Michaela Rose Targeting Athing Mu’s NCAA Record in 800 Final, Tuohy Through in the 1500 — NCAA Day 2 Recap

By LetsRun.com

June 9, 2023

2023 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships

AUSTIN, Tex. – The women’s prelims are in the books at the 2023 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, setting the stage for a fascinating final day on Saturday. The two big doubles – Arkansas’ Britton Wilson in the 400/400 hurdles and Katelyn Tuohy in the 1500/5000 – are still on as Wilson had the fastest times of the day in both the 400 (49.36, #2 all-time NCAA) and 400 hurdles (54.67) while Tuohy advanced automatically in the 1500. However Tuohy, who finished 4th in her prelim in 4:09.83, was not thrilled with her race.

One of the biggest developments on Thursday may have come in the mixed zone as LSU’s Michaela Rose, who ran the fastest NCAA prelim ever in the 800 (2:00.31) told LetsRun that she plans on attacking Athing Mu’s 1:57.73 collegiate record in Saturday’s final.

In the lone track final on Thursday, Utah Valley’s Everlyn Kemboi dominated the 10,000 meters to win the school’s first NCAA track title. That gets its own article here. Recap of the distance prelims below.

Women’s 800: Michaela Rose runs fastest 800m qualifier ever at NCAAs, vows to get Athing Mu’s collegiate record in the final

The two big favorites for the final, outdoor leader Michaela Rose (1:59.08) of LSU and Rosin Willis of Stanford, the U20 World Champ and NCAA indoor champ, advanced to Saturday’s final with little difficulty.

After Lithuanian Gabija Galvydyte of Oklahoma State won heat 1 in 2:03.01, Roisin Willis took heat 2 in 2:02.04. If this was soccer, heat 3 would have been considered the heat of death as it featured the four fastest women in the NCAA outdoors in 2023. Rose ensured it was fast and that the heat would get the three time qualifiers. Rose went wire to wire getting the win in 2:00.31 as Valery Tobias of Texas was a clear second in 2:00.68. Dorcus Ewoi of Campbell had a nice PB to get 3rd and make the final on time, while Claire Seymour, 2nd fastest outdoors this year, got the final time spot. Imogen Barrett, who had run 2:00.96 on the year, 4th-fastest in the NCAA this year, was the big casualty for the final.

Heat 1

Pl	Pos	Athlete	Time	400m	800m
1	5	Gabija GALVYDYTE Oklahoma State [SO]	2:03.01 Q	1:01.29 [1:01.29]	2:03.01 [1:01.72]
2	6	Aurora RYNDA Michigan [SR]	2:03.37 Q	1:01.17 [1:01.17]	2:03.37 [1:02.21]
3	9	Rachel GEARING Penn State [SR]	2:03.51	1:00.92 [1:00.92]	2:03.51 [1:02.59]
4	2	Rose PITTMAN UCLA [JR]	2:03.77 PB	1:01.61 [1:01.61]	2:03.77 [1:02.16]
5	4	Lindsey BUTLER Virginia Tech [SO]	2:04.04	1:00.97 [1:00.97]	2:04.04 [1:03.08]
6	3	Jessica RABIUS Houston Christian [SR]	2:06.31	1:01.40 [1:01.40]	2:06.31 [1:04.92]
7	8	Lauren TOLBERT Duke [FR]	2:07.01	1:01.21 [1:01.21]	2:07.01 [1:05.81]
8	7	Hayley KITCHING Penn State [FR]	2:10.61	1:01.35 [1:01.35]	2:10.61 [1:09.26]

