SPRINGFIELD — Friday was supposed to be nothing more than a rust-buster for Maddy Elmore.
The Oregon senior had other plans.
In her first competitive outing in more than six months, Elmore took an early lead and was never challenged as she won the women’s 6,000-meter race during the Bill Dellinger Invitational cross country meet at Pine Ridge Golf Club.
Her finish helped the No. 12 Ducks score 53 points to come in second place in the team standings behind No. 6 Utah (25), which had five runners finish in the top nine.
The No. 22 Oregon men also placed second in their 8,000-meter race, with senior Elliott Cook leading the way with an 11th-place finish in what was his first race of the season as well.
But it was Elmore who stole the show, as the South Eugene High School alum crossed in 19 minutes, 40.2 seconds on the 3.7-mile course, well ahead of runner-up Erin Vringer of Utah, who finished in 19:49.8.
Last spring, six weeks after breaking the Oregon school record in the outdoor 5,000 when she ran 15:15.79, Elmore had her track and field season shut down right before the start of postseason competition due to a calf injury.