EUGENE, Ore. – Good versus evil. Maroon and gold versus navy blue and cardinal. Two decisive Territorial Cup® points on the line.
The Pac-12 Track and Field Championships highlight a men's and women's conference champion as well as individual champions -- which in all likely hood will feature at least one Sun Devil in 2017 – but an overarching internal Arizona affair exists under the mainstream headlines. The Territorial Cup® battle between the University of Arizona and Arizona State.
"Our first goal is obviously the Territorial Cup® points," said head coach Greg Kraft. "You always want to beat your in-state rival and we take a lot of pride in that. From there, we want to go in there and handle the conditions, because the forecast shows rain from the time we land to the time we leave. That's one of those things you have to be able to keep your focus through and take one race, throw or jump at a time."
Tracktown USA, which yearly features the nation's best athletes in the NCAA Championships and the most recent U.S. Olympic Trials, will be the stage for arguably the nation's best collegiate rivalry.
The season-long Territorial Cup® race stands at 8.5 to 8.5, with the first team to 10.5 becoming the winner. ASU has won the last three in a row. If the Devils can capture wins by both the men and women – which they did during the indoor season – ASU will clinch the Cup with only baseball remaining.
Over the last six seasons, the track and field/cross country program has won 17 of the 22 available points. In the last five Pac-12 outdoor championships, the women are 2-for-5 while the men are 4-for-5. The men's squad has won the last eight available points between the cross country, indoor and outdoor seasons. The women are eight for their last 17 since 2011-12.
Speaking of the women's squad, redshirt junior thrower and Bowerman finalist Maggie Ewen enters the weekend as the statistical favorite for the hammer throw, discus throw and shot put. The three-time conference women's field athlete of the week holds the top mark within the Pac-12 in each event so far this season.
If she comes away victorious in all three events, she would become the first-ever ASU and conference female to win the hammer, discus and shot put in the same season. She would also become the first female to win any three throwing events in the same season since Seilala Sua of UCLA, who won the shot, discus and javelin in 1999.
With the forecast showing rain on both days of competition, throws coach Brian Blutreich is preparing his athletes for the conditions.
"Coach Blutreich has been having the throwing ring full of water to prepare for the conditions," said Kraft. "We try to tell all of our athletes to take it one throw at a time. For Maggie, when you start to put those outside pressures on – and I'm guilty of talking about it – whether she feels that pressure or not, the opportunity is there. All she can do is go there and compete and be Maggie Ewen. And if she does that, regardless of where the results finish, we couldn't be prouder of the season she's had and the progress she's made this year under coach Blutreich."
Her teammates, redshirt freshman Kaylee Antill, senior Ashley Weber, senior Kyle Long, redshirt freshman Michael Titherington and senior Tom Anderson, will go to battle with her.
Long holds the second-best marks in the discus and hammer throw entering the weekend, giving him a shot at his first conference title.
In the pole vault, graduate senior Garrett Starkey is tied for the best clearance in the conference this season with Oregon's Cole Walsh at 5.50m (18-0.50). His teammates, redshirt sophomore Matt Eckles and senior Jacob Flores also hold top-10 clearances this season, and will be in the hunt for a scoring position.
In the jumps, redshirt sophomore Joey Bryant holds top-10 Pac-12 marks in the high, long and triple jump, giving him the potential to score in three events for the Sun Devil men.
ASU will already enter the weekend with a three-point advantage over Arizona, as redshirt sophomore Liam Henshaw finished sixth at the Pac-12 decathlon championships last weekend.
On the track for the men, junior transfer Drelan Bramwell has the potential to be the top scorer in the maroon and gold. The Canadian sprinter holds the eighth best 100-meter time, and sixth-best 200- and 400-meter marks.
Bramwell will join Herb Polk, Brandon Hasson and Jeremy Wright in the men's 4x100 and 4x400 relays as well.
Hasson will look to make some noise in the 100 and 200-meter sprints with Bramwell.
In the distance events, senior CJ Albertson is the one to watch in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, as he holds the third-best time this season and is looking to return to the NCAA Championships in the event this season. He'll also compete in the 5k event on Sunday.
For the Sun Devil women, senior jumper Keyasia Tibbs will look to climb the performance list, as she currently sits in fourth in the triple jump entering the weekend with a seasonal best of 12.82m (42-0.75). Her personal best sits at 13.10m (42-11.75). Tibbs returns as the Pac-12 runner up in the event.
Junior Darreyl Woodson holds the eighth-best mark in the conference in the triple jump and will look to score for ASU as well.
In the long jump, Tibbs will be joined by junior Shaunie Morrison.
