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Oregon has dominated the Big Ten during its two seasons in the conference. Now it would like to be a more consistent podium contender on the national stage.
The Ducks will get their chance this week when the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships take place June 10-13 at Hayward Field.
The men will compete Wednesday and Friday, the women will compete Thursday and Saturday.
Both the men’s and women’s meets are projected to be dominated by one team, with everyone else battling for a top-four finish.
In the men’s meet, Arkansas is the clear favorite with Oregon among a handful of teams in the next tier of contenders.
It’s the same story in the women’s meet, with Georgia dominating the form chart and the Ducks expected to be among the teams fighting for second place.
“I’m really optimistic with both the men and women,” Oregon coach Jerry Schumacher said. “I’m excited to see what we can do. I acknowledge the fact that Arkansas on the men’s side and Georgia on the women’s side, really appear to be the frontrunners. But you know, that’s why we’re gonna have the meet.”
Oregon, fresh off its triple-crown success in conference championships in which both the men and women won Big Ten titles in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track, has 15 scoring opportunities in each meet.
That includes four favorites to win individual titles this week.
For the men, Simeon Birnbaum and Ben Smith are ranked No. 1 in the 1,500 meters and shot put, respectively. Birnbaum is also entered in the 5,000 and Smith in the discus.
The Ducks also have several others who are veterans of NCAA championship meets.
Kobe Lawrence was fourth in the shot put last season and second at the NCAA indoor meet in March.
Elliott Cook was the NCAA outdoor runner-up in the 1,500 in 2024, Benjamin Balazs was seventh in the 3,000 steeplechase last season, and Luke Tewalt, a transfer from Wake Forest, was fourth in the 5,000 in 2023.
“I think we have opportunities to upset the form chart,” Schumacher said.
It’s not much different for the Oregon women, who have a pair of No. 1 performers in Aaliyah McCormick in the 100 hurdles and Sharifa Davronova in the triple jump.
McCormick is the defending champ in her event, as well as the NCAA indoor 60 hurdle champ. At the NCAA West First Round meet in Arkansas on May 30, McCormick shattered the Oregon school record when she ran 12.44 seconds to take down the previous UO record of 12.69 set by Alaysha Johnson in 2017.
“She’s incredible,” Schumacher said. “You can never say enough about her. She’s incredible as a person, incredible as a student athlete, she’s a leader, and this team knows that when Aaliyah steps on the track, she’s all business.”
The women also have a handful of proven scorers among their qualifiers, including three in the 1,500.
Wilma Nielsen is the back-to-back indoor mile champ, Juliet Cherubet – who is also entered in the 5,000 – is a three-time cross country all-American and the 2026 Big Ten champion in the 1,500, and Silan Ayyildiz is also a two-time cross-country all-American who was fourth in the 1,500 last season.
Hepathlete Liisa-Maria Lusti is the 2026 NCAA indoor pentathlon champion.
“I think we’re still a bit of a sleeper,” Schumacher said. “You got to go out there and put those points on the board and I think we’re very capable of putting a lot of points up there.”
Chris Hansen covers University of Oregon football, men’s basketball, track and field, cross country and softball for The Register-Guard. You can reach him at [email protected] and you can follow him on X @chansen_RG
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Ducks look to upset favorites at NCAA Outdoor Championships
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The Ducks will get their chance this week when the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships take place June 10-13 at Hayward Field.
The men will compete Wednesday and Friday, the women will compete Thursday and Saturday.
Both the men’s and women’s meets are projected to be dominated by one team, with everyone else battling for a top-four finish.
In the men’s meet, Arkansas is the clear favorite with Oregon among a handful of teams in the next tier of contenders.
It’s the same story in the women’s meet, with Georgia dominating the form chart and the Ducks expected to be among the teams fighting for second place.
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“I’m really optimistic with both the men and women,” Oregon coach Jerry Schumacher said. “I’m excited to see what we can do. I acknowledge the fact that Arkansas on the men’s side and Georgia on the women’s side, really appear to be the frontrunners. But you know, that’s why we’re gonna have the meet.”
