Burns achieves national high school record and Tuohy produces NCAA all-time mark in 5,000, Rooks becomes fastest American collegiate athlete in men’s 3,000 steeplechase, with Kirkpatrick achieving Division 3 best and Wildschutt’s 10,000 performance among many top international times at Mt. SAC 

By Erik Boal, DyeStat Editor

Photos by Crash Kamon

WALNUT, Calif. – Before the main portion of the schedule Saturday at the On Track Fest, presented by Sound Running, Connor Burns provided an indication of how unique and memorable the event would be by producing a national high school record, as he and fellow prep standout Tyrone Gorze both rose to the occasion in a professional 5,000-meter field at Mt. San Antonio College.

Four hours later, following a fourth Katelyn Tuohy NCAA record, a Kenneth Rooks all-time American collegiate mark, a dominant Josette Andrews performance, another fantastic finish from Yared Nuguse, a breakthrough steeplechase race by Krissy Gear, a down-to-the-wire battle involving Cooper Teare and Morgan Beadlescomb, and an ambitious effort by Fiona O’Keeffe, the evening was capped by Adriaan Wildschutt making history for South Africa in the 10,000 meters.

INTERVIEWS | RESULTS

During that stretch, there were also food trucks, a beer garden and a two-act concert involving former Kentucky All-American and On Running athlete Chloe Abbott, as well as American rapper KYLE, who grew up in Ventura, 100 miles north of Hilmer Lodge Stadium.

The festival atmosphere off the track provided a complement to the most impressive distance carnival in the venue’s history, with stadium records achieved in the women’s 3,000 steeplechase, 5,000 and 10,000, along with the men’s steeplechase and 10,000 as well.

Burns, a senior at Southern Boone County High in Missouri, finished fifth in his 5,000 section in 13:37.30, eclipsing the 2004 mark of 13:37.91 achieved by Galen Rupp of Central Catholic High in Oregon.

John Heymans of Belgium, 25, won the race in 13:16.88.

Burns, who ascended to the No. 6 all-time American Under-20 competitor, will again be connected with Rupp during the next chapter of his career as well by competing at the University of Oregon.

Burns also became the only prep athlete to run a sub-4 mile and under 13:50 in the 5,000.

Gorze became the second-fastest athlete in Oregon prep history by taking 10th in 13:45.81, elevating to the No. 6 all-time high school performer and 20th among American U20 competitors.

Gorze had attempted to take down the state high school 2-mile record of 8:41.5 achieved by Steve Prefontaine on April 21 at the Oregon Relays, but ran 8:46.5 at Hayward Field.

The Washington commit did surpass Prefontaine’s 1969 effort of 13:52.8 with his performance Saturday. Prefontaine is now the No. 8 all-time high school competitor in the 5,000, with Burns, Gorze and brothers Nico Young and Lex Young from Newbury Park High in California all running faster than the impressive mark in the past four years.

Tuohy, a national high school record holder in several events during her career at North Rockland in New York, achieved her fourth collegiate all-time mark by finishing seventh in the women’s 5,000 in 15:03.12.

Josette Andrews, representing On Athletics Club, won the race in 14:43.36, eclipsing the 2007 facility record of 14:44.80 achieved by Shalane Flanagan and elevating to the No. 6 all-time American competitor.

Andrews joined Shelby Houlihan and Shannon Rowbury as the only American women to run sub-4 in the 1,500 meters and under 14:45 in the 5,000.

Tuohy surpassed the 2009 performance of 15:07.64 achieved by Colorado star Jenny Simpson, adding to her indoor all-time collegiate marks in the 1,500, mile and 3,000 from January and February at The Armory in New York.

Only Iowa State graduate Lisa (Koll) Uhl, former Oregon star Jessica Hull and Simpson have run a faster 5,000 as a collegiate athlete at any point during the year.

Andrews closed in a remarkable 64.4 seconds on her final lap to pull away from Joselyn Brea, who set the Venezuelan national record to place second in 14:47.76, and Laura Galvan, who lowered her own Mexican all-time mark to 14:49.34.

Emily Infeld (14:50.90) and Elly Henes (14:54.20) finished fourth and fifth, joining Andrews among the American athletes to achieve sub-15 performances.

Great Britain’s Melissa Courtney-Bryant was sixth in 15:02.93, followed by Tuohy, HOKA Northern Arizona Elite athlete Abby Nichols (15:09.60), India’s national record holder Parul Chaudhary (15:10.35) and U.S. Army Sergeant and World Class Athlete Program member Ednah Kurgat (15:11.30).

German steeplechase standout Lea Meyer, representing New Balance, won the opening 5,000 section in a lifetime-best 15:06.39, with former Portland State and UC Santa Barbara standout Katie Camarena clocking a personal-best 15:14.10, just ahead of New Balance Boston athlete and Binghamton graduate Emily Mackay in 15:14.31.

Rooks surged past Hillary Bor on the final lap to not only win the 3,000 steeplechase in 8:17.62, but eclipse the 1977 Brigham Young record of 8:21.60 achieved by Henry Marsh.

