2013 Penn Relays Distance Action: Women’s 4×800 American Record, Emily Lipari Impresses, Robby Andrews in Mile and Much More

 by: LetsRun.com
April 27, 2013

The 119th Penn Relays Carnival concluded Saturday in Pennsylvania and we’ve got the distance highlights (college and pro) below.

In the sprints, the US won the men’s 4X100 and the men’s and women’s 4×400, as Jamaica and Shelly Ann Fraser won the 4×100.

Women’s 4X800: The American Record Gets Crushed

This was a new event at Penn this year on the Team USA vs the World level and the result was the old American record  (8:17.91) got crushed by two American teams. USA Red led by a 1:58.6 anchor by Alysia Montano was the winner.

Phoebe Wright’s 2:01.8 got USA blue out to the lead with Great Britain.

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Brenda Martinez however took over for USA Red on the second leg. Martinez, who passed up a shot at winning $25,000 in the Drake Relays mile to run here, continued her fine start to 2013 by blasting a 2:00.6 to give USA Red the lead.

Ajee Wilson, the world junior record champion, now running pro for adidas instead of in the college ranks, ran 2:03.1 to keep the lead. She handed off to Alysia Montano who was chased by 2007 World Champion Janeth Jepkosgei of Kenya. It was no contest on the anchor as Montano opened her outdoor season with a 1:58.6 to give the US the win and the record.

Afterwards, Montano said, “I’m so incredibly proud of all these girls. I have the greatest faith in them, and I am so proud to be able to anchor this team to a win…I couldn’t ask for anything more. An American Record…”

QT: Martinez likely would have won at least $15,000 (or $25,000) if she had run Drake, but she leaves with an American record which is priceless.

QT: Montano opened up outdoors quick again. Last year her first race individually was a 1:57.37 win at Pre. Wonder what she’ll do this year?

Discuss: US Women’s 4×800 AR

 

1 USA Red 8:04.31 Lea Wallace (2:02.0), Brenda Martinez (2:00.6), Ajee Wilson (2:03.1), Alysia Montano (1:58.6) USA-r
2 Kenya 8:07.58 Winny Chebet (2:02.1), Eunice Sum (2:01.2), Hellen Obiri (2:02.8), Janeth Jepkosgei (2:01.5) KEN
3 USA Blue 8:10.99 Phoebe Wright (2:01.8), Geena Gall (2:02.7), Alice Schmidt (2:02.8), LaTavia Thomas (2:03.7) USA-b
4 Great Britain 8:13.46 Marilyn Okoro (2:01.8), Jemma Simpson (2:03.9), Lynsey Sharp (2:02.8), Tara Bird (2:05.0) GBR
5 Canada 8:14.85 Melissa Bishop (2:02.2), Karine Belleau-Beliveau (2:03.2), Diane Cummins (2:02.9), Lemlem Bereket (2:06.) CAN
6 Australia 8:18.96 Zoe Buckman (2:03.3), Anna Laman (2:03.7), Heidi Gregson (2:05.6), Selma Kajan (2:06.4) AUS
7 Russia 8:27.45 Olga Lvova (2:04.5), Alena Glazkova (2:09.9), Svetlana Podosenova (2:04.2), Marina Pospelova (2:08.9) RUS
8 Ethiopia 8:30.65 Dureti Edeo (2:09.2), Feyne Gudeto (2:10.6), Tizita Bogale (2:05.8), Alem Gereziher (2:05.1) ETH

Men’s Mile: Robby Andrews Kicks Too Soon

The men’s Olympic Development mile featured two former NCAA stars, former indoor mile record holder German Fernandez and former NCAA 800m champ, Robby Andrews.

Michael Rutt, moving up to the mile, stayed closest to the rabbit Sadiki White. Despite modest splits (59 (at finish), 1:58.6 (800 to go) , 3:00.6 (400 to go)), this one was strung out. However once the rabbit droped out 1000m in, Rutt slowed a little and by the bell, there was a single file group in contention for the win: Rutt, Andrews,  Tyler Mulder, Owen Dawson, Fernandez and Jonathan Sawe of Kenya.