Morrison will not only compete in the long jump, but will also take her talents into the 100-meter hurdles, where she holds the sixth-fastest time this season. She's also expected to run the leadoff leg of the women's 4x100 relay.
Senior distance runner Chelsey Albertson has the opportunity to score significant points for the women on the track, as she'll compete in the 5k and 10k events. She currently holds the fourth-best time in the 5k this season, but has yet to compete in a 10k so far this year.
Sunday's events will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks for the first time ever. Coverage will begin at 3 p.m. PT on all regional channels and Pac-12 Now. Paul Sunderland (1984 Olympian), Tom Feuer (Emmy-Award winning Olympics producer), Jordan Kent (four-time track All-American at Oregon) and Jill Savage will cover the action.
Pac-12 Championships
May 13-14, 2017
Tracktown USA
Saturday Field Events
Men's Hammer Throw – 11:35 a.m. PT
-Kyle Long, Michael Titherington
Men's Long Jump – 1:55 p.m. PT
-Joey Bryant, Liam Henshaw
Men's Pole Vault – 2:10 p.m. PT
-Garrett Starkey, Matt Eckles, Jacob Flores
Men's Shot Put – 2:55 p.m. PT
-Tom Anderson, Kyle Long
Women's Long Jump – 4:20 p.m. PT
-Keyasia Tibbs, Shaunie Morrison
Women's Javelin Throw – 4:50 p.m. PT
-Melanie Johnson
Men's High Jump – 5 p.m. PT
-Joey Bryant, Elijah Hughes, Mason Ford
Women's Shot Put – 5:25 p.m. PT
-Maggie Ewen, Ashley Weber
Saturday Running Events
Men's 4x100 Relay Prelim – 1:30 p.m. PT
-Bramwell, Polk, Hasson, Wright
Women's 4x100 Relay Prelim – 1:40 p.m. PT
-Morrison, Franklin, Oglesby, Flanagan
Women's 1500m Run Prelim – 2:05 p.m. PT
-Alexis Nichols
Men's 110m Hurdles Prelim – 2:30 p.m. PT
-Liam Henshaw
Women's 100m Hurdles Prelim – 2:45 p.m. PT
-Shaunie Morrison
Men's 400m Dash Prelim – 3 p.m. PT
-Herb Polk, Jeremy Wright
Men's 100m Dash Prelim – 3:30 p.m. PT
-Drelan Bramwell, Brandon Hasson
Men's 800m Run Prelim – 4 p.m. PT
-Blake Elliott
Women's 800m Run Prelim – 4:15 p.m. PT
-Christine Williford, Melese Crozier
Men's 3k Steeplechase – 4:30 p.m. PT
-CJ Albertson
Women's 3k Steeplechase – 4:50 p.m. PT
-Billie Jo Dytrt, Courtney Lewis
Men's 200m Dash Prelim – 5:40 p.m. PT
-Drelan Bramwell, Brandon Hasson
Women's 10k – 6:50 p.m. PT
-Chelsey Albertson, Jenna Maack
Sunday Field Events
Women's Hammer Throw – 1 p.m. PT
-Maggie Ewen, Kaylee Antill, Ashley Weber
Men's Discus Throw – 1:20 p.m. PT
-Kyle Long
Men's Triple Jump – 1:30 p.m. PT
-Joey Bryant, Liam Henshaw
Women's Triple Jump – 2:55 p.m. PT
-Keyasia Tibbs, Darreyl Woodson
Women's Pole Vault – 3:05 p.m. PT
-Kristiana Warth
Women's Discus Throw – 4:05 p.m. PT
-Maggie Ewen, Kaylee Antill
Saturday Running Events
Men's 4x100 Relay Final – 3 p.m. PT
Women's 4x100 Relay Final – 3:07 p.m. PT
Women's 1500m Run Final – 3:22 p.m. PT
Men's 110m Hurdles Final – 3:30 p.m. PT
Women's 100m Hurdles Final – 3:40 p.m. PT
Men's 400m Dash Final – 3:50 p.m. PT
Men's 100m Dash Final – 4:10 p.m. PT
Men's 800m Run Final – 4:25 p.m. PT
Women's 800m Run Final – 4:30 p.m. PT
Men's 200m Dash Final – 5:00 p.m. PT
Men's 5k Run – 5:15 p.m. PT
-CJ Alberston, John Reniewicki
Women's 5k Run – 5:35 p.m. PT
-Chelsey Albertson, Adriana Olivas, Jenna Maack, Billie Jo Dytrt, Courtney Lewis, Brittany Alexander, Megan Reniewicki, Alexis Nichols
Men's 4x400 Relay – 5:55 p.m. PT
-Polk, Wright, Hasson, Bramwell
Women's 4x400 Relay – 6:10 p.m. PT
-Crozier, Williford, Flanagan, Franklin
The Pac-12 Track and Field Championships highlight a men's and women's conference champion as well as individual champions -- which in all likely hood will feature at least one Sun Devil in 2017 – but an overarching internal Arizona affair exists under the mainstream headlines. The Territorial Cup® battle between the University of Arizona and Arizona State.
