Portland Track Festival: Galen Rupp Gives The Hometown Fans What They Came to See, Kate Grace Keeps Running Well, High School Girls Amaze in 1500

by LetsRun.com
June 12, 2016

PORTLAND, Ore. — Clayton Murphy made the biggest news at Sunday’s Portland Track Festival, winning the 1500 in 3:36.23, missing the Olympic standard by .03, and announcing he had turned professional. That gets its own recap here. We recap the rest of the meet below with results from the “A” races. The highlights were Galen Rupp returning to action with a win and three high school girls running very fast.

Men’s 5000m: Galen Rupp Gives the Hometown Fans What They Wanted

The athlete the fans most wanted to see was hometown hero Galen Rupp, as he returned to outdoor track in fine fashion, blitzing the 5000m field with a 56-point final lap to win in 13.20.69 to bring the meet to a close after the fans lined the finish straight of a track. It was Rupp’s first track race of the outdoor season and only his second race since he won the Olympic Marathon Trials in his marathon debut in February.

Afterwards Rupp said he got what he wanted out of the meet. He may race once more before the Olympic Trials and he did not rule out attempting the 5,000/10,000m double at the Trials. The marathon is very much on Rupp’s mind as he said he enjoys training for the marathon and wants to do well at both the 10,000 and marathon in Rio. Talking about today’s race and splitting his training between the marathon and track, Rupp said:

“A lot of it is just getting back into racing. The marathon is obviously a whole different animal. So I just need to get my track legs back underneath me. You can work out all you want, but at some point you just have to get back into racing again. That’s what this was all about and I was real happy with it. … I’m kind of walking a fine line. I can’t take too many weeks where I’m resting too much and lose that volume for the marathon. I see both ends running 200s hard and doing really long runs hard. … [My focus is on] both. I run to win, so I’m going to be in there for it for both of them.”

As for the race itself, Cristian Soratos rabbited for some of it and the first 1600 was 4:16.9 and 3200m 8:31.1. Canada’s Luc Bruchet took the lead with 800m to go, but Rupp was in the lead by the bell and extended that lead on the final lap as Tsegay Tuemay came up to finish 2nd and Bruchet just dipped under 13:35 in 3rd.

Article continues below player.

Final 4 laps (very rough): 65.2, 66.0, 61.8, 56.7

Galen Rupp poses with Paul Banta's family Galen Rupp poses with Paul Banta’s family
Section  1                                                         
  1 Rupp, Galen                  Nike Oregon Project   13:20.69U   
  2 Tuemay, Tsegay               Posso Sports          13:23.04U   
  3 Bruchet, Luc                 Asics Canada          13:24.10U   
  4 Geay, Gabriel                Posso Sports          13:25.66U   
  5 Simbassa, Abbabiya           Team Usa Minnesota    13:29.51O   
  6 Connor, Reed                 New Jersey-N          13:30.27O   
  7 Erassa, Kirubel              Atlanta Track Club    13:30.57O   
  8 Alex, George                 Zap Fitness           13:35.57    
  9 Ostos Cruz, Luis Fernand     Federación P          13:39.08    
 10 Brown, Mitchel               Oregon Track Club     13:44.90    
 11 Corrigan, Peter              Running Room Canada   13:46.45    
 12 Grey, Jonathan               adidas                13:47.72    
 13 Gregg, Brendan               Hansons-Brooks Odp    13:50.95    
 14 Landry, Christo              Mizuno                13:56.46    
 15 Finan, Eric                  Team Run Eugene       14:04.42    
 16 Edwards, Jake                Brooks                14:10.99    
 17 Pearson, Morgan              Unattached            14:15.15    
 18 Olson, Erik                  Unattached            14:16.25    
 19 Gidabuday, Sydney            Adams State           14:34.48    
 20 Roff, Jeremy                 Asics Sydney          14:36.91    
 -- Stilin, Joseph               Zap Fitness                DNF    


Women’s 1500: Kate Grace Keeps Runing Well, High Schoolers Impress

Kate Grace kept up her fine 2016 with the win here. Afterwards she said she has made up her mind on which event to run at the Trials (she has run 2:00.05 for 800 this year), but isn’t ready to announce it yet.

