Wednesday is National Running Day

Memorial Day isn't the only important holiday this week ... at least not for runners.

Tomorrow is officially National Running Day, celebrated annually on the first Wednesday of June as a day when runners everywhere declare their passion for running.. National Running Day is a collaborative effort of the nation's major running organizations, including the Boston Athletic Association, New York Road Runners, Oregon Track Club, USA Track & Field, and Twin Cities In Motion.

Twin Cities in Motion and the TC Running Company will host an all-day event on Wednesday at the TC Running Company store (6405 City West Parkway, Eden Prairie) beginning with a group run at 6:00 a.m.

Additionally, the day will feature: hourly giveaways and drawings for prizes; free group runs, every hour, on the hour led by various TCM staff members, runners from Team USA Minnesota, and other special guests; free snacks and beverages; and discounts at TC Running Company.

Find more information about National Running Day HERE.

Minnesota Claims Four D2, D3 Champions

Four Minnesota women won national titles at the NCAA Division II and Division III Championships held over the weekend.

In the D2 meet, held in Turlock, California, Minnesota State, Mankato senior Lauren Stelten won an outdoor pole vault crown to match the one she earned indoors in March, clearing 13-0 1/4. Winona State sophomore Mary Theisen won a dramatic discus competition in 163-9.

At the D3 Championships in Delaware, Ohio, Gustavus Adolphus College senior Janey Helland won the heptathlon with 5061 points. Carleton College senior Kelly Lovett won the javelin throw with a mark of 155-4.

Complete results of the D2 meet can be found HERE; complete D3 results are HERE.

Stelten won her pole vault title on only her fourth jump of the competition. The Chaska High School alumnus passed until 12-4 1 /2. She cleared that height and the next without a missing. Stelten missed on her first attempt at 13-0-1/4, but her clearance on the second try sealed the win, as the two other jumpers alive missed three times.

Stelten jumped at 13-7, but missed on all three attempts.

Theisen won the D2 discus in dramatic fashion, launching the winning throw on her final attempt of the competition. In fourth place when she stepped into the ring for her last attempt, her 163-9 mark moved her ahead of Larissa Richards of Pittsburg State who had led at 159-10.

In the D3 heptathlon, Helland used a big second day to take command of the competition. Third going into the final day, the Mapleton native won the long jump with 18-5 1/4, took second in the javelin with 123-2, and was runner-up again in the 800-meters with 2:19.47 to clinch the win.

Lovett led the D3 javelin from her first throw of 151-3, a personal best that would have been enough to win the competition in itself. The Portland, Oregon native marked another PR at 154-3 on her second throw to extend her margin. Lovett, with the competition won, then launched her last throw of 155-4 to end her collegiate career with a final flourish.

Yes/No: Another Pole Vault Title for Stelten?

Chaska High School alumnus Lauren Stelten will complete her track eligibility at Minnesota State, Mankato, by competing in the pole vault tonight. Her final collegiate meet will be the Division II National Championship held in Turlock, California.

Stelten is following in the footsteps of fellow national champion vaulters from Minnesota State, Amanda Frame and Katelin Rains. Between these three, the Mavericks have won six of the last eight indoor D2 pole vault national championships.

Stelten will face a quality field as she tries to duplicate her indoor success and go out on top.

Can she do it? Let us know what you think...

Yes/No: Will Lauren Stelten win the NCAA Division II women's pole vault title on Friday?

Lauren Stelten has been named an All-American at all seven previous collegiate national championships (indoors and outdoors). She was a national champion indoors in 2011 and has also finished second three times, fourth twice and sixth once. Stelten is the #2-seed in this meet as she has vaulted 12-11 1/2 outdoors in 2011. Lauren Graham is the top seed with a 13-3 1/2 clearance to her name. Stelten's all-time personal best is 13-6 1/2, achieved this year indoors.

To play our game, simply type "yes" or "no" into the subject line of an e-mail and send it to us at DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com before 7:00 P.M. CDT, Friday, May 27th. Please put your answers in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will offer our usual bonus for participants making their 2011 debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for anyone who has not played yet this year.

My answer: Yes.

Last week's question was: Will Gabriele Anderson run faster than her personal best in the Oxy 1500-meters? By the slimmest of margins, the answer was yes. Anderson bettered her top time by .04 seconds. Thirty-two contestants answered correctly this week. The top of the leader-board remain unchanged including a three-way tie atop the Yes/No standings for 2011 with Rachel Karel, Mike Henderson, and Patrick Eastman deadlocked at 12 points.

For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner, HERE.

NCAA Action Abounds Across Divisions

There's NCAA track and field action aplenty this weekend no matter which division of the collegiate sports governing body interests you most.

Athletes in NCAA Division II and Division III are competing in national championships starting today, while NCAA Division I athletes commence action in one of two "Preliminary" events which lead up to the D1 national championships in Des Moines, Iowa in two weeks.

Here's our quick preview of the NCAA goings-on ...

NCAA Division II ... In D2 action, which gets underway today at California State University - Stanislaus, Minnesota State, Mankato pole vaulter Lauren Stelten and Winona State's Mary Theisen are the Minnesota headliners.

Stelten is the reigning D2 indoor champion in the pole vault, where she cleared 13-6 1/2 for the win. At the outdoor meet, the Chaska alumnus is seeded #2 in the event. Stelten was runner-up at last year's NCAA D2 outdoor meet.

Theisen enters the meet as the #1 seed in the discus. An eighth-place finisher in the event last year, Theisen enters the meet having thrown 176-3 in 2011. Indoors this year, Theisen finished sixth in both the shot put and weight throw.

Find entry lists for the D2 meet HERE (women) and HERE (men).

Live results from the meet will be posted HERE.

NCAA Division III ... Leading the Minnesota contingent at D3 nationals in Delaware, Ohio are a pair of #3 seeds: Carleton javelin thrower Kelly Lovett and Gustavus Adolphus heptathlete Janey Helland.

Lovett, who placed fourth in the meet last year with a mark of 144-11, enters the meet with a 149-5 mark this year. Lovett competes after an upset defeat at the MIAC meet, where Concordia Moorhead's Katherine Brott, who did not qualify for nationals, edged her by a lone inch with a 131-1 throw.

Helland, the MIAC heptathlon champion this year, was the D3 pentathlon runner-up indoors, just nine points shy of the victor. Helland was a fourth-place finisher in the multi at outdoor championships last year.

Find entry lists for meet HERE (women) and HERE (men).

Find results from the meet HERE.

Division I Preliminaries ... Preliminary action in D1 will take place in Bloomington, Indiana and Eugene, Oregon this weekend.