Rooks also produced the fastest performance in stadium history, taking down the 8:20.77 mark achieved in 2021 by Sean McGorty.

Rooks achieved the fastest effort by an American collegiate athlete, trailing only Washington State star and Kenyan competitor Henry Rono in NCAA history. Rono has the top three steeplechase marks by a collegiate athlete, all achieved in 1978, highlighted by his 8:05.4 effort at the Northwest Relays.

Geordie Beamish, a New Zealand athlete representing On Athletics Club, was second in 8:20.62, just ahead of Bor (8:20.67) and Canadian competitor Jean-Simon Desgagnes (8:20.68).

Colin Kirkpatrick, another New Zealand competitor representing Pomona-Pitzer, placed 13th in 8:41.92 to achieve the NCAA Division 3 record. Kirkpatrick eclipsed the 2008 standard of 8:43.78 established by Peter Kosgei of Hamilton.

Gear, representing HOKA Northern Arizona Elite, also relied on an impressive move in the final 300 meters to rally past Courtney Wayment in the women’s 3,000 steeplechase and prevail by a 9:23.55 to 9:24.39 margin.

Wayment, representing On Running, had achieved the stadium record last year of 9:26.88 on her way to the collegiate record of 9:16.00 at the NCAA Division 1 final.

Teare, representing Nike Bowerman Track Club, and adidas competitor Beadlescomb – competing for Very Nice Track Club – both closed in 54.8 on the final lap of the 5,000. But Teare had maintained enough of an advantage over the final 2,000 to hold off Beadlescomb by a 13:12.73 to 13:12.95 margin.

Canadian competitor Ben Flanagan, representing On Running, took third in 13:13.97.

Athanas Kioko, a former Campbell All-American and Wake Forest assistant coach competing unattached, finished fourth in 13:15.13 and Canadian athlete Charles Philibert-Thiboutot was fifth in 13:15.74.

Wildschutt, representing HOKA Northern Arizona Elite, returned to the track in impressive fashion, achieving the South African record in the 10,000 by clocking 27:23.10, eclipsing the 1999 mark of 27:29.94 by Hendrick Ramaala.

Wildschutt pulled away from HOKA NAZ Elite teammate Alex Masai (27:51.68) over the final 3,000 meters to ascend to the No. 6 competitor in the world this year. Wildschutt also took down the facility record of 27:36.2 established in 1982 by Gabriel Kamau of Kenya.

Fiona O’Keeffe, representing PUMA Elite, separated from the pack over the final 2,000 meters of the women’s 10,000 to elevate to the No. 10 all-time American competitor at 30:52.77. Four of the top 10 women in U.S. history – Alicia Monson, Natosha Rogers, Henes and O’Keeffe – have all achieved personal-best marks this year. 

O’Keeffe, who improved to No. 5 globally this year, was followed by Dutch athlete and No. 6 in the world Diane Van Es and her lifetime-best 31:02.24.

Nuguse, competing for On Athletics Club, produced a personal-best 1:46.30 in the 800, showcasing his impressive closing speed to edge Mexican national record holder Jesus Tonatiu Lopez (1:46.75) and Isaiah Harris of the Brooks Beasts (1:46.93).

Uganda’s Halimah Nakaayi, representing Nike, won the women’s 800 in 2:00.21, holding off BYU sixth-year athlete Claire Seymour (2:00.81).

Sage Hurta-Klecker, representing On Athletics Club, won the women's 1,500 by a 4:06.34 to 4:06.71 margin against Gabriela DeBues-Stafford, a Canadian athlete representing Nike.

Izzy Thornton-Bott of Oregon, representing Australia, finished fifth in 4:08.33, trailing Kenyan athlete Susan Ejore of Under Armour Baltimore Mission Run in 4:07.10 and reigning NCAA Division 1 champion Sintayehu Vissa (4:07.77), now representing On Athletics Club and Italy.

Thornton-Bott improved to the No. 13 competitor in collegiate history, just ahead of Hurta-Klecker, a former Colorado standout and NCAA indoor mile champion.

Robert Heppenstall, a Canadian athlete competing unattached, clocked 3:36.97 to prevail in the men’s 1,500 in 3:36.97. Woody Kincaid, a Nike athlete and the world leader in the 10,000, produced a personal-best 3:37.32 to finish second.

Eduardo "Lalo" Herrera, representing Under Armour Dark Sky Distance and Mexico, won his section of the 1,500 in 3:38.41.

Ajay Kumar of India prevailed in the opening section of the 1,500 in 3:39.89.

Claudia Hollingsworth of On Athletics Club, an 18-year-old athlete representing Australia, clocked 4:08.66 to triumph in the second section of the women’s 1,500.

Riley Chamberlain, a BYU freshman, emerged victorious in the first 1,500 section in 4:13.07.

Susan Aneno of Peninsula Distance Club, clocked a personal-best 2:01.74 to prevail in the opening section of the women’s 800.

Devin Dixon of the Brooks Beasts won the first section of the men’s 800 in 1:49.83.