Fernandez was a non-factor on the last lap as Sawe led for most of it. Andrews was in third going around the final turn and then he struck with a vengeance. Soon he was in the lead. It looked like the Robby Penn Relays magic.

However, Andrews had gone too hard too soon. He started fading down the homestretch and Rutt and Sawe both battled back by him and Tyler Mulder would come up as well. Sawe was best down the stretch and got the win 3:57.03 over Mulder.

Michael Rutt and Tyler Mulder, both better known as 800m runners, both joined the sub 4 club. Owen Dawson did as well. Update: And believe it or not, this was Robby Andrews first sub 4. He’d run 3:34.78 for 1500m before  (3:51-3:52 equivalent in the mile), but never sub 4.

German Fernandez had been ahead of Mulder at the bell but once the racing started on the backstretch lost contention with the leaders and ran 4:03.14 in his first race of 2013. (Anyone else remember Fernandez ran 3:34.60 last September in Berlin?)

QT: Andrews had a great burst with 150 to go. Too much too soon.

QT2: Welcome to the Sub 4 club to Mulder and Rutt and Dawson and Andrews.

Discuss: Penn Mile: Robby Andrews 3:57.82 for 4th at Penn, German Fernandez 4:03

Robby Andrews Shoots to the Lead On the Final Bend at Penn Robby Andrews Shoots to the Lead On the Final Bend at Penn

finishmile Jonathan Sawe Wins 2013 Penn Relays Mile 

1 2 Jonathan Sawe Kenya 3:57.03
2 8 Michael Rutt NJ/NY TC 3:57.18
3 19 Tyler Mulder Nike 3:57.37
4 1 Robby Andrews adidas 3:57.82
5 4 Owen Dawson unattached 3:59.74
6 18 German Fernandez Nike 4:03.14
7 7 Christian Gonzalez NJ/NY TC 4:04.25
8 6 Ryan Ripley Red Rock Running Company 4:04.32
9 16 Jeff Weinstein New York Athletic Club 4:05.95
10 17 Nick Hilton Run Flagstaff 4:06.37
11 20 Nat McLaughlin Great Britain 4:08.60
12 5 Nick Guarino Syracuse Chargers 4:12.02
13 15 Robert Razick South Carolina 4:12.84
14 13 Aidan Walsh NYAC 4:13.39
15 11 Ryan Cunningham New York Athletic Club 4:17.12
14 Sadiki White NJ/NY TC DNF

Collegiate Women’s 4×800 Emily Lipari’s 2:02.3 and the Penn Magic Gets Collegiate Record

Emily Lipari ran a surprising 2:02.25 anchor split to not only upset Oregon for the win, but also to break the collegiate record.

This one came down to the anchor. Lipari got the baton just a split second before Oregon’s Laura Roesler with LSU’s Charlene Lipsey further back but within striking distance. Everyone else was out of it.

The advantage was Roesler’s. Roesler, was the NCAA runner-up at 800m and an Olympic Trials semifinalist with a 2:01.75 pr. Lipari was the Big East XC champion with only a 2:06.7 800m pr.

Roesler went out in 61, with Lipari stalking her, to make it difficult for Lipsey to get back in it. Down the backstretch Lipsey did latch onto the back of the top 2.

Around the final turn, Roesler did what was expected, pull away from Lipari. Then, the unexpected happen, Lipari battled back down the homestretch. She found another gear and it was enough to get the win, the collegiate record and a huge PR, before the hometown Philadlephia crowd. What a run.

Lipari had anchored Villanova to the DMR win on Thursday and dedicated the win to Villanova Associate AD Gordon Finch who died unexpectedly earlier this month at 45. That had been somewhat expected. This one was a shocker.

Afterwards, Lipari said it was about guts and heart. She told the Philadelphia Inquirer, “I know Oregon’s a great team. But I can’t stand there wasting time thinking, ‘This girl does this. She’s potentially better than me.’ It’s all about guts, and it’s all about heart. So whoever they’re going to put on that leg doesn’t matter. These three [teammates] definitely set the tone to our race.”

