Reed Brown, shown here running in the 4 x mile relay at the Oregon Relays, knows that every team wants to be the one that breaks the Ducks’ streak of 14 straight Pac-12 titles. Photo by Cierra Hitner
The Oregon men have won 14 straight Pac-12 Track and Field championships, while the women had a nine-year win streak from 2009 through 2017 that was ended by a three-peat from USC.
Oregon will host the event Friday, Saturday and Sunday in Hayward Field. Its women’s team will try to retake that crown from the Trojans, and the men will attempt to extend their streak to 15 straight wins.
“No one here wants to lose, so I think everyone is ready to handle that pressure,” Ducks’ distance runner Reed Brown said. “The target is on our back. People want to take us down just because we are Oregon.”
In order to preserve that streak, Oregon’s head coach Robert Johnson will maximize the depth of his roster and use a balanced approach to earn the most significant number of points possible.
“These conference championships are always tricky,” Johnson said. “We’re going to have our champions … but these championships are made up of those people who finish sixth, seventh and eighth. Those are usually what determines the winners.”
The Ducks’ depth allows Johnson to include athletes in multiple events to earn more points. He emphasized the importance of those athletes, who will enter events in which they are less experienced to help bolster the Ducks’ overall point total.
To name a few: Alysah Hickey will compete in the 100-meter dash and the long jump. Tori Sloan will compete in the high jump and the triple jump. Dominique Ruotolo will compete in the long jump, high jump and triple jump.
Brown will also be doubling up. His main event is the 1,500-meter race, in which he holds the second-best time of any competitor in this weekend’s field — just behind Oregon’s Jack Yearian.
He will also appear in the final event of the meet: the 5,000 meters — to help snag extra points for the Ducks.
