UC IRVINE NOTEBOOK : Decathlon Contender Running on Resolve

There will be pain, quite a lot of it, but Matt Farmer will grit his teeth and complete the decathlon anyway. The bone spur in his left ankle has kept him from jumping for five weeks, but Farmer won’t let it stop him this weekend in the Big West Conference Championships at UC Irvine.

“I’m going to finish,” Farmer said. “For sure.”

It is not so much defending his Big West title that drives him, but qualifying for the NCAA championships. Last year, Farmer’s best point total was 7,322. Then, the NCAA automatic qualifying mark was 7,480, and Farmer stayed home.

Now Farmer, a junior, is trying to reach the 7,550-point qualifying mark, or at least the provisional mark of 7,200, which could put him in the NCAA field of 16 if it is not filled by automatic qualifiers. Farmer, who scored more than 7,300 points three times last season, has scored no higher than 7,011 this season.

As for competing while injured, “it’s going to be quite painful,” said Farmer, who already has had a cortisone shot that did little to alleviate the pain of the spur, which has cracked in half from the stress of jumping, leaving bits of floating bone. “It’s something that’s going to require arthroscopic surgery to get it scraped off as soon as the season ends, which he hopes won’t be until after the NCAAs. It might be this weekend.”

The big contests at the Big West Championships on Friday and Saturday are for the men’s and women’s team titles, and, of course, for the individual titles. But the behind-the-scenes competitions take place between the athletes and the NCAA qualifying standards, as competitors try one more time to make the field for the NCAA championships, May 29 to June 1 at Eugene, Ore. Some of those who don’t might scramble to find a postseason competition to give it one more try. But make no mistake, they would like to do it this weekend.

It is not only the borderline NCAA contenders who are trying to qualify. Among those who have yet to make their times is Irvine’s Maria Akraka, a Swedish half-miler who is one of the favorites to win the NCAA title in the 800 meters.

Akraka, who already qualified in the 1,500 with a time of 4 minutes 14.45 seconds, should be a lock to qualify in the 800, but in her other attempt this season she was bumped and fell during the 800 at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays.

“Of course I am concerned,” said Akraka, who has treated the track season mostly as training in preparation for the European circuit this summer. “I would like to do it Saturday. Of course I was disappointed (at Mt. SAC). Once you stumble like that there’s not really much you can do.”

Danny Williams, the women’s coach, isn’t concerned about Akraka’s ability to make the qualifying time of 2:05.5.

“Hands down,” he said. “We’ll run her easy in the trials and turn her loose in the finals. If the competition’s not ready, that’s their problem.”

The Irvine women’s team, which usually finishes near the top, is looking to win it this time.

Other Irvine women to watch:

Buffy Rabbitt--A senior, Rabbitt won the Big West title in the 1,500 and the 3,000 last year. She has the conference’s top times in the 3,000 and 5,000 this year, and she trails only Akraka in the 1,500. Although she is among the favorites for the NCAA title in the 3,000, she has reached the NCAA provisional qualifying times in the 1,500 and 3,000, but has yet to make the automatic times.

Traci Goodrich--Goodrich, who qualified for the NCAA 10,000 meters at Mt. SAC in her first attempt at that distance, will also run the 5,000.

Shelly Tochluk--A sophomore, Tochluk finished third in the Big West in the 400 meters as a freshman.

The men’s team is likely to place in the top three.

“If everything works right, we could realistically come close to winning, and we could finish third,” Coach Vince O’Boyle said. “We have the potential to win it; we have the bodies. We just have to do our thing.”

Other Irvine men to watch:

Will Stolpe--A senior sprinter, his season-best times in the 100 and 200 trail those of Fresno State’s James Stallworth, but Stallworth is coming off a broken leg and isn’t sure whether he will compete.

Dustin James--A freshman, James’ best race is the 400, and he also will compete in the 200. “He’s really blossoming. He’s made a big impact,” O’Boyle said.

Jim Geerlings--O’Boyle predicts Geerlings, a junior, will be in a close race in the 1,500.

Aaron Mascorro--A junior, Mascorro is the defending champion in the 5,000 and the 10,000, and has a good chance despite struggling with a knee injury.

The men’s tennis team, which was the four-time defending Big West champion before losing to Fresno State late last month, is awaiting word from the NCAA selection committee.

“I’m just waiting for a miracle,” said Coach Greg Patton, who believes Irvine’s chances are hurt by Fresno State’s relatively low ranking in the region, and a rule that no conference team can be chosen ahead of the conference champion.

Patton can take confidence in a committee that traditionally has looked kindly on Irvine. Two Irvine players, junior Mike Roberts and freshman Brett Hansen-Dent, are expected to be invited to the NCAA championships, and the doubles team of Hansen-Dent and senior Carsten Hoffman is hoping to be chosen.

Men’s basketball Coach Rod Baker might be close to snagging his first recruit. Zuri Williams of Oakland Bishop O’Dowd High School reportedly will sign a letter of intent to play with the Anteaters. Williams, a point guard, recently was named MVP of a Bay Area all-star game.

Irvine’s dinghy sailing team, the defending national champion, won its sixth consecutive Pacific Coast championship last weekend in San Diego. The victory qualified the team for the Intercollegiate Yacht Racing Assn. national championships June 2-4 in New Orleans.