Each preliminary meet gathers, the top 48 individual qualifiers for each event, save for the decathlon and heptathlon. The top 24 relays squads also qualify. To advance to the NCAA Championships, athletes and relays must finish in the top 12 of the respective preliminary meets.

Twenty-four University of Minnesota men will compete at the West Prelim in Eugene. The Gopher women's team is sending 16 athletes to the meet in "Tracktown, USA." The top-ranked Gopher man in the meet is pole vaulter Ben Peterson at #6. Fellow pole vaulter Samatha Sonnenberg leads the Gopher women as the #4 seed.

Winona native Elliott Heath of Stanford is the #1 seed in the 5000-meters in the meet; Justin Tyner, the Brainerd High School alumnus who attends the Air Force Academy, is the #2-seed the steeplechase.

Find Gophersports previews of the meets HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Find entry lists for West Peliminary meet HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Live results from the meet will be posted HERE.

McGregor, Gabrielson to Run Brian Kraft 5K

Seven-time USA champion Katie McGregor and Team USA Minnesota teammate Matt Gabrielson will headline the 14th annual Brian Kraft Memorial 5K on Monday, May 30.

The Memorial Day run/walk – presented by USA Track & Field Minnesota – begins at 8:30 a.m. on a course that circles Lake Nokomis in South Minneapolis. The event is a benefit for the Arnold S. Leonard Cancer Research Fund.

McGregor, USA Track and Field's Women’s Long Distance Runner of the Year in 2010, will use the race as part of her preparations for running the 10,000-meters at the USA Outdoor Track Championships in Eugene, Oregon on June 23.

Gabrielson, the runner-up at the 2008 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon, is preparing to run Grandma’s Marathon in Duluth on June 18.

Team Circuit Resumes ... USATF Minnesota Team Circuit racing will resume at the Brian Kraft Memorial as well, with open division men's and women's leaders Run N Fun looking to extend their leads in the season-long grand prix of road races.

Run N Fun's open men's team leads TC Running Company 26-23 after three of the Circuit's nine events. Collegeville is third in the standings with 20 points.

In open women's racing, RNF lead Foley and Manfield 18-17, with TC Running Company third with 16 points.

Find complete Team Circuit standings HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Find team results of the last Team Circuit event, the Medtronic TC 1 Mile, HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Grandma's to Close Registration on June 1

Registration for the 35th running of Grandma's Marathon will close after Wednesday, June 1, race officials announced yesterday.

The country’s 17th largest marathon currently has more than 7900 runners in the field for the June 18 event. The tally is up from last year's 7387 entrants.

In 2009, 8377 runners registered for the race. In the 15 years prior to that, Grandma's Marathon reached its 9500 runner capacity before race-day.

Runners can sign up for the annual Two Harbors-to-Duluth race HERE. The entry fee is $100.

Volunteers Needed ... More than 500 volunteer positions remain for the June 16-18 Grandma’s Marathon weekend. Volunteer positions include areas such as traffic and spectator control, water station assistance, medical services, racecourse entertainment, race packet pick-up, and finish area activities, officials say.

Service organizations, large groups and individuals are all welcome and encouraged to participate. Each volunteer receives an official 2011 T-shirt, refreshment tickets and an invitation to the Grandma’s Marathon volunteer party on Sunday, June 26 at Grandma’s Sports Garden.

Along with the signature marathon, Grandma's weekend features the 21st annual Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon and the 18th annual William A. Irvin 5K. The Garry Bjorklund Half Marathon is Saturday, June 18 and the William A. Irvin 5K is Friday, June 17.

Registration for those two events is closed.

In all, about 17,000 runners from around the world will participate in Grandma's Marathon weekend. For more information on any of Grandma's Marathon’s races or events, visit the event web-site, HERE. To volunteer, please or call (218) 727-0947.

Anderson Snips .04 from 1500m Personal Best

Gabriele Anderson snipped four-one-hundredths of a second off of her 1500-meter personal best at the Occidental High Performance Meet in Los Angeles, California on Saturday night.

Anderson, one of a handful of elite Minnesota athletes competing in the meet, finished 10th in the fastest section of the women's in 4:12.02. Katie Follet won the race in 4:07.44.

Heather Kampf, Anderson's Team USA Minnesota teammate, narrowly missed improving upon her 800-meter PR at the meet. Kampf clocked 2:01.08 for fourth in the fastest section of the 800m -- just shy of her 2:01.05 personal best from 2007.

Alice Schmidt won the women's 800m in 1:59.48. Burnsville native Laura Januszewski ran 2:04.46 to finish runner-up in the "B" section of the women's 800-meter.

In the men's 1500-meter, Minnetonka High School alumnus Will Leer ran 3:37.01 for fifth in the premier section of the event, won by Andrew Wheating in 3;36.42.

Also of note at the meet, three-time Medtronic TC 1 Mile champion David Torrence finished third in the 800-meters in 1:45.43. TC 1 Mile women's champion Sara Hall finished fifth in the 3000-meter steeplechase in 9:50.41.

You can watch video of the races at Occidental HERE (Flotrack) and HERE (RunnerSpace).

Find complete results of the meet HERE.

Yes/No: A New 1500m PR for Gabriele Anderson?

Team USA Minnesota teammates Heather Kampf and Gabriele Anderson are getting set to compete in Saturday night's Occidental High Performance Meet in Los Angeles. The dynamic middle distance duo is coming off a 2-3 finish at the USA 1 Mile Road Championships in Minneapolis last week where Kampf ran 4:36.3 for second and Anderson was third in 4:36.9.

Kampf, who blasted off to Shanghai, China after the TC 1 Mile to run 800-meters in 2:03.85 last Sunday, plans to race her signature distance again at Oxy. She'll face the likes of Geena Gall, Maggie Vessey, Alice Schmidt, and Minnesota native Laura Januszewski in the event.

Anderson, the focus of this week's Yes/No, will compete at 1500-meters against a strong field of her own, including Angela Bizzari, Shannon Rowbury, Trenierre Moser, and Katie Follet.

The startlists for the meet can be found HERE.

So here's our question ...

Yes/No: Will Gabriele Anderson run faster than her personal best in the Oxy 1500-meters?

Anderson's personal best is currently 4;12.06, set last summer in Europe. The last time Anderson ran 1500-meters, she gave her PR a good scare, running 4:12.35 for third-place in the invitational 1500-meters at the Drake Relays in late April. Earlier this year, Anderson finished 3rd in the USA Indoor Championships. Last year, she was 7th at the USA Outdoor Championships.

To play our game, simply type "yes" or "no" into the subject line of an e-mail and send it to us at DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com before 10:00 P.M. CDT, Saturday, May 21st. Please put your answers in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will offer our usual bonus for participants making their 2011 debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for anyone who has not played yet this year.

