Oregon’s Jaida Ross breaks the meet record and earns a spot on the UO top ten all-time list with her throw of 52.75m(173’) in the discus at the Hayward Premiere. Photo by Logan Hannigan-Downs

By Joe Zochert

Day two of the Hayward Premiere featured strong performances in the throws and sprints, wrapping up the first meet of the 2022 season at Hayward Field at the University of Oregon.

The competition was incredible as we saw 17 meet records broken, with 43 different athletes and a 4x100m team surpassing the previous marks in their respective events.

Here are some of the highlights from day two of the second edition of the Hayward Premiere.

Field Events

Ross, De Klerk trade wins in Discus and Shot Put

Oregon’s Jaida Ross threw a meet record 52.74m (173’) on her very first attempt in the women’s discus. The mark lands the redshirt freshman on Oregon’s top 10 all-time list. Her teammate Mine De Klerk got second in the discus with a throw of 50.81m (166’8”) on her second throw.

Later in the day, the duo got first and second in the shot put, this time switching places. De Klerk won the shot put on her sixth and final throw of the competition with her mark of 17.19m (56’4.75”), a meet record. Ross came in 2nd with a personal best 17.13m (56’2.5”).

Even though the teammates are evenly matched in these events, they have a strong friendship that is filled with encouragement.

“We are competing against each other, but we are motivating each other,” said De Klerk about her relationship with Ross.

Ross believes that the sky's the limit for them as they continue to push each other. “I think we can make it to Natty’s [Nationals]. That’s my goal to get there and get points. Just keep growing.”

Zach Short takes the shot put over a competitive field

Short won the men’s shot put with a meet record, 19.27m (63’2.75”) on his fifth attempt. The second through sixth place finishers all also surpassed the previous meet record of 16.23m (53’3”).

Smith Doubles in Long and High Jump

Jason Smith from Long Beach St. was a big winner at the meet. On both day one and day two, the senior set meet records in the long jump and triple jump. Check out our day one recap here.

On day two, Smith got over the bar on his third attempt at 2.13m (6’9”) for the meet record after dueling with Washington St.’s Mitch Jacobson.

Track Events

Oregon Dominates Both 4x100s

The University of Oregon showed off their strong sprinting core as their men’s “A” relay set a new meet record with a time of 39.53. Micah Williams, the second leg, was encouraged to see his team perform well.

“I think it’s good. We’re loaded. We’re ready. We will be ready when it matters,” said Willams about the potential of this team after the win at the Hayward Premiere.

The Oregon women placed first and second in 4x100 as well. The women’s “A” relay clocked in at 43.95 which beat the Oregon “B” squad’s 44.47. The Oregon women dominated day two of the Hayward Premiere in the sprints, more on that below.

Oregon’s Jasmine Montgomery doubles back after anchoring the Ducks’ winning 4x100m relay to win the individual 100m at the 2022 Hayward Premiere. Photo by Logan Hannigan-Downs

Oregon Women Got the Brooms Out

The Oregon women swept the top three in both the 100m and 200m.

In the 100m, Freshman Jasmine Montgomery glided across the finish line in 11.52, both a personal best and meet record. Oregon also had Ella Clayton finish second in 11.68, Sydney Holiday third in 11.72 and Alysah Hickey sixth in 11.78. The top six finishers all broke the previous meet record of 11.78.

The Duck’s weren’t done after the 100m. The women of Oregon would also go 1-4 in the 200m. Shaniya Hall broke the meet record at 23.63. Clayton finished second in both the short sprints, running 23.72 in the 200m. Montgomery doubled back from her 100m victory to finish third in 23.92. Katriina Wright added to the Ducks dominance in the sprints by getting fourth with her time of 24.08.

Anderson Hurdles over the Competition

Joseph Anderson from Long Beach St. had the honor of going home with the meet record in the men’s 110m hurdles with his winning time of 14.14. The junior beat out a fierce field as the top nine finishers among the three heats all bested the previous meet record of 14.77.

Griffin Fends Off Two Cougars

Long Beach St. broke another Hayward Premiere record as LeNaya Griffin ran 54.53 in the women’s 400m. The senior was a few strides ahead of Washington St.’s Elena Willems and Elise Unruh-Thomas. Willems clocked in at 55.87 and Unruh-Thomas got third in 56.47.

Thornton-Bott Builds Confidence

After getting second in the women’s 1500m Invite on day one, Oregon’s Izzy Thornton-Bott came back on day two to win the 800m Invite with a time of 2:04.98. For Thornton-Bott, the results were encouraging.

“It’s a confidence boost going into the rest of the collegiate season…I knew I wanted to do something solid today and what's more solid than win[ning].”

Action returns to Hayward Field April 22-23 with the Oregon Relays.