The biggest 1500 news might have been section where high schooler Christina Aragon (daughter of 1987 World Championship team member Chuck) ran incredibly well the final lap to not only run a huge pr of 4:09.27 (previous best of 4:11.24), but to also qualify for the Olympic Trials (4:09.50). Fellow high schoolers Katie Rainsberger (4:12.62) and Ella Donaghu (4:14.11) were third and fourth as the US high school women continue to amaze.

All 3 High Schoolers:

IMG_20160612_193205

Section  1                                                         
  1 Grace, Kate                  Oiselle                4:05.93O   
  2 Sifuentes, Nicole            Saucony                4:06.40O   
  3 Stafford, Gabriela           Toronto                4:06.53O   
  4 Brown, Stephanie             Nike                   4:09.16U   
  5 Vaughn, Sara                 Boulder Track Club     4:10.19    
  6 Johnson, Lauren              Unattached             4:10.91    
  7 Tracy, Rebecca               Oiselle                4:11.71    
  8 Simpson, Katelyn             Asics Sydney           4:11.82    
  9 Felnagle, Brie               adidas                 4:12.13    
 10 Freitas, Marta               Miss State             4:15.94    
 11 Benson, Fiona                Nike                   4:21.13    
 -- Wright, Katie                Unattached                 DNF    
Section  2                                                         
  1 Aragon, Christina            Unattached             4:09.27U   
  2 Farber, Lianne               New Balance Norcal     4:12.35    
  3 Rainsberger, Katie           Unattached             4:12.62    
  4 Donaghu, Ella                Unattached             4:14.11    
  5 Moye, Megan                  Unattached             4:14.15    
  6 Kelly, Mariah                Unattached             4:14.31    
  7 Pomfret, Kendra              Mizuno Run Canada      4:14.40    
  8 Silva, Samantha              Bowerman Track Club    4:14.49    
  9 Kouba, Paige                 Harvard                4:16.61    
 10 Paquette, Lauren             Brooks/Break           4:17.18    
 11 Salerno, Melissa             Asics                  4:18.32    
 12 Handler, Brook               Unattached             4:19.32    
 13 Van Der Klooster, Coreen     Run Canberra           4:27.41

Women’s 5000: Kim Conley is Best

Conley already had the Olympic standard but really pulled away from the field the final lap to get some race preparation and confidence for the 10,000m at the Trials.

The Olympic Trials standard is 15:25, the Olympic standard 15:24.

Section  1                                                         
  1 Conley, Kim                  New Balance           15:16.75U   
  2 Grunewald, Gabriele          Brooks                15:19.50U   
  3 Oliver, Lucy                 unattached            15:20.13U   
  4 Williams, Alisha             adidas Rme            15:23.11U   
  5 O'Connell, Jessica           Asics                 15:23.15U   
  6 Thweatt, Laura               Boulder Track Club    15:26.28    
  7 Spencer, Kate                Asics Sydney          15:28.47    
  8 Hasay, Jordan                Nike Oregon Project   15:32.19    
  9 Finn, Erin                   Unattached            15:34.50    
 10 Cridebring, Alycia           Sra Elite             15:35.34    
 11 Eccleston, Amanda            Brooks                15:44.14    
 12 Gollish, Sasha               Oiselle/Toro          15:49.19    
 13 Wodak, Natasha               Asics Canada          15:54.06    
 14 Bizzarri, Angela             Brooks Beast          15:57.10    
 15 Olowora, Aminat              Nigeria               16:01.10    
 16 Welling, Tara                Skechers/HPW          16:01.16    
 17 Rhines, Jen                  Baa                   16:05.20    
 18 Marchant, Lanni              Asics Canada          16:12.58    
 19 Valencia, Elena              Corre A.C.            16:16.35    
 20 Smith, Kelsey                Unattached            16:35.45    
 21 Aish, Nicole                 Unattached            16:42.65    
 -- Beck, Anne                   Strava TC                  DNF

Women’s 800: Brenda Martinez Wins

She talked a little about Boris Berian post-race.