My answer: Yes.

Last week's question was: Will Ryan Hall run faster than 4:00.0 at the USA 1 Mile Road Championships? Suffice to say, running your first mile race in five years just 24 days after running a sub-2:05 marathon is not a recipe for success. The correct answer, which a whopping 37 players gave, was "no." The results left a three-way tie atop the Yes/No standings for 2011 -- between Rachel Karel, Mike Henderson, and Patrick Eastman, all having amassed 11 points.

We also played Pick Ten last week. Pat Foley won the contest with 48 points, but Bryan Tolscer leads the year-long Pick Ten standings with 103.

For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner, HERE.

TC 10 Mile to Feature Equalizer Bonus

When the country’s top male and female distance runners gather in the Twin Cities on October 2 for the 2011 USA Men’s and Women’s 10 Mile Championships, held in conjunction with the Medtronic TC 10 Mile, more than just a pair of USA titles and two $12,000 winners’ checks will be up for grabs.

Thanks to a unique Equalizer Bonus feature, a $10,000 prize will wait at the finish line for the first USA Champion to break the tape -- man or woman. The women’s USA Championship field will start its race ahead of the USA men’s field. In the final strides of the race, race officials hope the top male and female runners will battle in the shadow of the State Capitol for the lucrative bonus.

“The Equalizer Bonus should be a thrilling addition to the USA 10 Mile Championships which have been great events for us in the past,” Virginia Brophy Achman, Executive Director of Twin Cities In Motion said in a media release. “Just imagine the excitement of having our last two USA champions Abdi Abdirahman and Katie McGregor racing each other in the homestretch with $10,000 on the line!"

In December 2010, USA Track & Field awarded Twin Cities In Motion the rights to host both the 2011 and 2012 USA Men’s and Women’s 10 Mile Championships. For the last four years, the Medtronic TC 10 Mile, dubbed the “Shortcut to the Capitol,” has hosted the USA 10 Mile Championship for men or women in alternating years.

“We always look forward to USA Championship races at Twin Cities In Motion events because we know that we'll see great performances,” said Jim Estes, Associate Marketing Director and LDR Programs for USATF. “The Medtronic TC10 Mile will be ideal for a fitness-check for U.S. athletes as they begin their preparations for the Olympic Trials Marathon in January and with the added $10,000 bonus on the line, we're sure to see an exciting finish.”

A total of $74,000 in prize and bonus money is available to USA Championship runners in what will be the richest USA 10 Mile Championship in history. In addition to funding the Equalizer Bonus prize, Twin Cities In Motion has bumped the USA 10 Mile prize purse up to $30,000 for each gender. Two additional $2,000 bonuses are available if the winners break the Medtronic TC 10 Mile course record.

Abdirahman holds the men’s course record at 46:35 set in 2009; Duluth native Kara Goucher holds the women’s record with her 53:16 clocking from 2008.

Goucher on USA Marathon Squad ... for Now

Earlier this week, Kara Goucher was named to the USA squad for the IAAF World Track and Field Championships to be held in Daegu, Korea in September. The Duluth native, however, says she may give up the spot to compete at 10,000-meters in the meet instead.

Goucher explained the situation on her blog yesterday, HERE.


She said she plans to compete in the 10,000m at the USA Outdoor Track and Field Championships to be held in Eugene, Oregon in June with the intent of making the USA team in that event. If she does -- the top three finishers in the USA Outdoor 10,000m are eligible to make the team -- she says she'll forgo the marathon in favor of the 25-lapper.

In 2007, Goucher won a surprise bronze medal at the World Championships 10,000m held in Osaka, Japan. Two years later, at the World Championships in Berlin, Goucher finished 10th in marathon.

Running the marathon in Daegu poses some tricky timing for Goucher. Having run Boston last month and planning to compete in the Olympic Trials Marathon in January in Houston, running the World Championships marathon would mean running three marathons in a nine-month span.

Currently, the USA women's marathon team for Daegu is composed of Goucher, her Berlin teammate Tera Moody, Olympian Colleen De Reuck, Kathy Newberry, and Alissa McKaig. If Goucher abandons her spot on the team, alternate Zoila Gomez will run in her place.

Photo by Sean Hartnett.

Ewen, Sandle Named Athletes of the Month

Maggie Ewen and Michael Sandle, two of Minnesota's top high school field event stars, have been named Athletes of the Month for May by USA Track and Field Minnesota.

Ewen, a sophomore at St. Francis High School, is honored for breaking the Minnesota all-time high school record in the discus at the Saints Invitational earlier this month. Ewen marked a throw of 165-feet, 9-inches, which bettered Jessica Cagle of Grand Rapids throw of 162-4 from 2008.

Sandle, a senior at Eden Prairie High School, is recognized for his triple jump victory at the Hamline Elite Meet in April. Sandle established a new meet record with a jump of 50-3 1/4 which fell just short of Reondo Davis' 1999 state all-time best of 50-4.

USA Track & Field Minnesota selects Athletes of the Month to honor excellence in track and field and its related sports in Minnesota. USA Track & Field is the governing body of the sport in the United States and the Minnesota Association of USATF sanctions and sponsors track and field, cross country, road racing, and racewalking events for athletes of all ages in the state.

MSU Moorhead Men Win NSIC Crown; Johnnies, Tommie Women Top MIAC

Minnesota State Moorhead's men's track and field team now has a matching set of NSIC Championship hardware.

The Dragons, the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference Indoor Champions, won the NSIC outdoor title over the weekend with a 162-106.5 win over St. Cloud State in Aberdeen, South Dakota.

Moorhead was powered by sprint star Derek Bredy, who won the individual titles at 100 and 200-meter and anchored his team's 4 x 100-meter relay. Brady was honored as the meet's high point performer. Laquone Robinson, who was named the NSIC's Field Event Athlete of the Year, won the 110-meter hurdles and finished third in the decathlon, third in the long jump, fourth in the triple jump, and seventh in the high jump.

Augustana College of South Dakota won the NSIC women's title. Winona State was the top Minnesota school in the meet, finishing third.

Winona State’s Mary Theisen was named the NSIC Field Athlete of the Year. Theisen won the shot put with a mark of 48-10 and dominated the discus with a meet record throw of 176-3.

Find complete NSIC results HERE.

MIAC Championships

St. John's won a balanced contest among five teams for the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference men's title, while the St. Thomas women rallied to win a tight contest with hosts Gustavus.

