Day 2 NCAAs: 1,500 And Men's Steeplechase Prelims
By LetsRun.com with Tom Davis in Des Moines
June 7, 2012
Men's 1,500m Prelims: Kyle Merber Fails To Make The Final As German Fernandez Shines
Columbia's Kyle Merber came in as the collegiate leader (and American collegiate record holder depending on who you ask) at 3:35.59, but failed to make the final as he was way back in 10th in his heat. German Fernandez fans had reason to celebrate, however, as he looked more like his old self, running 3:40.19 (only 1.19 off his 3:39.0 PR). Fernandez is the guy who won the NCAA 1,500m title as a true freshman, but hasn't really done much since or this year as his best 1,500 was only 3:43.
Heat 1: Fernandez took the lead right from the gun and would hold it until the last lap. They were through 400 meters in 58.8 and 800 in 1:59.1. Going into the last lap everyone was still in it and on the final straight 8 still had a chance to qualify. The top 7 would finish almost dead even as they were only separated by .54 seconds. But 3,000m indoor American collegiate record holder Ryan Hill closed the fastest, running his last 400 in 55.65 and winnning the heat in 3:39.84 as Miles Batty, Chris O'Hare, and Fernandez took spots 2-5. Merber was surprisingly never really in contention as he briefly made a move into third place with about 600 to go and then faded way back over the last lap, finishing in 3:48.03 with a 64.31 last lap. All the other expected favorites advanced.
In a post-race interview for flotrack, Merber kept things in perspective. He said that since he ran 3:35 everyone assumed everything had been going for amazingly for him but in reality he'd been having a lot of hiccups this year - more so than in an normal year when he's healthy. But considering he missed all of last year with a foot injury after stepping on some glass, he can't complain too much as this year was a huge step in the right direction.
Place | Athlete Name | Yr | Affiliation | Time | Qual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Ryan Hill | JR | North Carolina St. | 3:39.84 | Q |
2 | Andrew Bayer | JR | Indiana | 3:39.95 | Q |
3 | Miles Batty | SR | BYU | 3:40.01 | Q |
4 | Chris O'Hare | JR | Tulsa | 3:40.14 | Q |
5 | German Fernandez | JR | Oklahoma State | 3:40.19 | Q |
6 | Michael Hammond | JR | Virginia Tech | 3:40.27 | q |
7 | Duncan Phillips | SR | Arkansas | 3:40.38 | q |
8 | Zach Dahleen | JR | Southern Illinois | 3:41.18 | |
9 | Johnathan Shawel | SR | Notre Dame | 3:47.36 | |
10 | Kyle Merber | SR | Columbia | 3:48.03 | |
11 | Josh Munsch | SO | Kansas | 3:48.34 | |
12 | Erik Berg | JR | Brown | 3:52.72 |
Heat 2: The second heat was run much slower than heat 1 as the top 7 from the first heat ran faster than would the winner of heat 2. Wisconsin's Rob Finnerty led the field through the first lap in 59.5 with indoor 3,000 and 5,000 champion Lawi Lalang running comfortably right on Finnerty's shoulder. With 2 laps to go, Lalang moved to the lead as the pack went through 800 in 2:01.1. He would hold the lead until 200 to go when Finnerty took over and the field started to kick. The top returner from last year, Erik van Ingen, closed in a 55.51 to win the heat in 3:42.58 as Finnerty took second and Lalang 3rd. Indoor mile runner-up Rich Peters moved from the back of the field up to grab 4th and Villanova's Sam McEntee (who has the 3rd-fastest time in the NCAA this year at 3:36.81) barely grabbed the last spot in the final by finishing only .10 ahead of 6th place. The top 6 places were separated by only .26 seconds. Last year's NCAA 8th placer Patrick Casey, who transferred from Montana State to Oklahoma this year, failed to match last year's result and qualify, finishing in 10th.
