ROSEBURG, Ore. – An unfortunate timing error hurt the chances of Oregon Tech athletes in the decathlon on Day 1 of the Riverhawk Multi-Event Meet at Umpqua Community College.
 
Both Eli Stevens and Bryson Teal were among the six athletes competing – with Stevens running away with the competition heading into the 400-meters, the final event of the first day.
 
Stevens cruised to a win in the race, however, the automatic timing system did not fire – and though the senior had a hand-time of 49.70 seconds – the mark is not official. Meet officials have decided to re-race the 400-meters on Tuesday morning, prior to the sixth scheduled event (110-meter hurdles) – putting every athlete in a tough position.
 
"It is athletics – missed calls happen in every sport," said OIT head coach Mike Anderson. "Umpires miss calls, traveling calls aren't made, pass interference is and isn't called. This truly is unfortunate for not only Eli and Bryson, but the other competitors – as the decathlon isn't an event where you can just re-run a race."
 
Stevens was in position to match his Day 1 personal best score – posting 2,686 points through four events. The senior won the first three events – recording a time of 11.29 seconds in the 100-meters, posting a 6.38 meter (20 feet, 11 ¾ inches) long jump, throwing the shot put 11.76 meters (38-7) and clearing 1.80 meters (5-10 ¾) in the high jump.
 
Teal also had a good day – running a 12.02 100-meters, while recording quality marks in the long jump (5.17 / 16-11 ½), shot put (8.74 / 28-8 ¼) and high jump (1.68 / 5-6) – ending the day with 2,000 points.