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Day 2 Recap of the Distance Prelims 2005 NCAA Track and Field Championships:
LetsRun.com
June
9, 2005
*Day 2 Distance Quotes
*Recap of Day 2 10,000m Finals: Cheseret Outlasts Rupp, Slattery Comes Back on Bierbaum

Day 2 of the NCAA Track and Field Championships featured the men's and women's 10,000m finals. Sara Slattery battled back to overcome Caroline Bierbaum's big move with 2k to go in the women's 10,000m, and Robert Cheseret outlasted the front running tactics of Oregon freshman phenom Galen Rupp. Recaps of the 10,000m races are here.

Below are recaps of the men's and women's 800 and 1500m semifinals. The big news of the day was that 2002 NCAA 1500m champ Don Sage, and one of the 2005 favorites, John Rankin of UCLA both did not make the final in the 1500m.

The other highlight on day 2 was the 19.93 200m by Arkansas' Tyson Gay in the 200m semifinals.

Men's 800 (Top 3 and next 2 fastest advance to final. Please note the 200 and 600 splits are hand-times the 400 split if FAT)
Heat 1
The first heat was loaded with many of the big-time players expected to contend for the win in the final.  Included in that list was avowed front-runner Jonathon Johnson (the defending champ from Texas Tech) who did as expected, took it out fast, which in turn resulted in 5 of the 8 qualifying for the final from this heat.  Johnson had the lead at 200 in 23.8.  400 was reached in 59.87 with Johnson in the lead and Wil Fitts of Baylor and James Hatch of Arkansas in second and third.  Fitts and Hatch would pay the price for trying to run with Johnson early as they ended up next to last and last respectively, whereas Andrew Ellerton of Michigan who was last at 200 in 24.9 and near the back at 400 (51.7ish) would move up.

Auburn's Sheridan Kirk took the lead from Johnson at 550 and those to stayed 1-2 until the finish after passing 600 in 1:18.0. NCAA and USATF indoor champ Kevin Hicks of Florida A&M would move up in the final to grab the final auto qualifying spot.  Ellerton of Michigan and Etoot of Alabama would both advance as well on time.  

Heat 1
1 Sherridan Kirk SR Auburn 1:46.17Q 2 Jonathon Johnson SR Texas Tech 1:46.74Q 3 Kevin Hicks SO Florida A&M 1:47.02Q 4 Andrew Ellerton JR Michigan 1:47.30q 5 Peter Etoot JR Alabama 1:47.58q 6 Wil Fitts JR Baylor 1:48.95 7 Martell Munguia JR UCLA 1:49.45 8 James Hatch SR Arkansas 1:52.92

Quotes from heat 1
Kevin Hicks,
2005 USATF and NCAA indoor champion, 3rd in heat 1: "It was fast. I haven't had any fast races (outdoors) yet (his fastest time outdoors coming in despite his fabulous indoor season was only 1:48.81). That was pretty quick. I was expecting it (with Jonathon Johnson in the heat), but I still was in shock just due to the fact that I haven't had anyone to run with (so far) to push me yet."

Jonathon Johnson, NCAA champ last year, 1:44.77 (pr) to win the Olympics Trials in Sacramento on the same track as where the NCAAs are. 2nd in Heat #1: "I haven't run any fast times since Big 12s. It feels good to get back out here and run (fast) before a big crowd."

On the final: "I want to get the (NCAA) record (1:44.55 by Julius Achon in 1996). I definitely like running here (he won the Olympic Trials on this track and set his pr). It's a fast track, and the environment (is great). I definitely had a lot left. I need to work on my last 200 (to break the record)."

Heat 2
The guys in this heat must have seen the first head and realized they weren't getting in on time as they went out pretty slow.  Asafo-Agyei of USC had the lead at 200 in 25.4 followed by Mumba, and Milkevics. Asafo-Agyei still led at 400 in 53.46 and was followed by Milkevics. Asafo-Agyei would fade over the final lap, particularly after 600 which was reached in 1:20.7.  Coming down the home-stretch, five guys were in contention for the 3 qualifying spots and Milkevics got the win with Mims second.  Courtney Jaworski would move up late on the inside to grab the final qualifying spot for the final, edging Mumba.

