Beavers Enjoyed Productive Indoor Season
Throw away your old copy of the Oregon State indoor track and field record book. It’s as outdated as floppy disks, dial-up Internet or VHS tapes.
Competing as a full, comprehensive team for the first time since the program’s 2006 re-instatement, the Beavers completely revised their record book in the four-meet indoor season, which concluded Feb. 27-28 with OSU’s inaugural appearance in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championships.
They set 18 school records, turned in 57 all-time top-10 performances, and laid the groundwork for a productive indoor season.
“We’re pleased with how the indoor season went and now we have some time to recover for our first dual," OSU coach Kelly Sullivan said following the MPSF meet, where the Beavers set five school records and had 16 top-10 performances.
“Everybody is pretty psyched. The full indoor season will sharpen us physically and mentally and the benefits should be obvious during the outdoor season.”
Several school records were broken and then shattered again in the season’s six-week span. When the dust had settled, 10 new school standards had been established:
· 200 METERS: Venessa D’Arpino, 24.96
· 400 METERS: Venessa D’Arpino, 55.60.
· 600 METERS: Macauley Wilson, 1:37.99.
· 800 METERS: Kelsi Schaer, 2:12.89.
· 5,000 METERS: Adrienne Demaree, 17:55.38.
· 1,600-METER RELAY: 3:49.98 (Venessa D’Arpino, Ahsha Mootz, Allie Church, Kerissa D’Arpino).
· 4,000-METER DISTANCE MEDLEY RELAY: 11:32.53 (Sam McKinnon, Venessa D’Arpino, Kelsi Schaer, Morgan Anderson), 11:32.53.
· LONG JUMP: Kara Hallock, 18-3.
· TRIPLE JUMP: Michele Turney, 38-6.25.
· POLE VAULT: Helen Ann Haun, 11-6.25.
The Beavers also welcomed new volunteer assistant coach Travis Thompson late in the indoor season. A native of Newport and the son of OSU letterman Terry Thompson, he starred at Lane Community College and Oregon and was coaching at LCC before joining the staff.
Next up for the Beavers is another milestone, the March 21 dual against Pacific-12 Conference foe Utah. It will be the initial such competition at the new Whyte Track & Field Center, and the program’s first home dual since an April 9, 1988 matchup against Washington at Valley Field, shortly before the sport was suspended for budgetary reasons following that season.
