EUGENE, Ore. – Jaida Ross capped her record-breaking collegiate season with an NCAA title in the shot put Thursday evening at Hayward Field. She and Shelby Moran, fourth in the hammer, combined for 15 points toward the team total for the Women of Oregon. The Ducks got a third scorer on day two of the national meet with Rafael Raap rallying for sixth place in the decathlon.
The UO women also advanced six to finals and will have a total of 11 scoring chances Saturday as the team race takes shape. Among the qualifying efforts, Jadyn Mays secured her spot in both the 100 and 200 finals, Klaudia Kazimierska became the No. 3 performer in school history at 1500 meters and Shana Grebo lowered her own school record in the 400-meter hurdles.
Ross is the first UO woman to win an NCAA title in the shot put, and the third Oregon champion in the event overall with Neal Steinhauer and Dean Crouser winning titles for the Men of Oregon in 1965 and 1982, respectively.
“This means the world to me,” Ross said. “I have my North Medford (HS) coaches here. I have the (head) coach Pieter Voskes here and my two throws coaches here. To do that in front of them is amazing. They just told me that the only other NCAA champion from North Medford was Dick Fosbury so this is pretty cool to have my name on. I’m super proud of this.”
The Medford, Ore., native saved her best measure of the day—19.57m/64-2.5—for last but all six of her throws during the competition were far enough to win. Her series featured three marks past 19 meters. Thursday was Ross’ third outdoor appearance in the NCAA shot put where she had finished fifth the past two seasons.
Ross will be back in action Saturday in the discus.
Securing the Ducks’ first points of the week, Moran posted a career-high national finish of fourth in the hammer. After a second-round toss of 68.09m/223-4, the Sherwood, Ore., native bettered that in each of the next two round. She finished the competition with a best of 69.43m/227-9 and notched five points for the UO women.
Moran had a previous NCAA-best finish of fifth place in 2022 when she was at Arizona State. She is also the first UO woman to score in the hammer since Jillian Weir did so in 2015; both in fourth place.
Raap began the day in 18th place but with the help of season or personal bests in four of five events, he made up 12 spots in the standings and finished a lifetime-best 7,842 points. With that score, he moves to No. 8 on the Ducks’ all-time list and eclipses 7,800 points for the first time in his UO career. Raap had a season-best clearance of 4.91m/16-1.25 in the pole vault and followed with a 60.17m/197-5 personal best in the javelin.
He closed out two-day competition with a time of 4:39.06 in the 1500 meters, good for another season best. Raap improved on his 14th-place finish from a season ago.
Mays was part of the Ducks’ 4×100 relay that secured the first qualifier of the day. She teamed with Lily Jones, Shaniya Hall and Ella Clayton for a time of 43.02 and a spot in Saturday’s final. Mays followed up with times of 11.04 and 22.27—a new personal best—in the 100 and 200 meters, respectively. With her time in the 200, she joins Deajah Stevens, Jenna Prandini and Ariana Washington as the only UO women to dip below 22.3 in the event.
Up next on the track, Kazimierska qualified for her second NCAA 1500-meter final. She crossed the finish line in 4:06.92 to establish a new lifetime best and now only trails Leann Warren and Jessica Hull on the Oregon top-10 list.
Grebo, for a second-consecutive race, posted a lifetime best therefore improving on her school record. Looking to advance to her first NCAA final in the 400-meter hurdles, she surged over the final hurdle to run 55.94 and finish second in heat two for an automatic qualifier. Thursday represented Grebo’s first time under 56 seconds in the event.
The UO women will have an entry in the final event of the weekend thanks to the effort of their 4×400 relay. The team consisting of Clayton, Grebo, Hall and Katriina Wright had a time of 3:28.77 in heat one but had to wait out the final two sections to see if the time stood up. The Ducks claimed the ninth and final spot into the final.
Freshman Katie Clute knocked more than two seconds off her previous best, clocking a time of 9:56.99 in heat two of the 3,000-meter steeplechase. With the effort, she improved on her already No. 4 status on the program’s top-10 list. Clute finished seventh in her heat but with a quicker non-auto qualifier in the first heat, and missed advancing to the final by one spot.
Up Next: Elliott Cook will race for NCAA gold in the 1500 meters Friday at 6:12 p.m. The UO junior ran a lifetime best of 3:37.25 during Wednesday’s semifinal round. Day three of the national meet also marks the beginning of the heptathlon which features Oregon teammates Taylor Chocek and Annika Williams. The first event—the 100-meter hurdles—will go off at 1 p.m. at Hayward Field.
Thursday Results
NCAA Championships (Eugene, Ore.)
q – advances to final
WOMEN
100 Meters
3. Jadyn Mays – 11.04q
200 Meters
3. Jadyn Mays – 22.27q (PB) [No. 4 UO^]
1500 Meters
4. Klaudia Kazimierska – 4:06.92q (PB) [No. 3 UO]
17. Mia Barnett – 4:12.08 (SB)
400m Hurdles
6. Shana Grebo – 55.94q (PB) [No. 1 UO]
3,000m Steeplechase
13. Katie Clute – 9:56.99 (PB) [No. 4 UO^]
4×100 Relay
7. Lily Jones-Jadyn Mays-Shaniya Hall-Ella Clayton – 43.02q
4×400 Relay
9. Shana Grebo-Ella Clayton-Katriina Wright-Shaniya Hall – 3:28.77q
Shot Put
1. Jaida Ross – 19.57m/64-2.5 [10 points]
Hammer
4. Shelby Moran – 69.43m/227-9 [5 points]
MEN
Decathlon – Day 2
6. Rafael Raap – 7,842 points (PB) [No. 8 UO]
18. 110m Hurdles – 15.16 (SB) [830 points]
3. Discus – 48.06m/157-8 [830]
5. Pole Vault – 4.91m/16-1.25 (SB) [883]
2. Javelin – 60.17m/197-5 (PB) [740]
11. 1500 Meters – 4:39.06 (SB) [686]
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