Heat 2
1 Dmitrijs Milkevics SO Nebraska 1:48.02Q 2 Jeremy Mims SR Kansas 1:48.14Q 3 Courtney Jaworski JR Pennsylvania 1:48.28Q 4 Prince Mumba SO Oral Roberts 1:48.40 5 Ryan Brown SO Washington 1:48.66 6 Tetlo Emmen JR Santa Barbara 1:49.43 7 Raphael Asafo-Agyei SO Southern California 1:51.65 8 Ben Armel SR Santa Barbara 1:54.74    

Women's 800 (Top 3 and next 2 fastest to final. Please note the 200 and 600 splits are hand-times the 400 split if FAT.)
Heat 1
Gorham of Tennessee got the ball rolling, leading at 200 in 28.3 followed by Chambers. The pace then slowed a bit and at 400 Chambers had the lead but it was tightly packed.  Roman-DelValle took the lead at 500 before paying a big price for making such an early move as she would fade to last. Lemiesz took the lead right at 600 which she hit in 1:33.8, by 700 she had a large 10 meter lead and clearly looked to be the class of the field. She would cruise on in for a dominating victory, leaving 4 girls to battle it out for the final two qualifying spots.  Michigan Katie Erdmann would finish 2nd and Cal's Alysia Johnson pr'd for the second straight day to qualify in 3rd.

Quotes from heat winner Aneta Lemiesz of BYU (2:04.82). "I controlled the race. I noticed from the telebeam (jumbotron) that I was ahead. I wanted to save some energy for the final."

Heat  1                                                            
  1 Aneta Lemiesz             SR Brigham Young          2:04.82Q   
  2 Katie Erdman              SO Michigan               2:05.39Q   
  3 Alysia Johnson            FR California             2:05.49Q   
  4 Ashley Patten             JR Missouri               2:05.74    
  5 Althea Chambers           JR Texas Tech             2:05.76    
  6 Antoinette Gorham         SR Tennessee              2:06.06    
  7 Ada Anderson              JR Iowa State             2:07.21    
  8 Lysaira Roman-DelValle    SR Kansas State           2:07.45        

Heat 2
This heat was called back after the start and many in the crowd feared someone was going to be DQ'd for a false-start. However, in the end, the official ended up getting a huge round of applause as no one was DQ'd - he just had some words with UTEP's Muhammed. Once the race got under way, Arkansas' Aneita Denton had a slight lead at 200 (27.5) but it was tightly bunched as Vesey, Uljas, and Freeman were all nearby.  The top 3 of Denton, Vesey and Uljas clearly came to run as the pace was hot and those three would stay in the top 3 until the finish as Denton would lead wire to wire.  400 was reached in 59.38 and 600 in 1:30.7. Coming down the home-stretch, freshman Mable Kunihira of Oral Roberts would come up and challenge for third before fading at the very end and getting nipped by Akron's Beta Rudzinska for 4th.  It didn't matter though as the top 5 would deservedly advance on time.  If you run 2:04, you belong in the final of the NCAAs - at least in our minds anyway.

Quotes from heat winner Aneita Denton of Arkansas (2:04.01).  "I felt pretty in control.  I didn't feel like I was going too fast or going too slow.  My plan was for me to take it out. The final is going to be a really competitive race because you have a lot of really good athletes. I believe in God that I have a good chance to go there and win. I'm going to do my best."

Heat  2                                                            
  1 Aneita Denton             SR Arkansas               2:04.01Q   
  2 Maggie Vessey             SR Cal Poly-SLO           2:04.25Q   
  3 Egle Uljas                FR Nebraska               2:04.29Q   
  4 Beata Rudzinska           SR Akron                  2:04.38q   
  5 Mable Kunihira            FR Oral Roberts           2:04.45q   
  6 Erica Sigmont             SR Arkansas               2:05.95    
  7 Fatimoh Muhammed          JR Texas-El Paso          2:06.98    
  8 Ashley Freeman            SO Stanford               2:11.22        

Men's 1500 (Top 4 and next 4 advance)
It was clear very early into this puppy that the guys were going slow from the get-go. Our unofficial split of 32 for the first 200 confirmed it. It would only get slower over the next 200 as 300 was passed in 50.3 and 400 in 67.5 with Nebraska's Pet vanderWesthuizen in the lead and UCLA's Jon Rankin in 2nd. 700 was reached in 1:55ish and 800 in 2:11.1 at 800. The pace got going noticeably faster by 900 with vanderWesthuizen in the lead and Georgetown's Chis Lukezic in 2nd and Florida's Shane Stroup 3rd. Lukeciz had run much of the early part of the race way in the back. At the bell (2:52.2) vanderWesthuizen and Lukezic were 1-2 and then Lukezic took the lead on the turn before 1200 was reached in 3:05.8.  UCLA's Jon Rankin was in good position in 2nd on Lukezic's shoulder but 7 guys were still in contention for the 4 qualifying spots.  Lukezic looked great and got the win as he and Stroup never were in jeopardy.  Lukezic's last 800 was no slower than 1:51 and his last 400 was 54.  BYU's Bryan Lindsay finished third and FSU's Tom Lancashire (who got lots of practice running slow tactical races two weeks ago at the East Regional) edged Michigan's Mike Wood's by .01 for the final qualifying spot. UCLA's Jon Rankin, one of the favorites coming in, would struggle the last 100 and failed to advance.  