Event 29  Women 800 Meter Run High Performance
================================================================   
 Meet Record: R 1:59.94  6/14/2015   Fiona Benson, Langley Must    
     Olympic: O 2:01.50                                            
   US Trials: U 2:03.00                                            
    Name                    Year Team                    Finals    
================================================================   
Section  1                                                         
  1 Martinez, Brenda             New Balance            2:00.21O   
   1:00.495 (1:00.495)       2:00.207 (59.712)                     
  2 Fricker, McKayla             Brooks/HPW             2:01.55U   
   1:00.148 (1:00.148)     2:01.547 (1:01.399)                     
  3 LeBlanc, Annie               Unattached             2:02.30U   
   1:00.362 (1:00.362)     2:02.294 (1:01.932)                     
  4 Storey, Lora                 Asics Sydney           2:02.58U   
   1:01.246 (1:01.246)     2:02.578 (1:01.332)                     
  5 Velvere, Liga                Unattached             2:02.71U   
   1:00.559 (1:00.559)     2:02.704 (1:02.146)                     
  6 Hall, Linden                 Wolfpack TC            2:02.85U   
   1:01.004 (1:01.004)     2:02.846 (1:01.842)                     
  7 Smith, Jessica               Nike                   2:02.89U   
   1:00.731 (1:00.731)     2:02.884 (1:02.154)                     
  8 Gall, Geena                  Brooks / Team Ru       2:03.34    
   1:00.711 (1:00.711)     2:03.331 (1:02.621)                     
  9 Piliusina, Natalja           Brooks Beasts          2:05.61    
   1:00.801 (1:00.801)     2:05.602 (1:04.802)                     
Section  2                                                         
  1 Johnson, Lauren              Unattached             2:01.59U   
       59.544 (59.544)     2:01.590 (1:02.047)                     
  2 Praska, Bethany              Unattached             2:02.72U   
       59.078 (59.078)     2:02.717 (1:03.639)                     
  3 Stellingwerff, Hilary        New Balance/           2:03.06    
       59.661 (59.661)     2:03.053 (1:03.392)                     
  4 Francois, Rachel             Unattached             2:03.18    
       59.436 (59.436)     2:03.172 (1:03.737)                     
  5 Murphy, Samantha             Unattached             2:03.41    
       59.183 (59.183)     2:03.402 (1:04.220)                     
  6 Jackson, Dominique           Oiselle/SRA Elite      2:03.61    
       58.864 (58.864)     2:03.608 (1:04.745)                     
  7 Wallace, Lea                 Sra Elite              2:03.90    
       59.411 (59.411)     2:03.899 (1:04.489)                     
  8 Malasarte, Megan             Brooks Beasts          2:03.98    
       59.290 (59.290)     2:03.976 (1:04.686)                     
  9 Westaway, Jenna              Brooks Runni           2:04.52

Men’s 800: Windle Makes the Trials

Drew Windle, the former DII star, got the Olympic Trials standard and a nice win. Matt Centrowitz ran this and the 1500 as a workout.

Canada’s Anthony Romaniw won heat 2 in an Olympic qualifying time and might have been the happiest winner of the day.

