going into the triple jump, BYU led the team race with 34 points, while Florida and Florida State tied for second at 30.

Claye and Taylor had the top two spots in the triple jump sewed up going into the last two attempts of the event. Taylor went 55-9 to take the lead, but Claye responded with a winning effort of 56-10.

The final day of the championships offered several outstanding performances. The big crowd was drawn into the high jump competition won by University of Indiana junior Derek Drouin, who trounced the field and surprised himself by clearing 7-7 3/4 to match the Canadian national record.

"I asked for the bar to go to 2.33 [meters] without realizing," Drouin said. "When I started walking towards my first jump it hit me that this was for the Canadian record. It was 5 centimeters above my previous best, so I wasn't even thinking about it.

"I guess it hasn't really sunk in yet. The guys that have that record -- the guys that I'm tied with now -- are pretty elite company. I'm really proud to get a share of it."

Drouin came close but missed on three attempts to equal the collegiate record of 7-9 1/4.