First Thoughts: Noble Sets D2 Record, Barnett's Statement Race, Tuohy's 15:14 & Hacker's 13:19

We've got a lot to talk about and there is no time for an introduction. Let's jump right into it!

NOTE: Don't see a certain notable performance? No worries, we'll likely mention it during our Sunday analysis. These headlines focus on Friday performances.

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Christian Noble Runs 3:36.00 to Set New D2 Record, Defeats Brown (3:36) & Spencer (3:37)

Are we even surprised at this point? Coming into this race, I said that the D2 record was very realistically going to be threatened by Noble. He has been on absolute fire as of late and his 3:56 mile from the indoor season paired with his recent progression suggested that a 3:37 mark, at a minimum, was in the cards for him.

The real question, however, was how far under 3:37 would he go?

Did I think 3:36 was realistic for him? Yes, I did, but seeing him run 3:36.00 is admittedly on the faster end of what my expectations were for him. I thought he would run 3:36 high or 3:37 low.

Not only that, but Noble took down a LOADED field featuring numerous top-level stars, each of whom shined bright in their own unique way.

Oregon's Reed Brown probably had the best regular season race of his life and if you remove the importance of All-American finishes at the national meet, then Brown's 3:36 mark is probably the best overall performance that we've ever seen from this veteran Duck.

That's what makes Noble's performance that much better. He didn't just run an insane time and obliterate the old D2 record. He put together a race which allowed him to defeat one of the best milers in the nation, regardless of division.

Speaking of Brown, I can't help but feel really encouraged by this result. This is easily the best regular season performance of his career, although that may depend on how you look at his 3:54 mile time from Boston University this past winter.

I've said this previously, but I'll say it again: Brown has seemingly flipped a switch since the 2021 indoor track season. It was that season when Brown returned to his All-American ways and began to exhibit patience and veteran prowess on the national stage.

For him to not only be thriving in the postseason, but also posting elite-level marks that make him one of the flat-out best milers in the country, is super exciting. THIS is the Reed Brown that we've wanted to see / knew we were capable of seeing for years.

And in my mind, this result validates everything that we've seen from him over the last year.

Wisconsin's Adam Spencer deserves some love. I told everyone to watch out for this dynamic young talent who has been on a major hot streak since the indoor track season where he ran 3:57 in the mile.

In the same vain as Noble, the idea that Spencer could run 3:37 for 1500 meters seemed realistic, but admittedly a reach. However, the time -- while certainly important -- wasn't necessarily the most important aspect to consider.

Instead, this is what I said in our meet preview...

A great race and a fast time for Spencer at the Oregon Relays wouldn't necessarily be validation for the Wisconsin runner -- we already know how good he is. However, it would make us feel a lot more optimistic about his chances of being nationally competitive in the postseason.

And that is EXACTLY what we should take away from this race. Sure, Spencer didn't win, but he ran an absurdly fast time and still kept things very competitive when Noble and Brown put separation on the field.

When I first started covering NCAA distance running, Malachy Schrobilgen was the face of this Wisconsin program. After Schrobilgen, it was Morgan McDonald and Oliver Hoare. After McDonald and Hoare, it was Olin Hacker.

Now, with Hacker on his way out of the door, it looks like Adam Spencer is going to be the next in line as Wisconsin's next distance star.

Also, just so that you know that you're getting the most out of our coverage, here were our predictions from this race...

1. Christian Noble (Lee (Tenn.))

2. Reed Brown (Oregon)

3. Adam Spencer (Wisconsin)

Izzy Thornton-Bott Builds On Momentum, Runs 4:13

It is getting harder and harder to dislike Izzy Thornton-Bott. The rising Oregon star put together a fantastic weekend double at the Hayward Premiere meet earlier this month, posting times of 2:04 (800) and 4:16 (1500).

After a few respectable results prior to that weekend double, it seemed clear that Thornton-Bott was going to be a problem for her future competitors.

Sure enough, that suspicion was confirmed last night as Thornton-Bott mixed it up with a few pros in this 1500 meter field at the Oregon Relays to keep things tight, putting together a fast finish and ultimately running 4:13, one of the fastest 1500 meter times in the country this season.

Right now, this Oregon Duck is on a huge hot streak. Her versatility and middle distance athleticism allows her to stick with honest paces while still maintaining poise and speed in the latter-half of races.

This race was a perfect example of that.

Thornton-Bott looks like she's built for the regional meet. She can effectively double in a single weekend, can run a fast time if needed and can utilize her middle distance speed to keep her competitive in the final moments of races.

Hacker Makes Statement, Runs 13:19 to Win 5k

Seeing Olin Hacker cross the line of this 5k race at the Oregon Relays with a time of 13:19 admittedly allowed me to breathe a sigh of relief. With a time like this, I feel like we no longer have to defend the idea of Hacker being truly one of the most elite distance runners in the NCAA.

Why do I say that?

Well, during the indoor track season, Hacker broke out in a major way. He ran excellent times of 3:56 (mile), 7:45 (3k) and 13:37 (5k). That versatility was wildly impressive, but unbelievably, he was the second-to-last seed in the 3k at the indoor national meet and would've been one of the last seeds in the mile if he had entered it.

Hacker's 4th place finish in the 3k at the NCAA Indoor Championships ultimately validated our cries for just how good he actually is, but now he has a time that truly puts him in a different tier. It's hard to argue with the overwhelming firepower that a 13:19 personal best brings to the table.

Not only that, but the Wisconsin veteran also earned a very convincing win over some of the best long distance talents in the NCAA like Aaron Bienenfeld (13:28) and James Mwaura (13:30).