The Johnnie, who only tied for fourth at the MIAC Indoor Championships, edged Hamline 141 to 137 for the win. Gustavus was third with 126 and two other school scored 100 points or more. St. Thomas, the winners of the last three MIAC outdoor titles and the MIAC Indoor champions, finished sixth.

Hamline's narrow loss marks the third time in the last two years that the Pipers have been within ten points of the MIAC champion only to finish runner-up.

In women's competition, Gustavus led St. Thomas 91.5 to 73.5 with ten events to run, but the Tommies then outscored the Gusties 70-41 to rally for its 11-point victory. The title is St. Thomas' seventh consecutive MIAC outdoor crown.

Find complete MIAC results HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Moen Leads 2-3-5 Team USA Minn. Finish

Josh Moen led a 2nd, 3rd, 5th-place finish for Team USA Minnesota at Saturday's USA 25K Championships in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Behind Moen's personal record 1:16:09 runner-up result, defending champion Andrew Carlson finished third in 1:16:35, and Matt Gabrielson was fifth in 1:17:50. 2008 Medtronic Twin Cities Marathon champion Fernando Cabada won the race in 1:15:41.

In the women’s race, Bloomington's Jen Houck finished 5th in 1:30:06; Team USA Minnesota's Emily Brown was seventh in 1:31:55.

According to the Team USA Minnesota media release, Moen and Carlson went out with the leaders and were still with a front pack of five runners at mile 7. At that point, the lead pack was reduced to three, with Moen and Carlson staying in contention until mile 12 when Cabada made a surge and separated himself from the Team USA Minnesota duo.

“The race went pretty well for me,” Moen said. “The first few miles people were relaxed and the pace was sporadic, anywhere from 4:40 to 5 minutes (the opening mile was run in 4:39). By the seventh mile, three of us worked together to pull away from the other two runners in the lead pack. At mile eleven in the rolling hills, Andrew put a gap on me but I caught him and just pushed hard to put a little distance between us.

“With two miles to go, the monkey jumped on my back and I was worried Andrew was going to catch me," he added. "It wasn’t until the last quarter of a mile that I knew I was in the clear to take second place. I wanted to win this race but I think I ran pretty smart. I was in it the whole time.”

The USA 25k Championships were part of the 34th annual Fifth Third River Bank Run, which starts and finishes in downtown Grand Rapids and is the largest 25k road race in the country.

Iowa Stops Gopher Track Streak at Five Titles

The University of Minnesota's string of men's Big Ten track and field titles ended at five this weekend after host Iowa edged the Gophers 125.5 to 123 at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships in Iowa City over the weekend.

Entering the final event, the Gophers led the Hawkeyes by half a point -- 118 to 117.5 -- but the Iowa 4 x 400-meter relay team finished second, while the Gophers could only muster 4th-place, earnig Iowa its first Big Ten outdoor track title since 1967.

The Gophers had won the last three Big Ten indoor titles and were seeking a third-straight Big Ten outdoor championship at the meet.

“Iowa is a team that has been building and pointing to having the Big Ten meet at home for some time,” Gopher head coach Steve Plasencia said. “They put together a great final day. Our team competed to the end and we are very proud of them. It was a close, very close finish.”

The Gophers left Iowa with a pair of individual Big Ten titlists: Hassan Mead won the conference crown in the 10,000-meters and Quentin Mege won the hammer throw.

Iowa had coach Larry Wieczorek, a member of Iowa's last Big Ten champion squad, was moved by his team winning the title at home.

"It's almost impossible to put into words this feeling,"Iowa coach Larry Wieczorek said "We are so grateful and blessed to have these championships in Iowa City. I couldn't ask for anything better. The team effort - through the wind and rain. I was praying during that final 4x400. I made up my mind I wouldn't ask the Good Lord for another thing in my life."

Find day-by-recaps of the Gophers' action, HERE, on GopherSports.com.

The Gopher women finished seventh as a team at the Big Ten Championships, scoring 63.5 points in the three-day meet. Ohio State won its first Big Ten women's track title with 135 points.

“I’m very disappointed by our team finish overall; it’s just not what this team is all about,” Gopher head coach Matt Bingle said. “With that said, though, we did have some excellent individual performances, like Nikki Swenson, Chimerem Okoroji, Sharyn Dahl and the 4x400 relay that should be applauded. We’ll get back to work and make our team better.”

Find recaps of the team's efforts HERE.

Complete Big Ten results can be found HERE.

Conference Meet Results' Links ...

Find results for the weekend's conference meet action here ...

Big Tens

Northern Sun

MIAC: Women * Men

Record-Setting Wins for Torrence and Hall;Kampf, Anderson Place in USA 1 Mile

Editor's Note: Some Friday the 13th bad luck hit DtB this morning when its host, Blogger, experienced service problems. We were unable to update the site starting late last night, and it appears some recent posts have been lost. We apologize for the problems and are crossing our fingers against their return.

David Torrence won his third straight USA Men’s 1 Mile Road title and Sara Hall won the USA Women’s 1 Mile Road title that eluded her two years ago at last night’s Medtronic TC 1 Mile. Both runners broke course records and earned $10,000 time bonuses in addition to their $4000 winners’ checks.

Torrence, of Oakland, Calif., clocked 3:58.4 in victory, bettering the course record of 3:59.3 he set at his first TC 1 Mile in 2009. As he did in both of his previous triumphs, Torrence kicked to victory after the race made its final bend on downtown Minneapolis’ Nicollet Mall.

Aaron Braun of Flagstaff, Ariz. finished second in 4:01.2; Craig Miller of Madison, Wisc. was third in 4:01.3. Ryan Hall, Sara’s husband, a surprise entrant in the race held only 24 days after he ran the fastest marathon ever run by an American at Boston, finished 13th in 4:17.2.

Torrence was content to follow the brisk early pace of Hall and James Hatch in the race’s early-going. On the course’s lazy, mostly downhill meander to the finish, he marked a late-race surge by Miller and withstood a final charge by Braun before kicking to the win.

“They got out hard. We came through the quarter in 58 seconds, and going uphill, that’s pretty fast,” Torrence said. “I was pretty shocked, to be honest. Everyone was right there in a big group. I was in second or third most of the race. I bided my time, bided my time and when we took that turn I put the hammer down and I guess no one could respond.”

Torrence has won every USA Men’s Road Mile Championship contested. He is the only athlete to have broken 4:00 on the TC 1 Mile course, doing it twice and earning the $10,000 bonus for the feat each time.

“I feel like I just cemented myself in history a little bit,” an elated Torrence said. “Three in a row, that’s awesome. It’s just a great feeling to win three titles in a row and get the bonus.”