Heat  1                                                         
  1 Chris Lukezic             JR Georgetown             3:46.64Q
  2 Shane Stroup              JR Florida                3:46.79Q
  3 Bryan Lindsay             SR Brigham Young          3:47.27Q
  4 Tom Lancashire            SO Florida State          3:47.76Q
  5 Michael Woods             FR Michigan               3:47.77 
  6 Ryan Ponsonby             SR Texas                  3:47.89 
  7 Jon Rankin                SR UCLA                   3:48.51 
  8 Max Smith                 FR Providence             3:49.59 
  9 Pete vanderWesthuizen     SO Nebraska               3:51.29 
 10 Mark Walter               JR Air Force              3:51.93 
 11 Brent Wilberts            SR Drake                  3:52.15 
 12 Tipper O'Brien            SO Missouri               3:54.69 
 13 Kyle Miller               FR Texas                  3:58.02  

Heat 2-
Colorado's Stephen Pifer saw the first heat and realized that if he got the ball rolling there was a golden opportunity for 8 of the 13 to get into the final from this heat. Pifer was a little overanxious as he took it out in a blistering 42.9 and 57.65 for 400 with Arkansas' Adam Perkins in 2nd.  The pace stayed honest with 700 being hit in 1:42.6 and 800 in 1:57.43. At 800 it was Pifer, Perkins, American University's Sean Duffy and Idaho State's Paul Hoffman in the top 4 with 5th place almost two seconds back - 1:59.3 for 5th. The leading quartet would stay up front until the finish and all earn PRs (well that's what the announcer said anyways, we can't confirm that). Pifer would fade a little in the last 50 which wasn't a surprise given how much work he did in this heat.  They hit 1100 in 2:41.4 (Texas' Manzano was 5th at this point in 2:43.8) and Perkins had the lead at 1200 in 2:56.32.

Guys in the 5-8 positions were all well clear of 9th coming down the homestretch and all would advance on time.  Thank you Mr. Pifer.

The 3:39.42 for Duffy, was not only a PR, but it also was the fastest qualifying time ever in an NCAA meet according to the announcer.

Heat 2
1 Sean Duffy SR American 3:39.42Q 2 Paul Hoffman JR Idaho State 3:39.63Q 3 Adam Perkins SO Arkansas 3:39.82Q 4 Stephen Pifer SO Colorado 3:40.51Q 5 Leonel Manzano FR Texas 3:41.27q 6 Sean Jefferson JR Indiana 3:41.40q 7 Josh Spiker SR Wisconsin 3:41.41q 8 Russell Brown FR Stanford 3:41.96q 9 Scott Overall SO Butler 3:43.55 10 Liam Reale SR Providence 3:47.02 11 Don Sage SR Stanford 3:49.84 12 Tomasz Babiskiewicz JR Southern California 3:51.65 13 Rondell Ruff JR Michigan 3:53.49

Men's 1500m Quotes
Chris Lukezic,
winner of heat 1 in 3:46 after opening in 2:11 (1:51 final 800). One of the pre-race favorites Jon Rankin faded the final 100m and did not advance.

On his race, "That was the best I felt in a long time, warming up and stuff. I'm ready to run. I came here to try and win.  It's going to be a good final."

Lukezic was surprised to find out Rankin did not make the final.

On his season so far, "It's been a quite season, I haven't raced much. It (not racing a lot) was kind of forced (upon me) as indoors as I had a hiccup with my Achilles. You really need to focus on your training if you're going to have a good June and July. I think things are really together.

Jon Rankin, who has had a tremendous outdoor season, doubling in the 800 and 1500 at both Regionals and Pac 10s, went with Lukezic on the third lap, but faded the final 100m and did not make the final.

Rankin on not making the final: "I'm not upset. I'm in shock. When I called on the reserves there was nothing there. It was unbelievable. I just started tieing up with 200m to go.  I tried to hold on as good as I could ,but a lot of the other guys finished well. When your sitting there like a sitting duck, some of the guys have a lot of motivation.  I hope and pray I get a second chance (in the final, as the interview was conducted prior to heat #2). I'm pretty surprised."

On deciding not to double at NCAAs: "It was a team decision."

On how he felt coming into the race: "I haven't felt more prepared for any competition since I've been at UCLA. That's why I'm so surprised. I felt like everything was in place, mentally, physically, emotionally. I've never felt more ready for anything so I'm disappointed (in his finish)."  

Ranking did not seem to believe the fast third lap did him in: "Everyone was going out hard (on that lap) so I can't say it was that particular lap. Maybe I responded too quickly to that move (by Lukezic). A lap like that definitely does take away from your finish."

On his post-race thoughts: "I had a great senior year, seriously regardless if I make it to the next round, I can't complain", said Rankin who was clearly in shock.