QT: What a run by Lipari. Magical things can happen at Penn especially when it’s with teams with a storied Penn tradition and this was one such example.

QT2: Natoya Goule split 2:00.39 for LSU on leg #2. 

More: *Philly.com Article on ‘Nova’s 4×800 Win
Discuss:
 Emily Lipari Just Split 2:02.3 to Get Collegiate Record in 4X800 for Nova

Roesler Leads On the Homestretch Roesler Leads On the Homestretch

Emily Lipari Has Just Enough at the Finish (More photos here) Emily Lipari Has Just Enough at the Finish (More photos here)

1 Villanova 8:17.45 Kelsey Margey (2:07.04), Angel Piccirillo (2:04.12), Nicky Akande (2:04.04), Emily Lipari (2:02.25) AD
2 Oregon 8:17.62 Becca Friday (2:07.72), Annie Leblanc (2:04.98), Anne Kesselring (2:02.74), Laura Roesler (2:02.19) AA
3 LSU 8:19.43 Samantha Levin (2:11.28), Natoya Goule (2:00.39), Nikita Tracey (2:05.59), Charlene Lipsey (2:02.19) AC
4 Michigan 8:25.95 Meg Bellino (2:08.86), Jillian Smith (2:05.18), Danielle Pfeifer (2:07.16), Rebecca Addison (2:04.77) AG
5 Georgetown 8:27.15 Deseree King (2:11.16), Chelsea Cox (2:01.62), Andrea Keklak (2:06.82), Katrina Coogan (2:07.57) AE
6 Princeton 8:27.26 Kacie O’Neil (2:09.28), Greta Feldman (2:03.15), Cecilia Barowski (2:07.55), Alexis Mikaelian (2:07.29) AH
7 Tennessee 8:27.54 Brittney Jackson (2:08.77), Kianna Ruff (2:04.90), Alexis Panisse (2:06.40), Nijgia Snapp (2:07.48) AB
8 Duke 8:40.96 Rebecca Craigie (2:12.52), Cydney Ross (2:04.76), Anima Banks (2:10.03), Abby Farley (2:13.67) AF
9 Maryland 8:44.24 Maryam Fikri (2:11.88), Myah Hicks (2:08.25), Emily VandeWater (2:12.88), Julie Sinkovitz (2:11.24) AP
10 James Madison 8:46.16 Tiel Westbrook (2:11.83), Annie Reiner (2:10.41), Kelsey Langton (2:12.71), Erin Lopresti (2:11.23) AL
11 Fordham 8:48.06 Kristen Stuart (2:12.67), Titi Fagade (2:10.15), Melissa Higgins (2:11.48), Mara Lieberman (2:13.78) AJ
12 Albany 8:48.83 Sherez Mohamed (2:11.78), Kathryn Fanning (2:10.08), Brianne Bellon (2:12.82), Mackenzie Carter (2:14.16) AN
13 Indiana 9:07.49 Brie Roller, Jordan Gray, Kelsey Duerksen, Ashley Seymour AM

Men’d DMR: Ethiopia over Kenya and the US

As DMR’s usually do, this one came down to the anchor and Aman Wote of Ethiopia was too good the final stretch as he beat Caleb Ndiku of Kenya. David Torrence and the USA red team were third with Bernard Lagat and USA blue in 4th.

On the opening leg, Andrew Wheating (2:52.2) kept the US red close enough to Kenya  (2:51.6, Anthony Chemut) so that after the 400 leg (44.8 Quintin Summers) the US was in the lead. USA 4th place finisher in London last year, Duane Solomon, ran a solo 1:45.0 split to keep the lead. Behind Solomon, Mohammed Aman of Ethiopia split a 1:44.0 to get Ethiopia back in it along with Kenya. Torrence had a decent lead when he got the baton, but Wote and Ndiku soon caught up to him and it was a three way race until the final 200m when Wote and Ndiku battled for the win.