Heat 2

Pl	Pos	Athlete	Time	400m	800m
1	5	Roisin WILLIS Stanford [FR]	2:02.04 Q	58.70 [58.70]	2:02.04 [1:03.35]
2	6	Katherine MITCHELL Boston College [SR]	2:02.18 Q	59.75 [59.75]	2:02.18 [1:02.44]
3	8	Kayla BELL Murray State [JR]	2:02.66 PB	58.78 [58.78]	2:02.66 [1:03.88]
4	3	Sarah HENDRICK Kennesaw State [SR]	2:03.37	59.34 [59.34]	2:03.37 [1:04.03]
5	7	Cindy BOURDIER LSU [JR]	2:04.07	59.09 [59.09]	2:04.07 [1:04.99]
6	4	Brooke JAWORSKI Texas [JR]	2:06.23	59.60 [59.60]	2:06.23 [1:06.64]
7	9	Taylor JAMES Stanford [FR]	2:06.25	59.23 [59.23]	2:06.25 [1:07.03]
8	2	Ella NELSON Oregon [SO]	2:06.42	1:00.13 [1:00.13]	2:06.42 [1:06.29]

Heat 3

Pl	Pos	Athlete	Time	400m	800m
1	5	Michaela ROSE LSU [SO]	2:00.31 Q FR	58.34 [58.34]	2:00.31 [1:01.98]
2	4	Valery TOBIAS Texas [SR]	2:00.68 Q	58.61 [58.61]	2:00.68 [1:02.08]
3	2	Dorcus EWOI Campbell [SR]	2:01.12 PB	59.02 [59.02]	2:01.12 [1:02.10]
4	6	Claire SEYMOUR BYU [SR]	2:01.24	58.38 [58.38]	2:01.24 [1:02.86]
5	8	Meghan HUNTER BYU [JR]	2:01.53 PB	59.27 [59.27]	2:01.53 [1:02.26]
6	9	Imogen BARRETT Florida [SR]	2:01.94	58.64 [58.64]	2:01.94 [1:03.31]
7	7	Carley THOMAS Washington [JR]	2:02.02 PB	58.76 [58.76]	2:02.02 [1:03.26]
8	3	MaLeigha MENEGATTI Boise State [SR]	2:02.76	58.86 [58.86]	2:02.76 [1:03.90]

Quick Take: Rose was not shy about her plan for the final – she wants Athing Mu’s 1:57.73 collegiate record

Rose ran 2:00.31, the fastest 800 prelim at NCAAs, and looked totally in control in doing so. She said afterwards her legs felt great, and after running 1:59 twice during the regular season is ready to go even faster in Saturday’s final.

“The collegiate record is 1:57.7 and I know I’m capable of doing that, I just need to put the race together with the grace of God and just do my best,” Rose said.

We asked Rose to confirm: you’re going to try to break the collegiate record in the final?

“I step to the line thinking that I can do it, so that’s going to be the goal,” Rose said.

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If Rose does that, Saturday may be the final race as a collegian for the 19-year-old sophomore. No one in the world has run faster than 1:58.23 in the women’s 800 so far in 2023.

QT: Bring on the final

Roisin Willis has all the accolades and is a big-meet performer, but Rose looked better today and has been phenomenal outdoors. That being said, Willis admitted she had another gear in the tank. After a 58.70 first lap, Willis’ second lap was only 63.35 but she was ahead of the field and looking like an easy heat winner until late when she noticed Boston College’s Katherine Mitchell moving up on the outside. Willis said she noticed it on the big screen and responded with a little acceleration to make sure she won the heat.

Women’s 1500: Tuohy won’t have it easy on Saturday

The final 100 of heat 1

With so many women running fast at the West regional meet two weeks ago – and almost all of them being placed in heat 1 – there was bound to be a notable casualty or two in tonight’s 1500m prelims, and there would be a couple as the #3 seed, Mia Barnett of UCLA (4:08.44 sb), and the Pac-12 champ Simone Plourde of Utah (4:08.70 sb) were both eliminated even though both time qualifiers came from heat 1. Barnett was leading with 500 meters to go, but just as NC State’s Katelyn Tuohy passed her, Barnett was clipped from behind by Washington’s Sophie O’Sullivan and lost all momentum, falling back to last and never recovering. Plourde, meanwhile, was 2nd at the bell but could only manage a 66.07 last lap and faded to 8th.