Sara Hall, who finished runner-up at theevent in 2009 behind Shannon Rowbury, caught and passed early break-away leader Amy Mortimer in the race’s late-going for an emphatic win in 4:30.8. The mark trumped Rowbury’s course record of 4:33.4. Hall earned her $10,000 bonus for breaking 4:32 on the course.

Mortimer, of Johnson City, Tenn., who had finished runner-up to Hall at a road mile Des Moines, Iowa last month, made a bold attempt to turn the tables in Minneapolis that started with a 65-second opening quarter-mile. At the half-way mark, it looked like the Kansas State alumnus might have stolen the race, until Hall bridged the gap to a slowing Mortimer.

“I tried to go right by, because when you are leading it is hard mentally when somebody catches you,” Hall explained. “She ran a great race. The crowd was so loud. I thought maybe there was someone catching me. I think they were just excited I was close to breaking the record. It was a relief to cross that finish line."

A pair of Minnesotans claimed the next finishing spots: Heather Kampf of Minneapolis was second in 4:35.9; Gabriele Anderson of Perham was third with 4:36.9. Mortimer ended up 5th in 4:37.3, one place and two tenths of a second behind Lauren Bonds of Durham, N.C.

“My strategy was to stay a little off the lead pack and make a final kick,” Kampf said in a Team USA Minnesota media release. “I tried to stay patient and at 200 meters to go I was still in sixth place. Then I just started to pick off runners to get that second spot. I had some great competitors out there so I wasn’t sure if I could get in the top three. I am really happy with how everything turned out. I love racing in Minneapolis because there were a lot of people cheering us on.”

Anderson, who said at the pre-race media conference that she was eager to do more that place in high level races, came away pleased with her third-place finish.

“It is hard to know what to expect with a road mile,” Anderson said. “I went out behind the leaders and ran the tangents. I was part of the chase pack at 400 meters to go and was glad to get in the top three. It was a good day for Team USA Minnesota. We don’t get a lot of opportunities to connect with people who support us in Minneapolis so this was a lot of fun.”

Despite drizzly weather and temperature in the low 50s, nearly 2800 runners participated in the Medtronic TC 1 Mile, which included races waves dedicated to corporate teams, masters runners, and families.

Find complete results of the event HERE,

You can watch the races for yourself, below ...

USA 1 Mile Road Championships Round-Up

Downtown Minneapolis plays host the USA 1 Mile Road Championships on the Nicollet Mall. tonight. The elite men's and women's races are held in conjunction with the Medtronic TC 1 Mile.

USA Championship racing start at 7:53 p.m. (women) and 8:03 (men). Live web-casting of the races begins at 7:45.pm HERE.

The event kicks off at 6:50 p.m. with the TC 1 Mile "Friends & Family" wave and builds up to the championships with corporate, masters, Team Circuit, and open waves.

Weather forecasts suggest cloudy skies with a 30% chance of showers at race-time, with temperatures about 60 degrees.

Find a startlist for the USA Championship races HERE, but note that Morgan Uceny and Garrett Heath are late scratches.

Follow that latest from the event via your editor's Twitter feed @cmahler22 or with the hash-tag #tc1mile. (This afternoon we posted some media luncheon tidbits from the likes of David Torrence, Ryan and Sara Hall, and Gabriele Anderson.)

DtB will have full coverage of the race on Friday morning.

Pick 10: Big Ten, NSIC, and MIAC

Minnesota running fans should have enough to keep them busy this week. We know all about the big USA 1 Mile Road Championships on Thursday. But track and field aficionados will be sure to keep an eye on the the collegiate conference meets occurring this weekend. The Gophers will head to Iowa City for the Big Ten Championship. The NSIC will gather the area's Division II squads in Aberdeen, South Dakota. And finally the MIAC holds its annual outdoor conference meet at Gustavus Adolphus College.

Pick Ten has a simple concept: predict the finish place for each of 10 Minnesota athletes at the Outdoor Conference meets. You will score points for each athlete who scores at or above the finish place you predict for them, following the 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 scoring system.

For example: If you pick Alena Brooks to place first in the 400, and she places first, you get 10 points. If you pick Brooks to place first and she finishes second, you get zero points. If you pick Brooks to finish third in the race and she places first, second or third, you get 6 points, since that's the place you picked him for.

To play Pick Ten, cut and paste the list of names/events below into an e-mail and add your place predictions -- 1st or 2nd or 3rd...8th. Send your predictions by 1:30 P.M. CST on Friday, May 13th to DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com. Make sure your full name is in the e-mail. As with our Yes/No contests, we don't offer any prizes, so no one needs to fear running afoul of NCAA or other anti-gambling regulations. (The glory you could earn by winning, however, is immeasurable!)

We'll announce the winner of this week's contest and compile results of all of the year's Pick Ten contests to name a grand champion for 2011.

Pick 10 ... Outdoor Conference Track and Field Championships:

Alena Brooks - Big Ten - 400 Meters:

Todea-Kay Willis - Big Ten - Long Jump:

Harun Abda - Big Ten - 800:

Quentin Mege - Big Ten - Hammer Throw:

Brittney Moffatt - NSIC - Steeplechase:

John Knebel - NSIC - 110 Hurdles:

Nick Trisko - NSIC - 200 Meters:

Robyn Wernberg - MIAC - Discus Throw:

Katherine Brott - MIAC - Javelin:

Steve Groskreutz - MIAC - 400 Hurdles:

To Help You Make Your Picks ...

Here are the heat sheets/rankings for the meets:

Big Ten

NSIC

MIAC - Men, Women

The Big Ten and NSIC have not released heat sheets yet so the link is simply a performance list for the conference. The athletes listed may not necessarily compete in that event (or someone not listed could compete in it).

Here are the current rankings for these athletes according to the heat sheets/performance lists:

Alena Brooks - Gophers - #1 time in the 400 this year. Todea-Kay Willis - Gophers - #1 jump in the long jump. Harun Abda - Gophers - #4 in the 800. Quentin Mege - Gophers - #3 in the Hammer Throw.

Brittney Moffatt - SCSU - #2 in the 3k SC. John Knebel - UMD - #4 in the 110 hurdles. Nick Trisko - SCSU - #3 in the 200 Meters. Robyn Wernberg - Hamline - #2 in the Discus. Katherine Brott - Concordia Moorhead - #2 in the Javelin. Steve Groskreutz - Gustavus Adolphus - #2 in the 400 Hurdles.

Good luck!

Last week's Yes/No question was: Will the winner of the men's 1500 meters at the Meet of Saints run faster than the winner of the men's 1500 meters at the Meet of the UnSaintly? The correct answer was no. Hamline's Ian Campbell ran 3:54.82 for the fastest 1500 of the day. Sixteen contestants answered correctly this week. Rachel Karel continues to lead and now has eleven points.