Behind Torrence, Bernard Lagat had been in no-man’s land for a while until Ciaran O’Lionaird came up. Lagat split 3:54.6 in his first race of the outdoor track season (Lagat did run the NYC Half Marathon last month).  This was Torrence’s first track race of 2013 (he had run Carlsbad on the roads earlier in the month).

QT: Wote is a 3:35 guy. Him beating Ndiku is a little surprise.

QT2: It’s April we don’t read too much into Penn.

On the boards: DMR: Brit Throws a Tantrum After Falling Down, Ethiopia Wins

1 Ethiopia 9:16.34 Aisinet Abiyot (2:53.5), Bereket Desta (46.0), Mohammed Aman (1:44.0), Aman Wote (3:52.8) ETH
2 Kenya 9:17.03 Anthony Chemut (2:51.6), Kennedy KipKosgei Chepsiror (47.1), Timothy Kitum (1:45.4), Caleb Ndiku (3:52.9) KEN
3 USA Red 9:18.21 Andrew Wheating (2:52.2), Quentin Summers (44.8), Duane Solomon (1:45.0), David Torrence (3:56.2) USAr
4 USA Blue 9:19.33 Matthew Centrowitz (2:53.4), Kind Butler (45.5), Charles Jock (1:45.7), Bernard Lagat (3:54.8) USAb
5 Ireland 9:24.10 Paul Robinson (2:52.8), Brian Gregan (45.9), Mark English (1:46.7), Ciaran O’Lionaird (3:58.7) IRL
6 Australia 9:28.74 Collis Birmingham (2:52.8), Kurt Mulcahy (45.8), James Kaan (1:48.0), Ryan Gregson (4:02.1) AUS
7 Canada 9:29.15 Kyle Smith (2:53.5), Mike Robertson (46.0), Geoff Harris (1:47.3), Matt Lincoln (4:02.4) CAN
8 Morocco 9:40.80 Abdelhadi Labali (2:53.0), Marouane El Maadadi (51.2), Samir Jamma (1:50.7), Soufiyan Bouqantar (4:05.9) MAR
Great Britain DNF Chris Warburton, Martyn Rooney, Joe Thomas, Matt McLaughlin GBR

 

 Collegiate 4xMile: Oregon Wins

This one got tactical on the anchor legs, but former NCAA indoor runner-up in the mile, Mac Fleet brought it home for Oregon over Indiana’s Andy Bayer.

QT: Oregon won despite a 4:10 opener by Chris Brewer. Matt Miner went 3:59.9 on the 2nd leg to get them back in it. (Villanova’s Jordan Williamsz’s 3:58.7 on leg 2 was the only other sub 4 clocking).

QT2: Shout out to Yale in 5th place. Wejo is proud.

1 Oregon 16:17.57 Chris Brewer (4:10.9), Matt Miner (3:59.9), Jeramy Elkaim (4:03.6), Mac Fleet (4:03.2) C
2 Indiana 16:18.29 Robby Nierman (4:06.9), Zachary Mayhew (4:02.7), Adam Behnke (4:05.5), Andrew Bayer (4:03.2) B
3 Villanova 16:18.53 Alex Tully (4:11.4), Jordan Williamsz (3:58.7), Robert Denault (4:04.6), Sam McEntee (4:03.8) F
4 Penn State 16:19.72 Tyler Corkedale (4:07.8), Matt Fischer (5:05.3), Ricky West (4:01.4), Sam Masters (4:05.2) E
5 Yale 16:20.35 John McGowan (4:07.8), Matt Nussbaum (4:05.3), Tim Hillas (4:03.9), James Shirvell (4:03.4) G
6 Columbia 16:21.53 Joe Kotran (4:08.9), Mark Feigen (4:02.3), John Gregorek (4:3.2), Daniel Everett (4:07.1) A
7 Georgetown 16:24.43 Bobby Peavey (4:08.6), Andrew Springer (4:03.8), Michael Lederhouse (4:03.7), Billy Ledder (4:08.3) D
8 Duke 16:37.52 Nate McClafferty (4:08.7), Brian Schoepfer (4:05.9), Mike Moverman (4:10.7), James Kostelnik (4:12.2) H
9 Dartmouth 16:41.21 Steve Mangan, Henry Sterling, John Bleday, Will Geoghegan L
10 Army 16:50.74 Nathan Fisher, Robert Barger, Mark Castelli, Kevin Russell R
11 Boston College 16:52.90 Jack Linehan, Joseph McConaughy, Collin Fedor, Jordan Hamm P
12 Clemson 16:56.74 Aaron Ramirez, Roland Hakes, James Dwyer, Ty McCormack S