O’Sullivan looked good in winning the heat in 4:09.58 as Harvard’s Maia Ramsden closed well for second as she ran a two-second pb of 4:09.81 for 2nd. Tuohy made it through automatically in 4th as part of a blanket finish in 4:09.83.

However, Tuohy, running the 1500 at NCAAs for the first time, was not pleased with her race.

“I thought I did a bad job tactically during that race but it’s just the prelim, I got through,” Tuohy said on the ESPN broadcast. “So I’ve gotta learn for the final. Got out bad, went to the back. Thought I was good off the line, but I guess not. I’ll just talk to Coach [Laurie Henes] and see.”

Tuohy, whose 1500/5k double attempt is one of the biggest storylines of NCAAs, did not stop in the mixed zone, saying she would talk to media after the finals on Saturday.

Heat 2 went out much more slowly before a hard 800 to close it out. Oklahoma State’s Billah Jepkirui was a clear and convincing winner in 4:17.76 thanks to a 61.01 last lap as NCAA mile champ Olivia Howell took 2nd in 4:18.24.

Heat 1 Results

Pl	Pos	Athlete	Time	300m	700m	1100m	1500m
1	8	Sophie O’SULLIVAN Washington [SO]	4:09.58 Q	50.10 [50.10]	1:59.28 [1:09.18]	3:05.85 [1:06.58]	4:09.58 [1:03.73]
2	12	Maia RAMSDEN Harvard [SO]	4:09.81 Q PB	50.08 [50.08]	1:59.30 [1:09.23]	3:06.10 [1:06.80]	4:09.81 [1:03.72]
3	5	Margot APPLETON Virginia [SO]	4:09.83 Q	50.72 [50.72]	1:59.76 [1:09.04]	3:06.16 [1:06.40]	4:09.83 [1:03.68]
4	4	Katelyn TUOHY NC State [SO]	4:09.83 Q	50.31 [50.31]	1:59.18 [1:08.87]	3:05.72 [1:06.55]	4:09.83 [1:04.12]
5	3	Klaudia KAZIMIERSKA Oregon [FR]	4:09.84 Q	50.64 [50.64]	1:59.65 [1:09.01]	3:06.53 [1:06.89]	4:09.84 [1:03.31]
6	6	Abbe GOLDSTEIN New Mexico [SR]	4:10.81	50.83 [50.83]	1:59.89 [1:09.07]	3:06.30 [1:06.42]	4:10.81 [1:04.52]
7	7	Maddy ELMORE Oregon [FR]	4:11.49	50.51 [50.51]	1:59.42 [1:08.92]	3:06.51 [1:07.09]	4:11.49 [1:04.99]
8	2	Simone PLOURDE Utah [JR]	4:11.91	50.66 [50.66]	1:59.72 [1:09.06]	3:05.85 [1:06.14]	4:11.91 [1:06.07]
9	10	Kimberley MAY Providence [SO]	4:13.14 PB	50.47 [50.47]	1:59.54 [1:09.08]	3:06.71 [1:07.17]	4:13.14 [1:06.44]
10	9	Lauren FREELAND Michigan State [JR]	4:14.84	50.36 [50.36]	1:59.67 [1:09.31]	3:06.96 [1:07.29]	4:14.84 [1:07.88]
11	11	Gabrielle WILKINSON Florida [SR]	4:17.10	50.29 [50.29]	1:59.45 [1:09.16]	3:06.80 [1:07.35]	4:17.10 [1:10.30]
12	1	Mia BARNETT UCLA [SO]	4:25.21	49.93 [49.93]	1:59.12 [1:09.19]	3:08.25 [1:09.13]	4:25.21 [1:16.97]

