First Thoughts: Bizimana's NCAA 1k Record, Eudaly Runs 4:36 Mile PR & Reina Goes Sub-Four

Many of the top performances from this weekend will likely take place today (Saturday). Even so, there were still a handful of key efforts from Friday night that deserve to be highlighted. While the UW Preview creates some fireworks on the west coast, let's review other notable performances from around the NCAA...

So there I was, sitting on my couch and minding my own business while I passively got some administrative work for TSR done. And then, after one simple glance at my phone, I saw that Yusuf Bizimana had run the collegiate record over 1000 meters in a time of 2:18.10. The former record (2:18.26) was previously held by Penn State's Brannon Kidder which was set back in 2016.

"Well at least we'll have something significant to write about tomorrow," I thought to myself as I watched my 76ers soundly defeat the Kings.

I'll admit, seeing Bizimana run the collegiate record over 1000 meters isn't necessarily a performance that surprises me. This Texas megastar proved throughout last year that he was a legitimately elite half-miler, running 1:45 for 800 meters and winning the indoor national title in that event as well.

And when you remember that Bizimana is also an All-American miler, it makes sense that someone with sneaky-good strength would run 2:18 over 1000 meters. On paper, that event is the near-perfect sweet spot for this English Longhorn megastar.

But as I have said time and time again: Just because a performance isn't surprising doesn't mean that it's not wildly impressive. Prior to Friday, there had only ever been four collegiates who have gone under 2:19 for 1000 meters in NCAA history (regardless of their record eligibility). They are Brannon Kidder, Rich Peters, Joe Waskom and Freddie Williams*.

Waskom ran his mark on an oversized track last year while Williams' effort has been marked as "Not Considered For Lists" due to "questionable course length."

So...what does this mean going forward?

Truthfully, not much. Bizimana was already the fairly clear favorite to win the men's 800-meter national title come March. Sure, guys like Handal Roban and Oussama El Bouchayby will/could emerge as threats to the Texas standout, but their lives certainly didn't get easier after the performance we just saw on Friday.

In terms of next steps, Bizimana will likely take the next few weeks to refine his speed via a similar plan that he followed last year. In 2023, we saw the Longhorn star run some "off" distances last year and then make his seasonal 800-meter debut in February. And after seeing how successful he was with that approach last winter, I can't imagine that there will be much incentive to make any significant changes to that developmental blueprint in 2024.

I was incredibly encouraged by what I saw from Mary Ellen Eudaly last year as just a freshman. She toed the line for a handful of mile races last winter, showcasing subtly-great positional awareness in a few of her efforts.

The now-sophomore Razorback was packed with potential as just a rookie. However, it was clear that she simply needed to elevate her fitness one more tier (despite previously holding a 4:39 PR) to be as truly dangerous as her high school resume suggested that she could be.

Welp, after an underrated postseason campaign during the most recent cross country season (finishing 139th at the NCAA XC Championships), Eudaly made an early-season statement last night with a significant mile PR of 4:36.

And when you remember what her high school pedigree was like -- 2:09 (800), 4:44 (1600) and 16:55 (5k XC) -- this is a very promising long-term sign.

Eudaly's 4:36 mile PR, while impressive, won't put her in the national qualifying conversation...but she's not far off from it, either. And given the recent surge of momentum that she has had over the last few weeks, it seems more likely than not that she'll continue to build on her fitness and lower that time closer to 4:34, give or take a second.

For a team that didn't seem to have much national-caliber firepower in the mile on their roster, the rise of Eudaly should be a welcomed development for an Arkansas team that can utilize her in a variety of different areas moving forward.

I liked Reuben Reina when he came out of the high school ranks. He was a strong miler who could effectively move up in distance on the cross country course, a skillset that largely matched the ethos of Arkansas' distance program.

But I'll admit, Reina fell off my radar over the last few years. His entire freshman year (2021-22) was virtually non-existent and when he toed the line as a redshirt freshman on the grass, it was hard to be too excited about some of his performances.

And yet, while I was distracted with the results of a few other men last winter and spring, Reina quietly strung together some solid efforts, running 1:49 (800), 3:43 (1500, unattached), 4:03 (mile) and 13:57 (5k). He even finished 13th at the SEC XC Championships this past fall, although his DNS and DNF at the regional and national levels were hardly encouraging.

Going into the winter months, Reina had developed a resume that was a bit underrated, but also overlooked (by yours truly). In retrospect, I probably should have seen a sub-four minute effort coming from this Arkansas redshirt sophomore. That is, after all, what we got last night as the Razorback talent posted a 3:59.91 mile PR.

It should also be noted that Reina's father, Reuben Reina Sr., also ran for Arkansas during his college days and also produced a sub-four minute mile PR (3:58.88).