For full standings of both contests, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner.

Yes/No: Will Ryan Hall Break Four Minutes?

It is not every day that you get to watch a sub-2:05 marathoner sprint down Nicollet Mall. Ryan Hall may not be the only great runner who will compete in the USA 1 Mile Road Championship on Thursday but he is definitely the biggest attraction. Only twenty-four days after running the fastest marathon ever by an American, Hall will try to attempt an uncommon double --marathon/mile.

Hall has never run sub-4 minutes for a mile. However he has spent most of his post-high school career running much longer distances. Hall did run 3:42 for 1500 meters in high school which is roughly equivalent to a 4:00 mile.

Perhaps you can see where we're going with this...

Yes/No: Will Ryan Hall run faster than 4:00:0 at the USA 1 Mile Road Championships?

Ryan Hall will certainly have competition at the Medtronic TC 1 Mile. Two-time defending champ David Torrence ran 3:59 two years ago and returns looking for a three-peat. A familiar name in Minnesota - Garrett Heath - will return to his home state to contest the mile as well. Heath has been one of the top milers in the country this year and ran 3:55 indoors.

To play our game, simply type "yes" or "no" into the subject line of an e-mail and send it to us at DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com before 8:00 P.M. CST, Thursday, May 12th. Please put your answers in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will offer a bonus for participants making their 2011 debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for anyone who has not played yet this year.

My answer: Yes

Last week's question was: Will the winner of the men's 1500 meters at the Meet of Saints run faster than the winner of the men's 1500 meters at the Meet of the UnSaintly? The correct answer was no. Hamline's Ian Campbell ran 3:54.82 for the fastest 1500 of the day. Sixteen contestants answered correctly this week. Rachel Karel continues to lead and now has eleven points.

For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner.

USA 1 Mile Championship Field Announced;Defending Champ Pierce a Late Scratch

Talented men’s and women’s fields will race to become the country’s champion road miler at the USA 1 Mile Road Championships held in conjunction with Thursday’s Medtronic TC 1 Mile in downtown Minneapolis.

Aspiring Olympic athletes will race for $22,500 in prize money, plus a pair of $10,000 time bonuses.

In the men’s race, a pack of hungry contenders – including an unlikely challenger -- seek to dethrone two-time USA Champion David Torrence of Oakland, California, the only athlete to break the four-minute barrier on the Nicollet Mall course.

In women’s competition, thanks to a late scratch by defending champion Anna Pierce, a new USA Champion will emerge from a talented field eager for glory at the sports’ signature distance.

Racing kicks off at 6:50 p.m. on Thursday, May 12, culminating with the USA Championships races at 7:53 p.m. (women) and 8:03 p.m. (men).

Two-time men’s champion Torrence has established a special bond with the Medtronic TC 1 Mile course. After a surprise USA Championships victory on it in 2009 – a sub-four-minute win that launched his professional running career – Torrence returned in 2010 to confirm his position as one of the country’s top milers. The savvy racer is the favorite for a third-straight title and another shot at the $10,000 bonus reserved for a sub-4:00 champion.

Torrence will face a field of challengers eager to topple the defending champion and advance their own careers. 2010 USA 1 Mile third-place finisher Jordan Horn of Flagstaff, Arizona returns to improve upon his 4:05.7 clocking a year ago. Craig Miller of Madison, Wisconsin, who finished third at April’s Boston Athletic Association Mile, held in conjunction with the Boston Marathon, should also vie for the USA title.

But the most intriguing race entrant is undoubtedly Ryan Hall of Mammoth Lakes, California. Only 24-days removed from running the fastest marathon ever by an American, Hall, who hasn’t raced the mile distance since 2006, will attempt to trade strides with race-sharpened mile specialists.

Hall has miling success in his background, however: he ran the 1500-meter equivalent of a four-flat mile as a high school senior. Whether he can find that ability after such a long layoff from the event -- and so soon after his all-time best 2:04:58, 4th-place finish at the Boston Marathon on April 18 -- is a captivating question.

If there’s a favorite in the women’s, it’s probably Ryan Hall’s wife Sara Hall. The runner-up at the 2009 USA 1 Mile Road Championship held at the TC 1 Mile, Hall is fresh off a road mile win last month at the Grand Blue Mile held in conjunction with the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa. In the race, Hall out-ran four women who are slated to compete in the USA Championships, including last year’s USA 1 Mile 4th-place finisher Amy Mortimer, the Grand Blue Mile champ in 2010.

Morgan Uceny, who trains in Mammoth Lakes, California where the Halls live, can’t be excluded from the favorite’s list, however, despite racing in only her first Medtronic TC 1 Mile. Uceny comes to Minnesota after ripping through a winter racing season in which she established new indoor personal bests at 800m and 1500m. If there’s a big pack approaching the finish line, Uceny’s half-mile speed – she’s run 1:58.67 for 800-meters – could be a difference-maker.

In the deep pack of contenders are five Minnesota-affiliated runners who could make a national-class mark in their home state. Team USA Minnesota runners Gabriele Anderson, Meghan Peyton (Armstrong), Jamie Cheever and Heather Kampf (Dorniden) are entered in their home state race. Joining them is Burnsville High School alumnus Laura Januszewski. Last year Kampf finished 6th in the race.

The women’s field will also race for a $10,000 bonus if the champion runs under 4:32.

Find complete elite start lists HERE.

Team USA Minnesota: Busy, Busy, Busy

Team USA Minnesota distance runners are scheduled for another busy week of competitions this week. Five athletes are slated to compete at the USA 1 Mile Road Championships in Minneapolis on Thursday night and another four are traveling to the USA 25K Championships in Grand Rapids, Michigan, on Saturday.

In addition, Heather Kampf will be jetting off to Shanghai, China, to compete in the Diamond League’s Dunlop Golden Grand Prix meet on Sunday.

At the USA 1 Mile Championships, part of the Medtronic TC 1 Mile evening of races on Thursday, competing for the organization will be Kampf, Gabriele Anderson, Jamie Cheever, Meghan Armstrong, and Chris Rombough. The women will race in the elite women’s field which will run down Nicollet Mall starting at 7:53 p.m., and Rombough will be part of the men’s elite field which races at 8:03 p.m.

Kampf’s best in the mile is 4:30.95 and Anderson’s best is 4:31.05, both set on the road at the Fifth Avenue Mile in New York last fall. Cheever has run 4:39.5 in the distance and Armstrong has posted 4:40.5. Rombough’s PR is 4:04.95 in the mile set indoors. At the 2010 USA 1 Mile Championships, Kampf finished sixth and Armstrong was 10th. This is the third straight year that the Medtronic TC 1 Mile has hosted the mile championships.