"Our first goal is obviously the Territorial Cup® points," said head coach Greg Kraft. "You always want to beat your in-state rival and we take a lot of pride in that. From there, we want to go in there and handle the conditions, because the forecast shows rain from the time we land to the time we leave. That's one of those things you have to be able to keep your focus through and take one race, throw or jump at a time."
Tracktown USA, which yearly features the nation's best athletes in the NCAA Championships and the most recent U.S. Olympic Trials, will be the stage for arguably the nation's best collegiate rivalry.
The season-long Territorial Cup® race stands at 8.5 to 8.5, with the first team to 10.5 becoming the winner. ASU has won the last three in a row. If the Devils can capture wins by both the men and women – which they did during the indoor season – ASU will clinch the Cup with only baseball remaining.
Over the last six seasons, the track and field/cross country program has won 17 of the 22 available points. In the last five Pac-12 outdoor championships, the women are 2-for-5 while the men are 4-for-5. The men's squad has won the last eight available points between the cross country, indoor and outdoor seasons. The women are eight for their last 17 since 2011-12.
Speaking of the women's squad, redshirt junior thrower and Bowerman finalist Maggie Ewen enters the weekend as the statistical favorite for the hammer throw, discus throw and shot put. The three-time conference women's field athlete of the week holds the top mark within the Pac-12 in each event so far this season.
If she comes away victorious in all three events, she would become the first-ever ASU and conference female to win the hammer, discus and shot put in the same season. She would also become the first female to win any three throwing events in the same season since Seilala Sua of UCLA, who won the shot, discus and javelin in 1999.
With the forecast showing rain on both days of competition, throws coach Brian Blutreich is preparing his athletes for the conditions.
"Coach Blutreich has been having the throwing ring full of water to prepare for the conditions," said Kraft. "We try to tell all of our athletes to take it one throw at a time. For Maggie, when you start to put those outside pressures on – and I'm guilty of talking about it – whether she feels that pressure or not, the opportunity is there. All she can do is go there and compete and be Maggie Ewen. And if she does that, regardless of where the results finish, we couldn't be prouder of the season she's had and the progress she's made this year under coach Blutreich."
Her teammates, redshirt freshman Kaylee Antill, senior Ashley Weber, senior Kyle Long, redshirt freshman Michael Titherington and senior Tom Anderson, will go to battle with her.
Long holds the second-best marks in the discus and hammer throw entering the weekend, giving him a shot at his first conference title.
In the pole vault, graduate senior Garrett Starkey is tied for the best clearance in the conference this season with Oregon's Cole Walsh at 5.50m (18-0.50). His teammates, redshirt sophomore Matt Eckles and senior Jacob Flores also hold top-10 clearances this season, and will be in the hunt for a scoring position.
In the jumps, redshirt sophomore Joey Bryant holds top-10 Pac-12 marks in the high, long and triple jump, giving him the potential to score in three events for the Sun Devil men.
ASU will already enter the weekend with a three-point advantage over Arizona, as redshirt sophomore Liam Henshaw finished sixth at the Pac-12 decathlon championships last weekend.
On the track for the men, junior transfer Drelan Bramwell has the potential to be the top scorer in the maroon and gold. The Canadian sprinter holds the eighth best 100-meter time, and sixth-best 200- and 400-meter marks.
Bramwell will join Herb Polk, Brandon Hasson and Jeremy Wright in the men's 4x100 and 4x400 relays as well.
Hasson will look to make some noise in the 100 and 200-meter sprints with Bramwell.
In the distance events, senior CJ Albertson is the one to watch in the men's 3,000-meter steeplechase, as he holds the third-best time this season and is looking to return to the NCAA Championships in the event this season. He'll also compete in the 5k event on Sunday.
For the Sun Devil women, senior jumper Keyasia Tibbs will look to climb the performance list, as she currently sits in fourth in the triple jump entering the weekend with a seasonal best of 12.82m (42-0.75). Her personal best sits at 13.10m (42-11.75). Tibbs returns as the Pac-12 runner up in the event.
Junior Darreyl Woodson holds the eighth-best mark in the conference in the triple jump and will look to score for ASU as well.
In the long jump, Tibbs will be joined by junior Shaunie Morrison.
Morrison will not only compete in the long jump, but will also take her talents into the 100-meter hurdles, where she holds the sixth-fastest time this season. She's also expected to run the leadoff leg of the women's 4x100 relay.