Heat 2 Results

Pl	Pos	Athlete	Time	300m	700m	1100m	1500m
1	3	Billah JEPKIRUI Oklahoma State [FR]	4:17.76 Q	56.11 [56.11]	2:11.87 [1:15.76]	3:16.75 [1:04.88]	4:17.76 [1:01.01]
2	5	Olivia HOWELL Illinois [JR]	4:18.24 Q	55.89 [55.89]	2:11.58 [1:15.70]	3:16.57 [1:04.99]	4:18.24 [1:01.68]
3	2	Shannon FLOCKHART Providence [SO]	4:18.28 Q	55.87 [55.87]	2:11.70 [1:15.83]	3:16.73 [1:05.04]	4:18.28 [1:01.55]
4	1	Izzy THORNTON-BOTT Oregon [JR]	4:18.30 Q	56.05 [56.05]	2:11.82 [1:15.77]	3:16.79 [1:04.97]	4:18.30 [1:01.52]
5	6	Melissa RIGGINS Georgetown [SO]	4:18.46 Q	56.30 [56.30]	2:11.66 [1:15.37]	3:16.60 [1:04.95]	4:18.46 [1:01.87]
6	10	Anna GIBSON Washington [SR]	4:19.58	56.08 [56.08]	2:12.00 [1:15.93]	3:16.97 [1:04.97]	4:19.58 [1:02.61]
7	9	Amina MAATOUG Duke [SO]	4:19.59	56.41 [56.41]	2:12.09 [1:15.69]	3:17.02 [1:04.93]	4:19.59 [1:02.57]
8	4	Laura PELLICORO Portland [JR]	4:21.31	56.59 [56.59]	2:12.11 [1:15.53]	3:16.95 [1:04.84]	4:21.31 [1:04.36]
9	11	Rylee PENN Cincinnati [JR]	4:23.34	56.13 [56.13]	2:11.56 [1:15.43]	3:16.52 [1:04.97]	4:23.34 [1:06.82]
10	8	Tiana LOSTRACCO Bradley [JR]	4:23.60	56.45 [56.45]	2:12.15 [1:15.71]	3:17.79 [1:05.64]	4:23.60 [1:05.81]
11	12	Flomena ASEKOL Alabama [JR]	4:23.90	56.21 [56.21]	2:11.97 [1:15.76]	3:17.15 [1:05.18]	4:23.90 [1:06.76]
12	7	Silan AYYILDIZ South Carolina [SO]	4:26.58	55.99 [55.99]	2:11.86 [1:15.88]	3:17.13 [1:05.28]	4:26.58 [1:09.46]

Quick Take: Katelyn Tuohy may have a challenge on her hands in Saturday’s final

Racing in championship-style 1500-meter races is a tough skill to master, and Tuohy, who has largely focused on the longer distances in college, does not have a lot of experience in that area. She may have been a little harsh on herself today – it’s not always that important to get off the line well in a prelim and she was not in any real danger of failing to advance. But unless Tuohy can front-run a 4:05 or 4:06 (which is conceivable, but difficult), she’s probably going to have company in the final.

Who has the best shot at beating her? Well, Sophie O’Sullivan, the daughter of former 5000 world champ Sonia O’Sullivan and Australian super agent Nic Bideau, has the fastest time in the NCAA this year (4:08.06) and won both that super-fast heat at the West regional and Tuohy’s heat tonight. She has looked strong, but was also only 4th at Pac 12s in the 15000 and has never competed individually at NCAAs.

But the best bet to spring the upset may be Oklahoma State’s Billah Jepkirui. The Kenyan freshman, the Big 12 champ indoors and out, ran her final 800 in 2:05.89 tonight and split 61.01 for her last lap. That sort of negative split is impressive in an 800, let alone an 800 at the end of a 1500 prelim. Granted, the winning time in heat 2 was slow (4:17) but that is some serious closing speed.

Tuohy is great, no doubt about it, but NCAA titles are tough to win. Saturday’s race is a huge test. We can’t wait.

Quick Take: Tuohy isn’t the only woman attempting the 1500/5k double at NCAAs

Tuohy has got the bulk of the attention for her bold 1500/5000 double, but she’s not the only woman trying it: Harvard’s Maia Ramsden is also giving it a go and looked good in running a two-second pb to finish 2nd in heat 1.