Event 30  Men 800 Meter Run High Performance
================================================================   
 Meet Record: R 1:44.79  6/8/2013    Tyler Mulder, OTC             
     Olympic: O 1:46.00                                            
   US Trials: U 1:46.00                                            
    Name                    Year Team                    Finals    
================================================================   
Section  1                                                         
  1 Windle, Drew                 Brooks Beast           1:45.65O   
  2 Kemboi, Edward               High Performance       1:46.24    
  3 Gilreath, James              Team Green             1:46.70    
  4 Abda, Harun                  Nike/OTC               1:46.75    
  5 Mulder, Tyler                Nike/OTC               1:47.92    
  6 Greer, Elijah                Nike/OTC               1:47.97    
  7 Fleet, Mac                   Nike/OTC               1:48.56    
  8 Solis, Dusty                 Big Bear Tc/           1:49.62    
Section  2                                                         
  1 Romaniw, Anthony             Speed River            1:45.94O   
  2 White, Joseph                Georgetown             1:46.79    
  3 Deng, Goaner                 University o           1:47.23    
  4 Low, Chris                   Unattached             1:47.26    
  5 Centrowitz, Matthew          Nike Oregon Project    1:47.69    
  6 Torrence, David              Hoka One One           1:47.81    
  7 Mumba, Prince                Santa Monica           1:47.95    
  8 James, Jamaal                Trinidad and Tobago    1:48.59    
  9 Eichberger, James            Unattached             1:49.01    
 10 Fleck, Nathan                High Performance       1:54.40

Women’s Steeple: UK’s Lennie Waite Gets Standard for 2nd Time

Event 35  Women 3000 Meter Steeplechase High Performance
================================================================   
 Meet Record: R 9:45.90  6/14/2015   Shalaya Kipp, Oiselle         
     Olympic: O 9:45.00                                            
   US Trials: U 9:53.00                                            
    Name                    Year Team                    Finals    
================================================================   
Section  1                                                         
  1 Waite, Lennie                Rogue AC               9:35.91O   
  2 Lawrence, Mel                Oiselle                9:36.55O   
  3 Rolland, Megan               Oiselle                9:36.88O   
  4 Bush, Nicole                 New Balance            9:39.84O   
  5 Pease, Sarah                 Rogue Ac/Saucony       9:40.94O   
  6 Butterworth, Alycia          Idtc                   9:41.26O   
  7 Bernard, Maria               Saucony Canada         9:44.81O   
  8 Van Beek, Maddie             Brooks                 9:47.74U   
  9 Potratz-Lee, Allix           Unattached            10:04.10    
 10 Goldkamp, Mary               Unattached            10:06.59    
 11 Hayakari, Minori             Unattached            10:07.95    
 12 Groenewoud, Chantelle        Unattached            10:15.63    
 13 Mills, Shelby                Unattached            10:18.34    
 -- Bell, Rolanda                New Balance Norcal         DNF    
 -- Praught, Aisha               Nike/OTC                   DNF

Men’s Steeple:

Event 34  Men 3000 Meter Steeplechase High Performance
================================================================   
 Meet Record: R 8:26.75  6/14/2015   Andy Bayer, Bowerman TC       
     Olympic: O 8:30.00                                            
   US Trials: U 8:32.00                                            
    Name                    Year Team                    Finals    
================================================================   
Section  1                                                         
  1 Stones, Carl                 Unattached             8:35.59    
  2 Bussing, Austin              Rogue Athletic Club    8:36.58    
  3 Roth, Bailey                 Unattached             8:36.65    
  4 Cleaver, Matt                Rogue AC               8:39.51    
  5 Lafond, Dylan                Unattached             8:40.63    
  6 Barraza, Brian               Unattached             8:41.27    
  7 Habte Ghebrezghiabhe, Ab     Posso Sports           8:41.28    
  8 Winter, Connor               Unattached             8:43.83    
  9 Parrish, Mark                Pure Athletics         8:45.96    
 10 Pecora, Kent                 Bryn Mawr/ N           8:46.15    
 11 Bruce, Ben                   Naz Elite              8:46.39    
 12 Updike, Lucas                Team Run Eugene        8:47.66    
 13 Hurt, Tripp                  Team Run Eugene        8:47.68    
 14 Sees, Jonathan               Sra Elite              8:48.22    
 15 O'Neil, Austin               Unattached Ucla        8:49.12    
 16 Gay, John                    Okanagan Ath           8:49.22    
 17 Simon, Meron                 unattached wolfpack    8:56.11    
 -- Brockerville, Ryan           Running Room Canada        DNF
This was at the meet This was at the meet
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