MONROE, La. — After making a career of broken records and dramatic finishes, Southwestern sophomore Chase Oates saved his most theatric finish for final race in a Spartan uniform.
Oates finished 11th in the men’s 3,000 meter steeplechase May 17 at the NJCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships on the campus of University of Louisiana Monroe, highlighting a weekend of personal records for the two participating Spartans.
Running out of the slow heat, Oates’ mission was clear — win the first heat and put pressure on the fast heat to beat his time. The sophomore from Columbia Heights, Minnesota, did just that even as he battled adversity within the first 100 meters of the race.
Because the water pit on the ULM track is located on the outside of the track, the start line for the race was on the homestretch, leaving athletes with just 100 meters to the first barrier of the race. In a tight pack to that first barrier, an athlete stepped on the back of Oates’ right shoe and the shoe got ripped off of his foot. Oates left the shoe on the side of the track and continued with his race, running the entire race with just one shoe.
That didn’t slow Oates down, though. He still managed to execute his race plan to the number and took the lead with 1 kilometer to go, eventually pulling away from the rest of the field in the first heat to post a 10-second win and a new 10-second PR to beat his own school record. Oates crossed the finish line in 9:25.36, setting the standard for the fast heat to beat. That time held on for 11th overall, just missing out on an All-American spot in the top eight.
“I give Chase a lot of credit for making the tough decision to just forget about his shoe and continue with the race,” said Scott Vicker, director of cross country/track and field. “That’s not something we prepare for because it happens so infrequently, but he made the right decision in that situation. His determination to still execute his race plan to perfection and run the best race of his career really showed through. His determination Friday night gained him a lot of fans.”
Vicker said Oates sustained some blisters on his right foot after running two miles and jumping barriers without a shoe, but was otherwise uninjured.
Eight school records
It leaves Oates with a fantastic story about how he finished his sterling Spartan career. Oates ends his time as a Spartan as the most decorated distance runner in program history with two individual regional championships and eight individual school records.
“Chase’s progression from high school senior to Southwestern graduate has been incredible to watch,” Vicker said. “He has been a true one-of-one, and I’m thankful I had the opportunity to coach him during his journey. I’m not sure even Chase could have ever dreamed his career would go as well as it did. He has left SWCC cross country and track and field in a better place than it was before he arrived.”
19th in javelin
Freshman Jedd Weinkoetz capped off the perfect weekend for SWCC with a 19th-place finish in the men’s javelin throw. The former AC/GC prep who had never thrown the javelin before coming to SWCC came in seeded 23rd out of 24 in the competition and improved on his ranking.
Weinkoetz was consistent on his first two throws of the competition, throwing 45.56 meters on his first throw for his second-best mark ever, and then 44.87 on his second attempt for his third-best mark ever. On his final throw of the competition, Weinkoetz uncorked a nearly 2-meter PR throw of 47.62 meters (156 feet, 3 inches).
“This was by far the best series of throws Jedd has had all season,” Vicker said. “The consistency on the first two throws was great, and gave him an opportunity to really go for it on his final throw. I’m so happy for Jedd to end his first year of throwing at the national championships, and end it with an almost 2-meter PR. As great of a throw as it was, he was still disappointed with it. So I know he will come back hungry next year to get back to nationals and to make finals.”
Weinkoetz finishes his first year of throwing ranked second on the program’s all-time performance list in the javelin, trailing only school record holder Conrad Schroeder’s mark of 48.51 meters.