Place | Athlete Name | Yr | Affiliation | Time | Qual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Erik van Ingen | SR | Binghamton | 3:42.57 | Q |
2 | Rob Finnerty | JR | Wisconsin | 3:42.58 | Q |
3 | Lawi Lalang | SO | Arizona | 3:42.61 | Q |
4 | Rich Peters | SO | Boston U. | 3:42.69 | Q |
5 | Sam McEntee | SO | Villanova | 3:42.73 | Q |
6 | Trevor Van Ackeren | SR | Princeton | 3:42.83 | |
7 | Nick Hutton | JR | Minnesota | 3:43.16 | |
8 | Patrick McGregor | JR | Texas | 3:43.26 | |
9 | Brett Johnson | JR | Virginia | 3:44.63 | |
10 | Patrick Casey | JR | Oklahoma | 3:45.59 | |
11 | Eric Harasyn | SR | Oklahoma | 3:45.60 | |
12 | Patrick Todd | JR | Virginia | 3:50.58 |
Women's 1,500m Prelims: Evenly Matched Heats See All The Favorites Advance
There were no surprises in the women's 1,500 prelims as all the favorites made it through. Although there was a close call for Notre Dame's Rebecca Tracy, whom we predicted to finish 3rd overall after she beat NCAA indoor 3,000 champ Emily Infeld at Big East Champs. She was the last one into the final, getting in on time less than two tenths of a second ahead of a runner in her heat and another in heat 2. Although not favorites this year, Kristen Gillespie, Hannah Brooks and Brittany Sheffey were an example of the depth of competition at the top level in the NCAA as they finished 6th, 11th, and 12th in last year's 1,500 final, but all failed to advance today.
Heat 1: Florida State's Amanda Winslow took the early lead and took the field through 400 in 67.2 and 800 in 2:18.2. Behind her the rest of the pack was bunched up with many runners being forced wide into outside lanes. Around halfway, indoor mile champ Lucy Van Dalen moved into 3rd and with 200 left surged to the front and kicked home to win the heat in 4:11.69 with a 63.2 last lap. Behind her, Infield looked comfortable finishing a close second as Greta Feldman, Cory McGee and Winslow rounding out the top 5 and Tracy just grabbing 6th over Michigan's Jillian Smith.
Place | Athlete Name | Yr | Affiliation | Time | Qual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Lucy Van Dalen | SR | Stony Brook | 4:11.69 | Q |
2 | Emily Infeld | JR | Georgetown | 4:11.73 | Q |
3 | Greta Feldman | JR | Princeton | 4:12.73 | Q |
4 | Cory McGee | SO | Florida | 4:12.93 | Q |
5 | Amanda Winslow | JR | Florida State | 4:13.08 | Q |
6 | Rebecca Tracy | JR | Notre Dame | 4:13.48 | q |
7 | Jillian Smith | SO | Michigan | 4:13.59 | |
8 | Hannah Brooks | SR | Florida State | 4:14.01 | |
9 | Sophie Curl | SO | San Francisco | 4:18.34 | |
10 | Brittany Sheffey | SR | Tennessee | 4:18.63 | |
11 | Nicole Bowler | SR | San Francisco | 4:26.98 | |
DNF | Kristen Gillespie | SR | Arkansas |
Heat 2: This heat included a couple hometown favorites in Washington's Katie Flood and Nebraska's Ashley Miller. Both won multiple state titles at Drake Stadium while in high school and there presence really got the crowd excited. Laura Roxburg of Missouri took the early lead, bringing a tightly bunched field through 400 in 69.0 with Miller, Jordan Hasay and Flood sitting right behind. After going through 800 in 2:17.3, Hasay moved to the lead and at the bell, it was her and Miller running in front with most of the field still in contention. The top finishers closed hard over the last 200 and #1 ranked Natalja Piliusina won in 4:12.55 with a 64.55 last lap as Flood was second, Hasay 3rd, Oregon's Becca Friday 4th, and Virginia's Morgane Gay 5th. Miller faded back to 8th.
