Coming down the stretch, it looked as if the Trojans were close
to delivering a knockout punch. A handicapped UCLA lineup was
yielding crucial points left and right as USC seemed poised to end
a four-year losing streak.
But when all seemed lost, the Bruins somehow found a way to pull
off a victory.
The UCLA men’s track and field team completed one of the
most memorable come-from-behind wins ever against USC over the
weekend, edging out the Trojans by a score of 83-80.
While everyone predicted a close meet between the two storied
programs, no one could have foreseen the way the contest would play
out at Drake Stadium on Saturday.
“This just goes to show that you can’t win a meet on
paper,” UCLA senior Craig Everhart said. “On paper, our
best hope was to win by one point, but obviously we came out here
today and took care of business.”
Throughout the day, the two teams had a seesaw battle. But the
Trojans were able to create some breathing room heading into the
last four events, leading 75-56.
Needing just one second-place finish to cement the almost
guaranteed win in the 4×400-meter relays, USC looked well on its
way to securing the victory.
However, the Bruins were able to overcome those overwhelming
odds as they swept the 5,000m, the triple jump and, most
importantly, the pole vault to capture the win before the mile
relay took place.
“When it looked like the Trojans could sneak in the pole
vault and triple jump, we were able to shut the door on
them,” UCLA coach Art Venegas said.
The sweeps of the 5,000m and triple jump, while extremely
important, came as no surprise ““ USC had no athletes
projected to score any points in those events.
The pole vault, on the other hand, was up in the air. When the
field of vaulters began jumping at 16 feet, 6.25 inches, four
Trojans and three Bruins were still in the competition.
However, UCLA’s Mike Landers, David Shortenhaus and Zack
Miller were able to clear the height, while the remaining Trojan
vaulters failed, giving UCLA the sweep and overall victory.
“This is our house. This is where we train with blood,
sweat and tears,” Landers said. “They shouldn’t
be able to come here and beat us. We own this (pole vault)
pit.”
On the track, the Bruins suffered numerous setbacks ““ they
were overwhelmed in the sprints and middle-distances. USC swept the
100m, won the 4x100m relay and took first in the 200m, 800m and
1,500m, as well as the 110m and 400m hurdle races, despite
competing without top sprinters Lionel Larry and Blake Frazier.
UCLA freshman Kevin Craddock ran a lifetime best in the 110m
hurdles in 13.94, taking second, though a minor injury kept him out
of the 400m hurdle race. The Bruins’ brightest star in the
track events was Everhart ““ in the 400m he won with a
season-best time of 45.78 despite the absence of his nemesis,
Larry.
“It wouldn’t have made a difference,” Everhart
said of Larry’s inability to compete. “I was
disappointed, but I know I will see him at the Pac-10
meet.”
The Bruins picked up major points in the long-distance races.
Brothers Drew and Kyle Shackleton led a UCLA sweep of both the
5,000m and the 3,000m steeplechase.
Freshman Kyle Shackleton won the 5,000m in 14:38.9, taking
second in the steeplechase to his sophomore brother, who won that
event with a time of 9:28.07.
The win preserves a five-year streak over the Trojans and brings
the all-time series to 39-34 in favor of USC, though UCLA has won
27 of the last 28 matchups.
Even though the Bruins have shown such dominance over the years,
the meets themselves always seem to come down to the wire.
“It’s always sweet, home or away,” Venegas
said of his team’s narrow win over USC. “You
can’t believe how tight this meet is. No matter how I (score)
it, it always comes down to just a one- to four-point
lead.”