Ramsden, who was a double All-American indoors, taking 5th in the mile and 8th in the 3k on the same day, said she initially just wanted a pb in the 5k at regionals. She ran a big one, dropping from 16:08 to 15:40, and decided to give the double a go in Austin.

Interestingly, Ramsden said she is looking forward to the shorter gap between the two races at nationals (where it is 1 hour, 25 minutes) compared to regionals (2 hours, 55 minutes).

“You have less time to think about it,” Ramsden said.

Quick Take: Indoor champ Olivia Howell has attempted to extend her range this season

Illinois’ Olivia Howell was the NCAA indoor champ in the mile but did not rest on her laurels outdoors, running three 800s (including a pb of 2:02.50) as well as finishing as the runner-up in the 5k at NCAAs. Her aim was to develop a skill set that would allow her to succeed in any race. That approach will be put to the test against a strong field in Saturday’s final.

Women’s Steeple: Not much drama here — that will come Saturday

As usually is the case, the favorites all advanced. The lone casualty from the top 10 fastest women in the NCAA was Notre Dame’s Katie Thronson. Thronson, the ACC runner-up who was the #5 seed with a 9:44.11 sb, was just 10th in heat 1.

Pl	Athlete	Time		Semi (pl)
1	Olivia MARKEZICH Notre Dame [JR]	9:40.81	Q	2 (1)
2	Greta KARINAUSKAITE CBU [JR]	9:40.87	Q	2 (2)
3	Lexy HALLADAY-LOWRY BYU [JR]	9:42.35	Q	2 (3)	PB
4	Ceili MCCABE West Virginia [JR]	9:48.53	Q	2 (4)
5	Kayley DELAY Washington [SR]	9:50.08	Q	2 (5)
6	Kaylee MITCHELL Oregon State [SR]	9:51.46	Q	1 (1)
7	Elise THORNER New Mexico [JR]	9:51.56	Q	1 (2)
8	Pauline MEYER Arkansas State [SR]	9:51.86	q	2 (6)
9	Grace FETHERSTONHAUGH Oregon State [SR]	9:52.02	Q	1 (3)
10	Angelina ELLIS Butler [SR]	9:52.13	Q	1 (4)
11	Maisie GRICE New Mexico [JR]	9:52.14	Q	1 (5)
12	Calli DOAN Liberty [JR]	9:52.15	q	1 (6)	PB
13	Katelyn MITCHEM Wyoming [SR]	9:56.18		2 (7)
14	Emma TAVELLA UCLA [SR]	9:56.93		2 (8)
15	Lona LATEMA Kansas [JR]	9:58.30		1 (7)
16	Olivia MORGANTI Penn [JR]	10:05.04		1 (8)
17	Janette SCHRAFT Iowa State [JR]	10:05.58		2 (9)
18	Victoria PATTERSON Columbia [SO]	10:05.68		1 (9)
19	Katie THRONSON Notre Dame [SR]	10:12.82		1 (10)
20	Carmen RIANO Miami (Ohio) [JR]	10:17.01		2 (10)
21	Lydia OLIVERE Villanova [SR]	10:18.93		1 (11)
22	Aziza CHIGATAYEVA Binghamton [SR]	10:22.86		2 (11)
23	Emily COLE Duke [SR]	10:25.42		1 (12)
24	Kristel VAN DEN BERG Ole Miss [SR]	10:31.22		2 (12)

Quick Take: This remains a wide-open final

The steeple isn’t as deep as the 800 or 1500 at NCAAs so it’s often hard to learn much from the prelims. The top athletes typically advance without trouble and there isn’t usually much to separate them as they don’t need to go all-out.

Notre Dame’s Olivia Markezich, who was the runner-up in the flat 3k indoors, was the top qualifier in 9:40.81, just ahead of NCAA leader Greta Karinauskaite of Cal Baptist (9:40.87). Markezich said she was a little concerned over how she would handle the Austin heat – so far, so good.

“I poured a lot of water on myself and I stayed calm, and I actually felt pretty okay,” Marekezich said.

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