After the mile race, Kampf will head for the airport the next morning to travel to Shanghai to run the 800 meters at the Dunlop Golden Grand Prix on Sunday, May 15. The meet is part of the 2011 Samsung Diamond League series of meets. Kampf has a best of 2:01.05 and is the only U.S. entrant in a field of international women in the 800m.

Toeing the line at the USA 25k Championships on Saturday will be Andrew Carlson, Matt Gabrielson, Josh Moen, and Emily Brown. The championships are part of the 34th annual Fifth Third River Bank Run which starts and finishes in downtown Grand Rapids and is the largest 25K road race in the country.

Carlson is the defending champion having posted 1:14:42 at the 2010 race. Gabrielson has a best of 1:16:42 in the distance, also set at the Grand Rapids race, while Moen's best of 1:18:59 was set when he won the 2010 City of Lakes 25K in Minneapolis. The event will be the longest race of Brown’s career. She posted 41:11 at the Lilac Bloomsday 12k on May 1.

Gophers' Hassan Mead Profiled by StarTribune

University of Minnesota distance running star Hassan Mead was the subject of a profile in this morning's StarTribune.

You can read the Roman Augustoviz story HERE.

Mead, who will compete at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships in Iowa City this weekend, is hoping to complete a successful comeback from a collapsed lung suffered last fall.

Mead, who will graduate on Sunday with a communications degree, still has a full year of collegiate eligibility which he plans to use as a U 0f M graduate student in sports management.

Camp to Help Aspiring Professional Runners

Team USA Minnesota is set to host the inaugural RunPro Camp on July 14-17 for aspiring professional distance runners. Applications for the camp, which is designed to help aspiring post-collegiate runners make the transition to the professional ranks, are due by May 14.

The camp is a companion to a web site www.RunPro.com that was launched in February. Runners who are completing their NCAA eligibility this spring, or within the last year, are encouraged to apply. The camp, as well as the web site, was created and developed by Team USA Minnesota with the support of a 2010 Excellence Challenge Grant from USA Track & Field.

“We’re looking for 800 up through 10,000 meter runners to attend this camp,” said Dennis Barker, coach for the Team USA Minnesota Distance Training Center and camp coordinator. “The goal is to increase the number of U.S. middle distance and distance runners who continue to train at a high level after college with the eventual outcome of improving U.S. performances in distance events both nationally and internationally.”

The interactive camp will provide opportunities for runners to meet coaches and athletes from professional training centers, learn about shoe company requirements for sponsorship, determine what type of representation (agents) would be best, find out about elite race recruitment, and how to seek both financial and health support, along with various USATF rules governing professional running including anti-doping compliance.

“This isn’t a camp to learn how to run or how to run better,” said Barker. “It’s a camp to give promising U.S. distance runners the knowledge, tools and support they need to pursue a professional running career. The most universal questions asked by athletes coming out of college include can they make a living running professionally, where should they train and do they need an agent. The camp covers these subjects plus things they need to know that they probably haven’t thought of yet.”

The RunPro Camp will have USATF representatives in attendance, along with training center coaches, shoe company representatives, financial and health experts, agents, and elite race recruiters. There will also be athletes who are already running professionally who will share their experiences on turning pro.

Travel and lodging assistance will be provided to qualified runners. At least 20 athletes are expected to attend this first-time camp. For more information, go to www.runpro.com.

Ryan Hall to Run Medtronic TC 1 Mile

Ryan Hall, the fastest marathoner in American history, will test his mettle against the sport’s other signature distance – the mile – next Thursday evening at the Medtronic TC 1 Mile which hosts the USA 1 Mile Road Championships, the event announced today.

Hall, who ran 2:04:58 for 4th place at last month’s Boston Marathon, is a late addition to the event which features two-time defending champion David Torrence. Hall, who is known for his long-distance running exploits – he holds the American Record in the Half Marathon at 59:43 – said a conversation with a marathoning legend prompted the decision to run in the Medtronic TC 1 Mile.

“Last weekend I was chatting with Rod Dixon (the 1983 New York City Marathon champion and a 3:53 miler) and he advised me to break four minutes for the mile as soon as possible,” Hall revealed. “While I realize it may take a number of tries to go sub-four, it is a lifelong goal of mine and I believe that if I achieve it, it will certainly help my marathon. I am extremely excited to kick off my spring season at the Medtronic TC 1 Mile where I will compete in my first mile race since 2006.”

Hall’s best times in the mile and its metric equivalent, the 1500-meters, go back to his days as a high school star in Big Bear City, California. Hall ran the mile in 4:04.04 as a high school junior and a 3:42.70 1500-meters, roughly equal to a 4:00 mile, as a senior.

“We couldn’t be more pleased and excited to have Ryan choose our race,” Twin Cities In Motion Executive Director Virginia Brophy Achman said. “Frankly, the call from Ryan to enter the USA 1 Mile surprised us, but his stature in the sport and his desire to test himself against the mile distance at our event has us all eager to see what he can do.”

Hall will race the Medtronic TC 1 Mile just 24 days after running the Boston Marathon. The Stanford graduate led early in the race at Boston and held on to finish fourth overall. Although Hall’s 2:04:58 at Boston is the fastest marathon ever run by an American, it is not considered the American Record due to Boston’s net downhill course lay-out and the aiding effect winds have on the point-to-point course.

Hall’s wife Sara, the 2009 USA Women’s 1 Mile Road Championships runner-up, will also compete at the Medtronic TC 1 Mile.

Find more information on the Medtronic TC 1 Mile HERE.

Maggie Ewen Sets New State Discus Mark

St. Francis sophomore Maggie Ewen has bettered the Minnesota all-time record in the girls' discus, KARE 11 reported yesterday HERE.

Ewen, who won the discus and shot put at last Friday's Hamline Elite Meet, threw 165-9 at the Saints' Invite on Tuesday. The throw bettered Jessica Cagle of Grand Rapids mark of 162-4, set in 2008.

KARE 11 followed Ewen at the Elite Meet HERE.

Yes/No: Saint or UnSaint at 1500-meters?

Minnesota collegiate teams are making their final adjustments this week before running in conference meets next weekend. The MIAC squads, as well as a few other area schools, will mostly be running their last tune-up at either the Meet of Saints or the Meet of the UnSaintly. The two meets will be hosted by St. Olaf and Hamline respectively. Both meets occur on Saturday, although Hamline will feature some field events on Friday.

We will try to compare the two meets with our question about the winning time in the 1500-meters. Let us know what you think with this question...

