The Associated Press | June 12, 2014 Cheserek becomes first freshman to win 10K since '79 Edward Cheserek had a personal-best 28 minutes, 30.18 seconds Share EUGENE, Ore. -- Oregon freshman Edward Cheserek surged on the final lap to win the 10,000 meters at the NCAA championships on Wednesday night. Cheserek won in a personal-best 28 minutes, 30.18 seconds, smoking the field with a 53.31-second final lap. He is the first freshman to win the event since UTEP's Suleiman Nyambui in 1979. Cheserek has not lost an NCAA title race, winning the cross country title in November and the 3,000 and 5,000 at the indoor championships. Oklahoma State senior Shadrack Kipchirchir was second and Wisconsin senior Mohammed Ahmed finished third in the event, the highlight of the opening day of the championships at Oregon's Hayward Field. DI TRACK & FIELD CHAMPIONSHIPS Women: Texas A&M wins fourth title since '09 Highlights Men: Oregon wins first championship since '84 Highlights Reger: BGSU's Pleger adapts to hammer throw Reger: Baylor's Vidosola returns from twice-torn ACL Lalang hangs on to repeat as 5K champ Recap Reger: Hall's sacrifice pays off for Texas Reger: Ahmed thrives after adapting to Wisconsin Wisconsin's Hanson relies on family to build confidence Bates becomes Boise State's first women's champion Reger: Iuel takes winding road to Southern California Reger: Arkansas' Irwin looks to move past injured junior year Roesler looks to seal legacy at Oregon Reger: Kentucky's Dykstra a natural at javelin Cehserek breaks freshman drought on Day 1 Reger: UGa.'s Tepe finds calling with Marines Reger: FSU's Locke turns sadness into determination Reger: Texas A&M's Brown ‘ready and excited’ Live Scoring Preliminary Results Cheserek also will run the 5,000 on Friday night. He will face Arizona senior Lawi Lalang, who was the defending champion in the 10K but is running the 1,500 and 5,000 this year. Lalang has eight NCAA titles. The Ducks entered the meet ranked No. 1 in the nation by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. Oregon has won eight consecutive Pac-12 titles and claimed the NCAA indoor title, but the team hasn't won an outdoor championship since 1984. Second-ranked Florida and third-ranked Texas A&M were the co-champions last year, when the outdoor championships also were held at Hayward Field. On the women's side, Texas is ranked No. 1 by the USTFCCCA, followed by Texas A&M. The third-ranked Ducks, coming off their sixth Pac-12 title in a row, have not won an outdoor team title since 1985. Kansas is the defending champion. Most of the events Wednesday were semifinals. Oregon's women failed to advance in the 400 relay because of a dropped baton, which could hurt the Ducks' chances for a team title. Princeton sophomore Julia Ratcliffe won the hammer with a throw of 219 feet, 5 inches, becoming the school's first woman to win an NCAA title. Oregon's Jenna Prandini won the long jump with a leap of 21-6, becoming the first Duck to win a title in the event. Texas junior Ryan Crouser won the shot put at 69-3 1/2 for his third conseutive title in the event, Florida junior Fawn Miller took the javelin at 190-8, and Mississippi junior Sam Kendricks won the pole vault at 18-8 1/4. College basketball teams with the most WNBA 1st-round draft picks Connecticut leads all women's college basketball programs with 25 players taken in the first round of the WNBA draft. READ MORE 1 fun-to-watch player from every Sweet 16 team, ranked Before the 2021 NCAA tournament continues, NCAA.com correspondent Andy Katz ranked his favorite players on each team from this year's Sweet 16 field during the March 23 episode of the March Madness 365 podcast. READ MORE The NCAA tournament bracket picks to make if you feel like throwing caution to the wind Here's how to fill out your NCAA bracket if you're feeling bold and want to get an edge based on the trends we're seeing in picks so far. READ MORE