Place | Athlete Name | Yr | Affiliation | Time | Qual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Natalja Piliusina | SO | Oklahoma State | 4:12.55 | Q |
2 | Katie Flood | SO | Washington | 4:12.65 | Q |
3 | Jordan Hasay | JR | Oregon | 4:12.68 | Q |
4 | Becca Friday | JR | Oregon | 4:13.06 | Q |
5 | Morgane Gay | JR | Virginia | 4:13.20 | Q |
6 | Violah Lagat | SR | Florida State | 4:13.30 | q |
7 | Amanda Mergaert | JR | Utah | 4:13.63 | |
8 | Ashley Miller | SR | Nebraska | 4:14.12 | |
9 | Rachel Schneider | JR | Georgetown | 4:16.15 | |
10 | Laura Roxberg | JR | Missouri | 4:23.14 | |
11 | Laura Carlyle | SR | Oregon State | 4:27.93 | |
12 | Marielle Hall | SO | Texas | 4:34.15 |
Men's Steeplechase: Cabral Looks Effortless As All The Top Guys Advance
These prelims had zero surprises, as anyone who was in the top 14 in last year's final or ranked in the top 10 this year advanced. American collegiate record holder (#2 all-time) Donn Cabral showed why he is the outright favorite as he posted the fastest time in a comfortable-looking 8:38.12. His biggest opposition in Saturday's final will most likely be himself as he admitted post-race that he wasn't on top of his game mentally. He actually almost missed the race as he didn't check in on time and then he came close to choking on the last water jump. "My last two hurdles were horrible. On the last water jump I kept thinking, 'What if I clip it?' Thinking like that made me clip it. I stutter-stepped the last hurdle. I have to clean my act up for the final."
Heat 1: Most of the
race was lead by Henry Lelei of Texas A&M, as the field remained all
together through after halfway. With a lap to go, 3rd-ranked Corey
Lesle went to the lead and the top 5 separated themselves from the pack. After forming
a large gap, they coasted in the final straightaway and Lesle more or less let
Tom Wade and Anthony Rotich pass him in the final meters. Lelei won the heat
with 8:39.09, which was almost a PR as his best is 8:38.90. Lelei actually
looked extremely good comfortable here and we think he has a lot more left in
the tank. His only problem is his barrier form wasn't very good at all.
Place | Athlete Name | Yr | Affiliation | Time | Qual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Henry Lelei | JR | Texas A&M | 8:39.09 | Q |
2 | Tom Wade | SR | Lamar | 8:40.50 | Q |
3 | Anthony Rotich | FR | UTEP | 8:41.14 | Q |
4 | Cory Leslie | SR | Ohio State | 8:41.45 | Q |
5 | Andrew Poore | SR | Indiana | 8:42.50 | Q |
6 | Fabian Clarkson | FR | Oklahoma State | 8:45.96 | |
7 | Ben Torotich | SO | Eastern Kentucky | 8:48.17 | |
8 | Tomas Cotter | JR | Wichita State | 8:49.85 | |
9 | Mike Hardy | SO | Weber State | 8:50.23 | |
10 | Jacob Smith | JR | High Point | 8:53.00 | |
11 | Luis Orta | JR | Kentucky | 9:08.78 | |
12 | Matt Cleaver | SR | Georgia | 9:16.30 |
Heat 2: Wanting to stay out of trouble, Cabral took the lead early and stayed there for a large portion of the race. Colorado's Aric VanHalen led the middle laps of the race, with Michigan's Craig Forys and Stanford's Ben Johnson pushing on his shoulder and at times taking the lead. At the bell, it was Forys leading a huge pack with 9 still in contention. With 200 left, Cabral surged to the lead and won comfortably over Forys in second with a 63.61 last lap. The pack strung out a lot over the last 300 meters, but everyone in contact at the bell would make the final as all 4 time qualifiers came from this heat.
Place | Athlete Name | Yr | Affiliation | Time | Qual |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Donn Cabral | SR | Princeton | 8:38.12 | Q |
2 | Craig Forys | SR | Michigan | 8:39.53 | Q |
3 | Carl Stones | SR | Tulsa | 8:39.70 | Q |
4 | Travis Mahoney | SR | Temple | 8:40.28 | Q |
5 | Jim Walmsley | SR | Air Force | 8:41.05 | Q |
6 | Benjamin Johnson | SR | Stanford | 8:41.61 | q |
7 | Adrien Dannemiller | SR | Indiana | 8:42.17 | q |
8 | Aric VanHalen | JR | Colorado | 8:42.55 | q |
9 | De'Sean Turner | SR | Indiana | 8:44.99 | q |
10 | Adam Green | SR | Ohio State | 9:00.46 | |
11 | Joe Wade | SR | Lamar | 9:08.03 | |
12 | Kyle Engnell | SR | Illinois | 9:17.73 |
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