Yes/No: Will the winner of the men's 1500 meters at the Meet of Saints run faster than the winner of the men's 1500 meters at the Meet of the UnSaintly?

The Meet of Saints generally features St. Olaf, St. Thomas and St. Johns battling it out. The Meet of the UnSaintly lists these possible participants: Hamline, Augsburg, Bethel, Carleton, Concordia-St. Paul, Gustavus, Macalester, St. Kates, St. Thomas, St. Scholastica, UofM, UMD, UM-Mankato, UM-Moorhead.

Entries into the Meet of the UnSaintly indicate Matt Schafer with the fastest seed time - 3:56.21. Schafer is followed by Ian Campbell of Hamline at 4:01.50.

Apple Raceberry Jam maintains an honor roll for the MIAC outdoor season. The 1500 list can give some idea of which meet will host the stronger field of middle distance runners this year.

To play our game, simply type "yes" or "no" into the subject line of an e-mail and send it to us at DtBFantasy [AT] gmail [DOT] com before 11:30 A.M. CST, Saturday, May 7th. Please put your answers in the subject line of the e-mail and make sure your full name appears somewhere in the e-mail. We will offer a bonus for participants making their 2011 debut in Yes/No - a correct answer will be worth two points for anyone who has not played yet this year.

My answer: Yes

Last week's question was: Will six or more meet records be tied or broken at the Hamline Elite Meet on Friday? The correct answer was yes. There were seven new meet records this year. Rachel Karel is now alone in first place with ten points.

For all the results, please visit DtB Fantasy Corner.

Traditional Powers Lead Team Circuit

Two races into the 2011 USATF Minnesota Team Circuit, sponsored by Twin Cities In Motion and Lifetime Fitness the traditionally strong road racing squads from Run N Fun and TC Running Company are again battling for supremacy in the open men's and women's divisions.

The Run N Fun men's open team leads TC Running Company 18-16 after scoring of the St. Patrick's Day Human Race and Saturday's Get in Gear 10K. Last year, RNF beat defending champs TCRC for the men's open Team Circuit title.

TC Running company currently leads the standings in the men's masters and grand masters divisions.

In women's open competition, Run N Fun, the winner of five-straight women's open Team Circuit titles, trails TC Running Company by one point in the 2011 standings. TCRC has 14 points; RNF has 13.

Run N Fun leads the women's masters division of the circuit; the Minnesota Distance Running Association tops the women's grand masters' table.

Complete Team Circuit standings can be found HERE (men) and HERE (women).

Team results from the Get in Gear 10K can be found HERE (men) and HERE (women).

The next Team Circuit event on the schedule is next Thursday's Medtronic TC 1 Mile in Minneapolis.

Team USA Minnesota, Busy and Successful

Team USA Minnesota's distance runners were active over the weekend -- its members competing in four separate competitions across the country.

Here's a run-down of their exploits:

Matt Gabrielson stayed closest to home and emerged victorious at the Get in Gear 10K on Saturday, becoming the first Minnesota man to win the event since Curt Kotsonas did so in 1996. Gabrielson, who will compete next at the USA 25K Championships in Grand Rapids Michigan on May 14, clocked 29:45.

Former Team USA Minnesota athlete Michelle Frey won the Get in Gear women's 10K race in 34:49.

At the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Gabriele Anderson finished third in the invitational 1500-meter race in 4:12.35, just off her personal best of 4:12.06 set last June. Heather Kampf finished sixth in the event in 4:17.22. Both Anderson and Kampf plan to compete next at the USA 1 Mile Championships in Minneapolis on May 12.

In Spokane on Sunday, Josh Moen finished 10th at the Lilac Bloomsday 12K in 35:21. Moen was the top American runner in the race. Moen will join Gabrielson for the USA 25K in two weeks.

In the women’s field at Bloomsday, Emily Brown finished 12th overall and third American in 41:11, more than a minute faster than her 2010 time at the event.

At the Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford Sunday night, Jamie Cheever ran a personal best of 15:56.77 in a heat of the women’s 5000 meters. Also posting a new personal best was teammate Meghan Armstrong, who won her heat of the women’s 10,000 meters in 32:59.11. Chris Rombough bettered his PR in the 10,000 as well, finishing in 28:46.73.

Megan Hogan, who was slated to compete in the women’s 10,000 meters at the meet, was ill and did not start the race.

Cheever and Armstrong plan to race next at the USA 1 Mile Championships.

More Minnesotans do well at Payton Jordan Meet

Aside from the Team USA MN contingent, other MN distance runners placed well at the Payton Jordan Invitational at Stanford. U of M's Ben Blankenship won the 1,500 meters in 3:39.49. Stanford's Elliott Heath was second in the 5K in 13:26.14. Laura Januszewski finished fourth in the second heat of the women's 1,500 in 4:15.95.

Gopher DMR Tops Wisconsin at Drake

The University of Minnesota men's track team scored a hard-earned victory over cross-border rivals Wisconsin in the Drake Relays distance medley which featured Minnesota natives carrying the baton for both teams.

The Gopher quartet of Nick Hutton, Kevin Bradley, Travis Burkstrand, and Hassan Mead edged the Badgers by .30 for the win, thanks to a gutty anchor effort by Mead. Buffalo High School alumnus Zach Mellon ran the lead-off, 1200m leg for Wisconsin, while Burnsville grad Rob Finnerty anchored for Wisconsin.

“The DMR victory was the highlight of our weekend at Drake,” Minnesota head coach Steve Plasencia said. “All four guys ran very well.”

You can watch the entire race, below, via Flotrack, which covered the entire meet ...

Hutton and Burkstrand were also members of Minnesota’s Drake Relays champion 4x800-meter relay.

The sprint medley relay of Ryan Todhunter, Cameron Boy, Jacob Capek and Joe McFarland placed fifth in a time of 3:21.44.

The top performance in the field events was turned in by Micah Hegerle in the hammer. Hegerle landed a throw of 212 feet, 7 inches in placing sixth. The throw was just two inches off his career best of 212-9, which remains the top effort in the Big Ten this season.

Oladipo Fagbemi added a sixth-place finish in the triple jump with a leap of 49-3 3/4.

Above: Mead (r) outruns Finnerty.

Gopher Women ... At the Drake Relays in Des Moines, Iowa, redshirt freshman Katie Moraczewski finished fifth in the 3000-meter steeplechase with a career-best time of 10 minutes, 38.33 seconds. The time ranks fifth in Gopher history.

At the Penn Relays in Philadelphia, the Gophers’ 4 x 400-meter relay of Kelly Stalpes, Alena Brooks, Nyoka Giles and Sharyn Dahl placed sixth in the College Race with a time of 3:40.86.

Photo by Gene Niemi.