Video: Arkansas Track & Field via X.com embed

Knowing how promising Reina was as a distance recruit leaves me hopeful for what the rest of his career holds for him. It took him a bit to get going, but the last nine months leaves us with a lot to like as far as development is concerned.

Reina's 3:59 mile PR is nice, but based on his skillset, the 3000 meters is screaming his name. In theory, that could be his ideal event. I wouldn't even be surprised if he ran in the low-7:50s this winter.

We should also note that a handful of other key names were in this race, specifically Oklahoma State freshman, Laban Kipkemboi. And at the time of publication, the TFRRS results incorrectly assigned certain teams to incorrect individuals.

Kipkemboi, the Kenyan star who was rumored to have run some absurd times at altitude prior to joining the Cowboys, posted a solid, but modest, mile time of 4:03 last night. That's a respectable effort, although I think it's fair to say that we were expecting a bit more.

Even so, let's not overreact. A 4:03 mile time is a perfectly fine result for an early-season rust-buster. We also have no idea how this race played out (the stream didn't start until after the mile races were done) and we also don't know whether or not Kipkemboi has ever raced on the indoor oval before.

Simply put, let's not rush to any conclusions yet.

The men's 1000 meters race at the Arkansas Invite admittedly didn't give us much to talk about. That, of course, doesn't necessarily mean that the results were poor.

 Yet again, Alex Stitt produced a promising early-season 1k that has us optimistic about what he could do this season. The now-elder Oklahoma State runner posted a time of 2:21 (which largely matched his PR) while Arkansas' Ben Shearer also ran 2:21 (which was a somewhat significant PR).

Arkansas' Riley Wells (a key graduate transfer from Illinois State) ran 2:22 for the 1000-meter distance as did Oklahoma State runner and 800-meter standout, Mehdi Yanouri.

There's not much to say about these results. All of these are good times, but they are all well within the capabilities of the four individuals who we just outlined. I do, however, wonder how that kind of 1k leg speed will translate to the mile for Shearer. After a breakout cross country season, this guy may be due for a big-time mile PR.

We then come to the women's 1000-meter race which, by comparison, has a little bit more to be excited about. That's because Oklahoma State's Sivan Auerbach and Arkansas' Ainsley Erzen each ran outstanding times of 2:43 for the middle distance event! Pro athletes Shafiqua Maloney and Stephanie Brown ran 2:41 and 2:43, respectively.

For Auerbach, she continues to stack great performance after great performance. She has been a steady and solid name for the last few seasons, but the Cowgirl veteran is beginning to find her groove in her senior year. At the Boston U. Season Opener, Auerbach ran a 4:37 mile PR. And now, she has a very competitive 1k time that is further filling out her resume is a very good way.

Video: Arkansas Track & Field via X.com embed

As for Erzen, she was a top-tier middle distance recruit when she wrapped up her high school career. Her freshman year was fine, running an 800-meter mark of 2:06 and consistently cracking the 2:10 barrier, but she clearly had some work to do before she began challenging some of the top women at the front of certain races.

And sure enough, Erzen has started out her second year with a bang. A 2:43 (1k) PR this early in the season is substantial, especially for a sophomore who has a proven pedigree of success and has tons of growth remaining.

All signs point to Erzen being a potentially lethal middle distance talent by the time that she's a junior and/or senior. Her growth will also run in parallel to Mary Ellen Eudaly, her fellow sophomore teammate who ran a 4:36 mile earlier.

A future DMR featuring those two women in their primes could be quite dangerous.

Arkansas' Amber Anning has primarily been a sprinter throughout most of her career, specializing in the 60-meter dash, the 200-meter dash and the 400 meters during her time with LSU. She was quite good over that quarter-mile distance, boasting a lethal PR of 50.68.

However, upon arriving in Fayetteville, the Razorback coaching staff seemingly saw some untapped strength within the former Tiger. And sure enough, after putting Anning in first-ever 800-meter race, she thrived, running a fantastic event debut mark of 2:05 for that distance!

Yes, it helped that she was surrounded by three talented pro athletes, but that kind of time is incredibly encouraging for her first-ever attempt.

Video: Arkansas Track & Field via X.com embed

Do you know who else first began to contest the 800-meter distance late into their collegiate career after primarily being a 400-meter talent? That would be Shafiqua Maloney, a former Razorback star who went on to run a jaw-dropping time of 2:01 (800) to earn bronze at the indoor national meet.

It's hard not to draw comparisons between Anning and Maloney. Their skillsets, paths, early success over the half-mile distance...it's all very similar. And frankly, it took Maloney five tries to reach a 2:05 PR -- it only took Anning one attempt.

Am I saying that Anning is going to follow in the footsteps of Maloney and become one of the NCAA's most feared half-milers? No, not necessarily...but I'm also not NOT saying it, ya know?