Senior distance runner Chelsey Albertson has the opportunity to score significant points for the women on the track, as she'll compete in the 5k and 10k events. She currently holds the fourth-best time in the 5k this season, but has yet to compete in a 10k so far this year.
Sunday's events will be televised live on the Pac-12 Networks for the first time ever. Coverage will begin at 3 p.m. PT on all regional channels and Pac-12 Now. Paul Sunderland (1984 Olympian), Tom Feuer (Emmy-Award winning Olympics producer), Jordan Kent (four-time track All-American at Oregon) and Jill Savage will cover the action.
Pac-12 Championships
May 13-14, 2017
Tracktown USA
Saturday Field Events
Men's Hammer Throw – 11:35 a.m. PT
-Kyle Long, Michael Titherington
Men's Long Jump – 1:55 p.m. PT
-Joey Bryant, Liam Henshaw
Men's Pole Vault – 2:10 p.m. PT
-Garrett Starkey, Matt Eckles, Jacob Flores
Men's Shot Put – 2:55 p.m. PT
-Tom Anderson, Kyle Long
Women's Long Jump – 4:20 p.m. PT
-Keyasia Tibbs, Shaunie Morrison
Women's Javelin Throw – 4:50 p.m. PT
-Melanie Johnson
Men's High Jump – 5 p.m. PT
-Joey Bryant, Elijah Hughes, Mason Ford
Women's Shot Put – 5:25 p.m. PT
-Maggie Ewen, Ashley Weber
Saturday Running Events
Men's 4x100 Relay Prelim – 1:30 p.m. PT
-Bramwell, Polk, Hasson, Wright
Women's 4x100 Relay Prelim – 1:40 p.m. PT
-Morrison, Franklin, Oglesby, Flanagan
Women's 1500m Run Prelim – 2:05 p.m. PT
-Alexis Nichols
Men's 110m Hurdles Prelim – 2:30 p.m. PT
-Liam Henshaw
Women's 100m Hurdles Prelim – 2:45 p.m. PT
-Shaunie Morrison
Men's 400m Dash Prelim – 3 p.m. PT
-Herb Polk, Jeremy Wright
Men's 100m Dash Prelim – 3:30 p.m. PT
-Drelan Bramwell, Brandon Hasson
Men's 800m Run Prelim – 4 p.m. PT
-Blake Elliott
Women's 800m Run Prelim – 4:15 p.m. PT
-Christine Williford, Melese Crozier
Men's 3k Steeplechase – 4:30 p.m. PT
-CJ Albertson
Women's 3k Steeplechase – 4:50 p.m. PT
-Billie Jo Dytrt, Courtney Lewis
Men's 200m Dash Prelim – 5:40 p.m. PT
-Drelan Bramwell, Brandon Hasson
Women's 10k – 6:50 p.m. PT
-Chelsey Albertson, Jenna Maack
Sunday Field Events
Women's Hammer Throw – 1 p.m. PT
-Maggie Ewen, Kaylee Antill, Ashley Weber
Men's Discus Throw – 1:20 p.m. PT
-Kyle Long
Men's Triple Jump – 1:30 p.m. PT
-Joey Bryant, Liam Henshaw
Women's Triple Jump – 2:55 p.m. PT
-Keyasia Tibbs, Darreyl Woodson
Women's Pole Vault – 3:05 p.m. PT
-Kristiana Warth
Women's Discus Throw – 4:05 p.m. PT
-Maggie Ewen, Kaylee Antill
Saturday Running Events
Men's 4x100 Relay Final – 3 p.m. PT
Women's 4x100 Relay Final – 3:07 p.m. PT
Women's 1500m Run Final – 3:22 p.m. PT
Men's 110m Hurdles Final – 3:30 p.m. PT
Women's 100m Hurdles Final – 3:40 p.m. PT
Men's 400m Dash Final – 3:50 p.m. PT
Men's 100m Dash Final – 4:10 p.m. PT
Men's 800m Run Final – 4:25 p.m. PT
Women's 800m Run Final – 4:30 p.m. PT
Men's 200m Dash Final – 5:00 p.m. PT
Men's 5k Run – 5:15 p.m. PT
-CJ Alberston, John Reniewicki
Women's 5k Run – 5:35 p.m. PT
-Chelsey Albertson, Adriana Olivas, Jenna Maack, Billie Jo Dytrt, Courtney Lewis, Brittany Alexander, Megan Reniewicki, Alexis Nichols
Men's 4x400 Relay – 5:55 p.m. PT
-Polk, Wright, Hasson, Bramwell
Women's 4x400 Relay – 6:10 p.m. PT
-Crozier, Williford, Flanagan, Franklin