Oregon, fresh off its triple-crown success in conference championships in which both the men and women won Big Ten titles in cross country, indoor track and outdoor track, has 15 scoring opportunities in each meet.
That includes four favorites to win individual titles this week.
For the men, Simeon Birnbaum and Ben Smith are ranked No. 1 in the 1,500 meters and shot put, respectively. Birnbaum is also entered in the 5,000 and Smith in the discus.
The Ducks also have several others who are veterans of NCAA championship meets.
Kobe Lawrence was fourth in the shot put last season and second at the NCAA indoor meet in March.
Elliott Cook was the NCAA outdoor runner-up in the 1,500 in 2024, Benjamin Balazs was seventh in the 3,000 steeplechase last season, and Luke Tewalt, a transfer from Wake Forest, was fourth in the 5,000 in 2023.
“I think we have opportunities to upset the form chart,” Schumacher said.
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It’s not much different for the Oregon women, who have a pair of No. 1 performers in Aaliyah McCormick in the 100 hurdles and Sharifa Davronova in the triple jump.
McCormick is the defending champ in her event, as well as the NCAA indoor 60 hurdle champ. At the NCAA West First Round meet in Arkansas on May 30, McCormick shattered the Oregon school record when she ran 12.44 seconds to take down the previous UO record of 12.69 set by Alaysha Johnson in 2017.
“She’s incredible,” Schumacher said. “You can never say enough about her. She’s incredible as a person, incredible as a student athlete, she’s a leader, and this team knows that when Aaliyah steps on the track, she’s all business.”
The women also have a handful of proven scorers among their qualifiers, including three in the 1,500.
Wilma Nielsen is the back-to-back indoor mile champ, Juliet Cherubet – who is also entered in the 5,000 – is a three-time cross country all-American and the 2026 Big Ten champion in the 1,500, and Silan Ayyildiz is also a two-time cross-country all-American who was fourth in the 1,500 last season.
Hepathlete Liisa-Maria Lusti is the 2026 NCAA indoor pentathlon champion.
“I think we’re still a bit of a sleeper,” Schumacher said. “You got to go out there and put those points on the board and I think we’re very capable of putting a lot of points up there.”
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Oregon men's qualifiers for the NCAA Outdoor Championships
- Benjamin Balazs – 3,000 steeplechase
- Tre Betts – triple jump
- Simeon Birnbaum – 1,500/5,000
- Evan Burke – 10,000
- Elliott Cook – 1,500
- Kai Graves-Blanks – 110 hurdles
- Kobe Lawrence – shot put
- Tomas Palfrey – 1,500
- Ben Smith – shot put/discus
- Luke Tewalt – 5,000
- Daniel Thrana – javelin
- Pat Vialva – javelin
- Kai Grave-Blanks, PJ Ize-Iyamu, Grant Valley, Jaelon Barbian – 4x100 relay
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Oregon women's qualifiers for the NCAA Outdoor Championships
- Cassandra Atkins – triple jump
- Silan Ayyildiz – 1,500
- Marie Josee Bovele-Linaka – discus
- Diana Cherotich – 10,000
- Juliet Cherubet – 1,500/5,000
- Sharifa Davronova – triple jump
- Micaela De Mello – 100 hurdles
- Greyson Glivinski – javelin
- Alicia Khunou – shot put/discus
- Liisa-Maria Lusti – heptathlon
- Aaliyah McCormick – 100 hurdles
- Wilma Nielsen – 1,500
- Brazil Neal, Amirah Shaheed, Lakely Doht-Barron, Lily Jones – 4x100 relay
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How to watch the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships
- TV:
- Wednesday: 5 p.m., ESPN
- Thursday: 5 p.m., ESPN2
- Friday: 5 p.m., ESPN2
- Saturday: 5 p.m., ESPN2
- Stream: ESPN+
NCAA Outdoor Championships links
Chris Hansen covers University of Oregon football, men’s basketball, track and field, cross country and softball for The Register-Guard. You can reach him at [email protected] and you can follow him on X @chansen_RG
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: Ducks look to upset favorites at NCAA Outdoor Championships
Continue reading...