Men’s 4X800 Penn State Wins Again

Penn state went wire to wire here but it was Cas Loxsom’s 1:46.3 3rd leg that blew it open for them. That helped Loxsom be named collegiate athlete of the meet at Penn (Penn State also won the DMR on Friday)

QT: After running 3:58.7 in the 4X mile, Jordan Williamsz ran 1:47.73 here just 4 hours later.

1 Penn State 7:14.14 Robby Creese (1:50.53), Za’Von Watkins (1:48.22), Casimir Loxsom (1:46.30), Brannon Kidder (1:49.10) AA
2 Villanova 7:17.37 Dusty Solis (1:51.12), Jordan Williamsz (1:47.73), Christopher Fitzsimons (1:51.11), Samuel Ellison (1:47.43) AD
3 Georgia Tech 7:20.63 Cole Jackob (1:52.98), Zack Fanelty (1:49.46), Jeremy Greenwald (1:50.73), Brandon Lasater (1:47.48) AK
4 Duke 7:20.97 Thomas Meister (1:53.06), Kyle Moran (1:50.34), Michael Filipczak (1:49.31), Curtis Beach (1:48.27) AH
5 Princeton 7:21.62 Michael Williams (1:51.05), Nathan Mathabane (1:49.41), Michael Palmisano (1:52.27), Bradley Paternostro (1:48.90) AI
6 Kentucky 7:22.53 Robbie Scharold (1:52.00), Matt Hillenbrand (1:49.25), Sean Keane (1:51.41), Keffri Neal (1:49.88) AP
7 Brown 7:23.51 Henry Tufnell (1:52.71), Ned Willig (1:48.86), Colin Savage (1:50.76), Tyler Benster (1:51.18) AS
8 La Salle 7:27.60 Sean Mallon (1:54.08), Wayne Bartholomew (1:50.20), Bret Shepherd (1:52.49), Paul Reilly (1:50.84) AL
9 UConn 7:27.83 Alvaro Chavez (1:51.42), Robert Rhodes (1:51.39), Tim Bennatan (1:52.07), Alex Bennatan (1:52.97)

 

Women’s Mile: Olympic Champ Nancy Langat on Her Way Back?

Nancy Langat was the 2008 Olympic 1500m champ. Last year she wasn’t even on the Olympic team and only broke 4:10 for 1500m once. She dominated the women’s mile here and ran a sub 4:10 effort.

RESULTS

PL ID ATHLETE SCHOOL/AFFILIATION MARK
1 1 Nancy Langat Kenya 4:28.50
2 2 Kelly Williams Unattached 4:38.08
3 14 Amanda Eccleston Michigan 4:38.09
4 7 Heather Wilson NJ/NY TC 4:38.12
5 6 Danielle Tauro NJ/NY TC 4:38.33
6 3 Kerri Gallagher Pacers New Balance 4:39.30
7 9 Chrissy Supino Unattached 4:39.44
8 13 Shannon Osika Michigan 4:39.72
9 12 Chloe Phillips Mississippi State 4:44.44
10 10 Jesse Carlin Unattached 4:46.35
11 8 Kelsey Rose Jenkintown Running Co. 4:48.40

The Penn Result site has photos and quotes from many races. It’s the best result site we’ve seen.

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