Don Sage, NCAA champ at 1500 at 2002, and 3rd in 2004, who finished 11th in his heat in 3:49.84 and did not advance. Sage's talks about allergies below and his eyes were clearly red and swollen, either from the allergies or a few tears at his NCAA career ending on a sad note:

On what happened to him in the race, "I knew this was going to happen before the race. I hate to sound like a winy person who makes excuses, but I actually had really bad allergies (this week). (Perhaps) I might be sick (too) but I think it's juts the allergies. I just didn't feel like myself out there. I was (still) prepared to run at 100% of what I had today. I feel like I did that. With 300 to go I was still in the hunt, I just didn't have a close. I hate to go out like this. I've been fortunate to have a great career and have some great moments with my teammates. I wish I could have scored more points for the team here...(I mean) score points for the team."

Women's 1500 (Top 4 and next 4 advance)
Heat 1
BYU's Heidi Magill and Duke's Shannon Rowbury led early on as 400 was reached in 70.03.  At 800, Indiana's Lara Overton had the lead in 2:22.20. Magill and Missouri's Amanda Bales were in first and second with 600 to go. At 1100 (3:13.4), it was Magill, Bales, and UNC's Erin Donohue 1-2-3. After 1200 was reached in 3:30.3, Donohue took the lead by moving up on the inside with about 250 to go. She'd cruise in for the victory and former NCAA indoor mile champ Johanna Nilsson who had moved up to 2nd with 300 to go would finish 2nd. The top 4 auto qualifiers were all clear of 5th coming down the homestretch.  Duke's Rowbury edged Bales for 5th by .01 which later turned out to be a big deal as Rowbury would get in on time while Bales would not.


Quotes from Erin Donohue,
winner of Heat 1 (4:17.53).
"I was just going along with the race for a while and got mixed up in the back. On the last lap, I saw an opportunity to pull in the lead and just took it."

Her thoughts on the final "It's going to be a great race. About 7 girls ran 4:15 (in the 2nd) there (editor's note 7 ran under 4:16.4). It's going to be real competitive and come down to the last 300 or 400m at the end."

On what she thanks of her chancing of getting her first NCAA individual title. "I've been working really hard the past 4 years. I'm a senior this year. I just have a lot of experience at the NCAA meet, and of all the years, I feel this is my best shot to win a title"

Heat  1                                                         
  1 Erin Donohue              SR North Carolina         4:17.53Q
  2 Johanna Nilsson           JR Northern Arizona       4:17.90Q
  3 Amy Lia                   SO Washington             4:18.19Q
  4 Heidi Magill              FR Brigham Young          4:18.36Q
  5 Shannon Rowbury           JR Duke                   4:18.93q
  6 Amanda Bales              JR Missouri               4:18.94 
  7 Nicole Edwards            FR Michigan               4:19.29 
  8 Ava Hutchinson            SO Butler                 4:20.27 
  9 Deirdre Byrne             SR Providence             4:20.69 
 10 Dacia Barr                FR Arkansas               4:25.65 
 11 Lara Overton              JR Indiana                4:26.16 
 12 Lindsey Egerdahl          SR Washington             4:26.42 
 13 Jemissa Hess              SO High Point             4:27.45 
 14 Jennie Castle             SR Akron                  4:33.69  
Heat 2
The second heat was fast from the gun.  Michigan's Lindsey Gallo led for most of the opening 800 and hit intermediate splits of 68.64 for 400 and 1:59.8 for 700 and 2:17.47 for 800. At 800 it was Galllo, Shadle, Muncan and Eldridge. With a lap to go (3:08.2) it was Shale, Lambie and Gallo but the order up front was pretty much irrelevant as the top 8 were all clear of 9th and it looked like all 8 would get in on time as they were about 5 seconds ahead of the first heat.  In the last 200, the top 5 all separated themselves the only question at this point was would a fading Rachel Ellison of Arizona State, who was in 8th, end up running fast enough to get the final time qualifying spot.  She died a bit too much and did not advance.
Heat  2                                                         
  1 Marina Muncan             JR Villanova              4:15.21Q
  2 Anne Shadle               SR Nebraska               4:15.37Q
  3 Lindsey Gallo             SR Michigan               4:15.58Q
  4 Iryna Vashchuk            SR Southern California    4:15.61Q
  5 Arianna Lambie            SO Stanford               4:15.89q
  6 Maggie Infeld             FR Georgetown             4:16.26q
  7 Kerry Meagher             SR Notre Dame             4:16.37q
  8 Rachel Ellison            JR Arizona State          4:19.62 
  9 Jessica Eldridge          SO Oklahoma               4:19.94 
 10 Mary Kamau                JR Idaho                  4:22.22 
 11 Brionne Yosten            JR Texas Tech             4:22.81 
 12 Catherine Odell           SO Oklahoma               4:26.29 
 13 Tanice Barnett            SR Wyoming                4:34.85  


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