Oregon-UCLA Dual Meet Quotes

Talmadge Jackson III, Oregon, 4x100 relay

On the race:

“It went a lot better, but we still have work to do.  We are starting to improve a little bit on our timing.”

On what they will work on:

“We need to work on our hand offs.  The transition is the most important part and we need to be as fast as we can.”

AJ Acosta, Oregon, 2nd place finisher in 1500 meters

On the race:

“I am in good 1,500 shape, but I did not know how the race would play out.  With 400 meters left I thought I had a chance to win, and even with 80 meters left.”

“It is good we got the one, two spots and the 8 points.  I am happy.”

On competing in the steeplechase:

“I might run it in the Twilight or Pac 10s.  I ran it in high school and last week.  It is a real mental race.  If an opportunity comes up, it is what it is, otherwise I have next year.”

Mac Fleet, Oregon, 1500 meter winner

On win:

“Eight points helps a lot.  It was a straightforward race; a great finish for everyone.”

On preparation for running the 1500 meters this season:

“I have been working on my kick and developing my last 300 meters and last 600 meters. Right now I am focusing on my last 300, and staying really aware and mentally positive.  I need to pay attention in the race.  Today I felt really comfortable in the last lap.”

Alex Wolff, Oregon, Javelin winner

On the new PR:

“It was maybe my third or fourth throw, it felt great.  It’s fun being out here with the crowd and all.  Having (Mike) Simmons back is definitely a push, it’s awesome to have him out here.  He started throwing well and it just gets those butterflies inside you and makes you want to throw well.  It definitely pushed me over.  I’ve been trying to hit 240 for a long time, I was happy to do it today.”

On how it felt out of the hand:

“Yeah, I knew it was going to go further than I had ever thrown before. I was pretty excited.”

On the Sweep:

“It’s awesome.  It always feels good to get a sweep in.  It was just great to have Britton (Nelson) out there and Simmons, it was perfect.”

LaMichael James, Oregon, 100 meters 3rd place

On balancing track and football:

“It’s really a lot on me.  Playing football, having a full scrimmage yesterday and then to come out here and run the 100. It’s like getting in a car crash and trying to go out and play basketball the next day. It’s really is tough but I’ll get better.”

David Klech, Oregon, winner high jump

On win:

“Anything to help out the team is great.   It was good for Danny (Marconi) and I to go one and two. It is great to have someone pushing you.”

On the PR attempt:

“I had the height.  I missed out on the 2.17, but I have that.”

On atmosphere:

“Being here and putting out all our efforts is good on a day like this when our team needed it.”

Ashton Eaton, Oregon, winner 200 meters

On win:

“It felt good. I love sprints. I love the multis, but if I could have equal success in something else, I would do that.”

On competing in dual meets:

“This is our third dual, and I like them, although, I wish we could bring in the women. It would not only be fun, but good to give everyone longer rests in between events.”

Jordan Stray, Oregon, winner hammer throw

On his win:

“I am happy because I got a PR on my second throw, and then PRed again. I came out fresh and had a high intensity practice since UCLA didn’t have anyone compete against us. I am excited for the rest of the season and I want to get even better.”

Vernell Warren, Oregon, winner long jump

On today’s competition:

“I did both high jump and long jump. I couldn’t even do all the jumps, because I ran the 4x100 meters. I am happy with the win, not as much with the mark. I just wanted to score as many points as I possibly could. My steps finally feel good.”

Brian Schaudt, Oregon, winner triple jump

On his performance:

“All jumpers here were good. I really wanted to score five points for the team and I am happy I did it. It’s a great feeling to be able to contribute to the team. Today I did both long jump and triple jump so I simply transitioned from one to another. I had a good scratched jump that would have been my PR. It’s a great motivation for the future.” 

Colin Witter-Tilton, Oregon, pole vault winner

On winning today:

“It feels really good.  You know last year I didn’t do too well.  Last year I think I got third place and so it was nice to finally win and beat the guys who beat me last year.”

On some potential big jumps this year:

“Oh yeah, absolutely.  Indoors, I PRed at 7-0.25, so I’m just waiting for the opportunity to do that again.  I think Pac-10’s or Regionals for sure.  And then Nationals here, it’ll be a home meet.”

On attempts at matching outdoor PR:

“The last one was probably the best of all of them, but I was pretty tanked by the end of the meet. During warm-ups, my step was consistent but something in my head wasn’t right there. But as soon as that first bar came, everything just kind of flowed.”

Cory Primm, UCLA, winner 800 meters

On his win at Oregon:

“I wanted to have a pretty fast-paced, solid race. Coach and I talked about the lap between 52.5 and 53.5 seconds. Oregon guys were passing me on the last 200 meters, but I saved energy for that. At the end, my time wasn’t as good as I wanted, but it’s good to win and get five points for my team. Both Elijah Greer and Travis Thompson are very good runners. Our goal this season is to have a solid season and don’t give up. Today I also ran 4x400 meters. I am disappointed we didn’t win.” 

Vin Lananna Head Coach University of Oregon

On day:

“Today was all about an opportunity for the men to come together and protect our home turf.  We did not want to put anyone in danger (on those who did not compete).  It was scary to pull some guys in the last minute.”

On UO/UCLA dual meet:

“We have wanted it to be men and women, but it is a matter of does it fit in the collegiate season.  Having it here, we are assured a good crowd, and it makes sense for us to host it.  We want to support big traditional meets.”

“We like the dual meet, we like UCLA.  We like to have this one, but we want it here. I do not know if that is fair, but we guarantee it is not at their expense.”

On javelin and hammer throws:

“Alex (Wolff) and Jordan (Stray) threw well.  They have to get their adrenaline going just like anyone else.”

On overall competition of the dual meet:

“I like how the team competed.  They showed me today that they are a championship caliber team.”

Mike Maynard, UCLA Coach

On today’s meet:

“We had some great performances today.  These meets are truly about the scores.  We were disappointed with the score at the end; we thought we’d at least make a little closer of a meet out of it.  But we really had some pretty good stuff.”

“I think that the steeple went well for us.  Dylan Knight ran 8:48, a pretty impressive time considering he ran it by himself. ”

“A couple events could have gone a lot better for us. Events that we were kind of hanging our hats on.  But you know, overall it was alright. We’d have liked to have seen the pole vault go a little different for us. Had we had Taylor Hobson healthy, he had such a break out meet here last year, that might have changed the final score a little bit. The triple jump kind of didn’t go great for us. We didn’t do bad in the high jump although the Ducks had a great day there. For me as a throwers coach, not having a single hammer thrower, I can just tell you that won’t be the case in the future.”

On continue the series:

“Whether it’s here or in Los Angeles or wherever, I think Coach Lananna has the right idea to revive interest in track and field.  I’m completely and fully committed to the dual and triangular, quad type scoring format and meet.  Definitely committed to this type of meet and loved this crowd. It’s exciting to bring our team in here and let them see what track and field can be like.”