Strong steeplechase performances on Day 2 of the Pac-12 Track & Field Championships
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EUGENE, Ore. - Washington's Brian Fay put up the fastest men's steeplechase time at the conference championships since 1988, Colorado's Madison Boreman moved to No. 6 in Pac-12 history in the women's steeple, and Oregon's Max Vollmer and Alysah Hickey defended their conference titles as part of an action-packed second day of competition at the 2022 Pac-12 Track & Field Championships.
Vollmer's title led a 1-2-6 Oregon finish in the decathlon and the Ducks extended their lead with a 39-point day to sit atop the men's leaderboard through 8-of-21 events. Fay led a 1-4-7 effort for Washington in the steeplechase, where the Huskies collected 17 of their day's 40 points to move into second overall. Cal scored 20 of its 35 points on day two in the shot put with an impressive 1-3-5 finish, which included just the Golden Bears' fourth title in the event since 1960.
Led by Hickey's winning long jump and Dominique Ruotolo's second-place leap, the Ducks jumped from fifth to the top of the team standings, earning 18 of their 46, second-day points in the long jump.
The championships conclude on Sunday with the crowning of 26 more event champions as well as the Pac-12 team titles and will be broadcast live on Pac-12 Network, the Pac-12 Now app and Pac-12.com beginning at 1 p.m. PT with Jim Watson and Jordan Kent on the call.
MEN'S TEAM LEADERBOARD (8/21 events)
1. Oregon – 67
2. Washington – 60
3. California – 40
4. Stanford – 37
5. UCLA – 28
6. USC – 18
6. Washington State – 18
8. Arizona State – 15
8. Colorado – 15
10. Arizona – 14
WOMEN'S TEAM LEADERBOARD (8/21 events)
1. Oregon – 60
2. Colorado – 44
3. Washington – 40
4. Arizona State – 34
5. California – 29
6. Oregon State – 24
7. Stanford – 23
8. UCLA – 17
9. Washington – 16
10. Arizona – 15
11. USC – 10
MEN'S HAMMER THROW - Trey Knight, USC (235-7/71.81)
In a field where the top seven finishers posted lifetime bests, it was USC's Trey Knight who topped them all to win USC's record 16th men’s hammer championship. Knight threw 235-7 on his second attempt, an improvement of 13 inches over he previous best, and the No. 4 mark in the NCAA this season. Washington's Jayden White was second with a three-foot PR (230-4) and California Ivar Moisander was third, registering four marks better than his previous best (217-10) and topping out at 223-8 on his final throw.
DECATHLON - Max Vollmer, Oregon (7,961 points)
Vollmer defended his 2019 and 2021 titles to earn Oregon 10 points and its 20th individual decathlon championship, which is tied for the second-most event titles among men's Pac-12 teams. USC has won 20 100m crowns and the Trojans have also claimed the 200m on 21 occasions. Vollmer is the fifth in conference history to win three decathlon championships and fourth from Oregon, joining Dakotah Keys (2012-14), Ashton Eaton (2008-10) and Craig Brigham (1973-75).
HEPTATHLON - Allie Jones, Stanford (5,731 points)
Stanford's Allie Jones led wire-to-wire over two days of competition and won three events (100m hurdles, high jump, 200m) to claim her first Pac-12 title by 155 points over Colorado's Avery McMullen (5,576). On Saturday, Jones PR'd in the javelin with a throw of 129-0 on her third attempt and clinched it with a 2:17.29 800m. She is the Cardinal's first heptathlon champion since Tracye Lawyer won three in a row from 1997-99 and just the third in program history to win the event, along with Lawyer and Peggy Odita (1992).
WOMEN'S SHOT PUT - Jorinde van Klinken, Arizona State (60-1/18.31)
Jorinde van Klinken, last year's Pac-12 and NCAA discus champion, won her first conference shot put title with a mark of 60-1 on her fourth attempt. ASU's nine Pac-12 championships in the event are the second-most all-time (UCLA - 14) and all have come in the past 16 conference meets (since 2006). van Klinken's was the fourth winning mark over 60 feet in Pac-12 history, joining UCLA's Valeyta Althouse (61-10 ¼; 1995) and Arizona State's Jessica Pressley (61-7 ¾; 2008) and Maggie Ewen (63 ¾; 2018). Jaida Ross was second with an Oregon school record of 57-7 and two-time defending champion Samantha Noennig of Arizona was third (57-5 ½).
MEN'S SHOT PUT - Josh Johnson, California (65-5 ½/19.95)
Josh Johnson's second attempt was a PR of 65-5 ½ and delivered the Golden Bears just their fourth men's shot put title all-time. Johnson joins a list that also includes Matt Baggett (1963), Dave Porath (1981) and Peter Simon (2017).
MEN'S LONG JUMP - Pierce LaCoste, Oregon (25-4 ½/7.73)
Oregon's Pierce LaCoste won the long jump with a PR of 25-4 ½ to give the Ducks their fourth event title in the past five Pac-12 meets. UO went 1-2 with Italian Olympian Emmanuel Ihemeje in second at 25 ¾. Oregon's 12 long jump championships are the second-most all-time (USC - 14) and LaCoste is the eighth different Duck to win the long jump, along with Tom Smith (1969), Bouncy Moore (1970-71), J.J. Birden (1987), Latin Berry (1988-90), Ashton Eaton (2010), Damarcus Simpson (2017-18) and Tristan James (2019).
WOMEN'S LONG JUMP - Alysah Hickey, Oregon (21 ½/6.41)
Alysah Hickey won her second consecutive long jump title to lead a 1-2 for the Ducks. Hickey won with her first-jump mark of 21 ½ and Dominique Ruotolo was second with a 20-5 ¾ on her fourth jump. The fifth back-to-back long jump champion in Pac-12 history, Hickey joins UCLA's Gail Devers (1987-88), Arizona State's Tiffany Greer (2002-03), Stanford's Erica McClain (2005-06) and Oregon's Jamesha Youngblood (2009-10) as women to win consecutive crowns.
MEN'S 3,000M STEEPLECHASE - Brian Fay, Washington (8:32.47)
In his first NCAA steeplechase, Washington's Brian Fay ran away from the field over the final 150 meters to win in 8:32.47, the best time at the conference championships since Oregon State's Karl Van Calcar won in 8:30.13 in 1988. The NCAA leader in the 5,000, Fay's steeplechase performance is seventh in the country this season. It's the Huskies eighth steeplechase title and first since Aaron Nelson won his second in 2016.
WOMEN'S 3,000M STEEPLECHASE - Madison Boreman, Colorado (9:42.22)
The 2017 steeplechase champion as a freshman in 2017 and now a graduate student at Colorado, Madison Boreman won her second event title by running a PR of 9:42.22. Boreman made her move with 300 meters to go, passing Oregon's Aneta Konieczek, the reigning champion, and pulling away over the final 200. Boreman's time is the third-fastest in Pac-12 championships history, behind Konieczek's meet-record 9:36.74 and Washington's Katie Rainsberger's second-place 9:38.84 from last year. Previously No. 10, Boreman moved up to be the No. 6 performer in Pac-12 history. Colorado has won 10 of the last 11 Pac-12 women's steeplechase titles.