USC Gunning for the Trifecta

Paul Hackett did it. Henry Bibby did it. Chris Gobrecht did it.

Now USC track Coach Ron Allice is looking to add his name to the list of UCLA streak-busters this academic year.

The Bruin men have won the last 21 dual meets in a series that dates to 1934. But Allice may have his strongest men’s team in his six years as coach and it gives him reason to feel confident when the squads meet today at UCLA’s Drake Stadium.

“I know that we’re favored to win, but the favorite in the Kentucky Derby the last 20 years has lost,” said Allice, whose team is ranked fourth in the Trackwire and U.S. Track Coaches Assn. national rankings. “I feel good, but you have to be lucky as well.”

The Trojans ended losing streaks of eight games in football, 10 in men’s basketball and five in women’s basketball in 1999-2000, and ending two decades of defeat today is one of many story lines in the meet. The UCLA women have also dominated, winning the last seven dual meets. The Bruin women won the NCAA indoor title in March and are coming off a win last week at the California/Nevada Championships in Berkeley.

Senior Seilala Sua may be the best in a long line of accomplished throwers at UCLA. A world-class discus thrower, Sua has won three consecutive NCAA titles and added a win in the shotput to become the fourth woman to pull off the double.

She has the top discus mark this season (208 feet 5 inches) and threw 209-1 in finishing sixth at the 1999 world championships, the highest placing ever for an American woman.

“She’s at the very top with the likes of [John] Godina and [John] Brenner,” said UCLA men’s Coach Art Venegas, who also tutors Sua. “She is the ultimate competitor. She not only does what she does in practice, but she turns it up in big meets.”

Bruin pole vaulter Tracy O’Hara has been exceptional this season. The sophomore has set NCAA marks in indoor and outdoor competition.

At the U.S. Track Coaches Assn. meet two weeks ago in Austin, Texas, O’Hara cleared 14-7 1/4. A year ago, she won the dual meet at 12-11 3/4.

“It’s been a bit of a surprise to me,” O’Hara said of her recent success. “I’ve worked a lot on my running and I’ve worked on my technique. I’ve gotten a lot stronger and I can tell the difference.”

USC is also a national title contender with Angela Williams, the defending NCAA 100-meter outdoor champion. Williams, a candidate for the U.S. Olympic team, has run sparingly this season but is expected to run the 100, 200 and 4x100 relay today.

“I pretty much started my season at the Mt. SAC meet,” said the sophomore, who has been bothered by a sore left hamstring. “I want to use this meet to fine tune some things. I’ve been doing a lot of strength work, running some 400s in practice so that it will carry me for a longer period of time.”

Sophomore Kinshasa Davis is another top Trojan sprinter, having run the fastest collegiate 200-meter time in the country (22.69) at Mt. SAC.

“I haven’t had any injuries,” she said. “I feel great at every practice and I’m just ready to go out and run.”

The USC men may have an advantage. Many of last year’s key members who lost by one point to UCLA are back.

Defending Pacific 10 100-meter champion Sultan McCullough and freshman Darrell Rideaux, who helped end the Bruins’ eight-game winning streak in football, give the Trojans a potent 1-2 combination in the sprints. They will team with Marcell Allmond and Miguel Fletcher or Andre Ammons on the 400 relay.

Fletcher and Ammons are in that event because freshman Kareem Kelly was declared academically ineligible for the track season.

The Trojans also figure to score big in the field events. Denis Kholev is among the nation’s top vaulters and has cleared 18-3. Norbert Horvath, Szabolcs Maroti and Lucais MacKay lead a strong contingent in the hammer throw.

Basketball player Jeff Trepagnier is also expected to compete in the high jump. Last year, he cleared 7 feet 1/2 inch in only his second meet.

“There could be some great performances on Saturday,” Allice said. “The track is new and it’s a little soft. I like the wide turns. They’re more in tune with the tracks in Europe.”

The UCLA men will be led by senior Jess Strutzel. Strutzel won the 800 at the NCAA indoor and is coming off a win at the U.S. Track Coaches Assn. meet last month.

(BEGIN TEXT OF INFOBOX / INFOGRAPHIC)

USC-UCLA Dual Meet

* Where: UCLA’s Drake Stadium.

* When: Today, 9 a.m. (hammer throw), 11 a.m. (field events), 1 p.m. (running events).

* Series records: USC men lead, 38-28; UCLA women lead, 13-3.

Tickets: $6 adults, $4 children 16 and under. Can be purchased at Drake Stadium.

* Last year: at Cromwell Field, UCLA men won, 82-81; UCLA women won, 91-63.

* Top participants: USC--Angela Williams (100, 200, 4x100 relay), Kinshasa Davis (200, 4x100 relay), Sultan McCullough (100, 4x100 relay), Norbert Horvath (hammer), Denis Kholev (pole vault), Brigita Langerholc (800), Natasha Danvers (hurdles). UCLA--Seilala Sua (discus, shotput, hammer), Jess Strutzel (800), Christina Tolson (shotput), Tracy O’Hara (pole vault), Keyon Soley (long jump).