Evan Jager, Marielle Hall also victorious at Azusa Pacific at meet featuring several strong efforts by NCAA Division 2 athletes

By Landon Negri for DyeStat

Haran Dunderdale really would’ve settled for a simple qualifying time. He really wasn’t trying to be the king of Azusa.

Yet, Dunderdale was exactly that Thursday night, setting new meet and stadium records in the men’s 3,000-meter steeplechase to lead a performance-heavy night at the Bryan Clay Invitational at Azusa Pacific University.

The Bradley University junior won the event in 8 minutes, 50.90 seconds, outrunning Colorado Christian senior Evan Verbal (8:51.06) and Portland freshman Riley Osen (8:52.98) to the finish line. The meet also showcased some standout performances from the NCAA Division 2 ranks, as well as promising efforts from some veteran professionals.

INTERVIEWS

“A few weeks ago, I ran at Stanford, and it didn’t really go to plan because I was trying to get the regional time,” he said. “Today, I felt I had to sit back and just run the usual pace it takes to get to regional, and then the last few laps, roar up and see what you can do. That’s what I did and it worked out.”

And boy did he roar, with the British talent coming from behind over the last barrier to win.

“You always got to have something left at the end,” Dunderdale said, “so you can muster up a kick if needed.”

The women’s race was just as impressive, as the top four times would’ve all broken meet records. New Mexico sophomore Charlotte Prouse surged ahead late to win in 10:03.97, just ahead of runner-up Julia Howley (10:05.65) – competing unattached for NCAA Division 2 Simon Fraser University – third-place Sarah Berger of Division 2 Walsh University (10:06.10) and Boise State senior Anna McDonald, fourth in 10:08.69.

“The plan was just to go pretty conservative through the first 2K and kind of stay around,” said Prouse, who elevated to the No. 6 collegiate performer this year.

“After that, (it was) just try to keep it up a little bit and work on that closing speed.”

It was the first 3,000 steeplechase for the Canadian standout since transferring from Washington to New Mexico, though she did run a 2,000 in Albuquerque two weeks ago.

“It was nice to come down to sea level,” she said.

Berger’s time, a personal best by nine seconds, was one of several efforts that stood out by Division 2 athletes Thursday.

“This was actually the first steeplechase I’ve run that wasn’t at a super-low-key meet where I was just running out in front,” Berger said. “It was awesome to be able to run against some great D-1 runners that are always pushing you.”

The schedule Thursday also featured 16 sections of 5,000-meter races. Evan Jager, who holds the U.S. record in the 3,000 steeplechase,  edged Belgian Isaac Kimeli to win in 13:24.77 – yet another meet and stadium record, and in his outdoor season opener, to boot.

The race’s top collegiate finish came from Division 2 Adams State (Colo.) junior Sydney Gidabuday, who placed fourth in 13:29.31 – a personal best by seven seconds.

“I was really stoked – that PR was two years old,” Gidabuday said. “I just had a down year last year. I’m just glad I’m back up to speed.

“Sometimes, you kind of question if you’re doing everything right and you’re looking everywhere to see what you can do better,” he added. “Sometimes, it’s just kind of being consistent with training and doing some of the the things that you did to get that original PR.”

Being a Division 2 athlete definitely played into the performance for Gidabuday.

“I knew that there were some of the best D-1 guys in there,” he said, “and coming in as a D-2 guy,  I had a bit of a chip on my shoulder.”

Nike Bowerman Track Club’s Marielle Hall continued the theme of the night, winning the women’s 5,000 in a meet-record 15:39.42. That part wasn’t a huge shock, but what was surprising was how close another Division 2 standout, Alaska-Anchorage junior Caroline Kurgat, remained during the race.

Hall was in control throughout, but Kurgat kept a four-second gap consistently between the two for the last half of the race. And what’s more, her time of 15:43.95 beat her previous best by a full 45 seconds, elevating her to the No. 3 collegiate performer this season.

“Well, I’ve been training for it, and I wanted to run sub-16,” said Kurgat, who clocked 32:33.24 to place fourth March 30 in the 10,000 at the 43rd Stanford Invitational.

“I just wanted to break 16, and I did much better than that.”