Truthfully, those guys are probably a small step down in my tier system that I suddenly just made up, but when you consider that Hacker sits near/at the very top, I wouldn't necessarily consider that a critique.

Speaking of Bienenfeld and Mwaura, these results are great...but they didn't tell us anything new. Bienenfeld has run faster than this before and although Mwaura ran a six-second PR, his 10k personal best of 27:51 suggested that this time was within his wheelhouse.

I really want to say more about these results. I really do! But you should go back and read our meet preview, because we were really spot on about a lot of these races...

Let's also talk about Christian Noble who ran 13:35...one hour after running 3:36.

This is so absurd. I mean, he ran those two times IN THE SPAN OF AN HOUR.

In my seven years of covering collegiate distance running, there is only one runner who has consistently been able to produce the same elite-level marks that Noble has produced when doubling.

That name is former Oregon runner James West.

Yes, there are certainly other names throughout NCAA history who have had major success doing doubles and triples, but on a week-to-week basis, Noble may be the best doubler I have ever seen.

Also, excellent race from Wisconsin's Bob Liking. The Badgers' future looks incredibly bright with him on this roster. The surprise breakout star from this past fall has translated his aerobic success from the grass to the oval after running 13:37 on Friday night.

Two years from now, Liking has the potential to be a scary-good name.

Konieczek Edges Fetherstonhaugh, 9:44.72 to 9:44.78

The women's steeplechase had the potential to be one of the best head-to-head-to-head-to-head matchups of the Oregon Relays...and it was!

Established veteran, Aneta Konieczek -- who has run 9:25 in the steeplechase -- was likely the favorite coming into this race. However, in our meet preview, Maura Beattie made sure to explain that just because Konieczek was the favorite did not mean she was invincible.

That turned out to be somewhat true as Oregon State's Grace Fetherstonhaugh nearly took home the win, putting together a hard charge in the final stretch. Konieczek, however, had just enough to hold off the Oregon State ace and barely got the win on the lean.

For both women, these 9:44 results are very encouraging. At the mid-point of the season, running 9:44 is fairly quick and it also leaves the door open for tons of improvement over the next month (plus one or two weeks).

If this is just the starting point for Konieczek, then her 9:25 steeplechase personal best may not be as much of an outlier as we once thought. And if the Oregon veteran is able to replicate that performance in the postseason, then suddenly, Wayment isn't safe to win a national title come June.

Admittedly, I am getting ahead of myself. Until further notice, Wayment is going to be the favorite for NCAA gold and Konieczek needs to build a bit more consistency until she can be the title threat that her past 9:25 PR suggests that she can be.

Still, a win over Fetherstonhaugh is great to see. This Oregon State ace had a fantastic indoor track season and is much better than some people realize. She has steeplechase success and based on her indoor success, this may actually be her best event.

What is Fetherstonhaugh's ceiling in this event? Top-three contender? All-American contender? If she was this close to a 9:25 steeplechaser, then does that mean that she maybe, sorta, possibly could contend for a national title if something crazy happens to Wayment again?

Or am I just overanalyzing this?

It's probably the latter, but work with me here.

Wisconsin's Alissa Niggemann (9:50) and Oregon State's Kaylee Mitchell (9:53) had very solid races of their own. Low 9:50s at this point in the season is encouraging, although I think it's clear that they are both capable of more.

Niggemann is one of the most consistent and experienced steeplechasers in the country while Mitchell has run 9:48 before, an accomplishment that she can compare with her individual national qualification in the 3k this past winter.

Both of these women have the potential to be All-Americans in this event, but that will be heavily dependent on whether or not they progress back to the same fitness that they were at last year (and then some).

Mia Barnett Runs 4:11 to Take Over NCAA 1500 Meter Lead, Defeats Emily Mackay Who Runs 4:13

Mia Barnett is just different. I don't know how else to put it. Very few freshmen have ever showed the level of poise and maturity as a racer that she has. It's so exciting, so unique and, as you can probably see by now, incredibly productive.

The University of Virginia rookie just threw down a huge time of 4:11 for 1500 meters at the Virginia Challenge, losing only to recent Nike pro Michaela Meyer and defeating Binghamton star Emily Mackay.

The progression we have seen from Barnett is unreal. Just look at her TFRRS profile. She slowly progressed from a 4:40 mile time all the way down to a 4:33 mark at the indoor national meet. Now, she has a 4:11 mark which, relative to her indoor times, is an ongoing improvement from her 4:33 mile.

Barnett reminds me of last year's Amaris Tyynismaa, a then-sophomore from Alabama who could do no wrong and who continued to make improvements throughout 2021. The difference, however, is that Barnett is younger and doesn't have the same NCAA experience that Tyynismaa had last year.

Is Barnett an All-American lock right now? No, likely not, but...she's not far off, which is bizarre to say about a relatively inexperienced freshman, especially when it's coming from someone as cautionary as me!

At the end of the day, our opinion of Barnett hasn't changed much, but we did learn that a) she is maintaining her momentum from the indoor track season and that b) she is able to take down top-level standouts on more than just one or two occasions.

That's because Barnett edged out Emily Mackay in this race who settled for a time of 4:13, finishing as the second-best collegiate in this field.

This result for Mackay was solid...but is there any possibility that she returns to the 5k this postseason? She can run fast in pretty much any distance event, that much we've realized, but she's been an All-American in the 5k before and historically, Mackay is more experienced in the longer events.

I'm not saying that Mackay is bad at the 1500 meters or that the 1500 meters would be a bad choice for her. However, it just seems like there are a lot of ways for things to go wrong in the 1500 meters compared to the 5k where I think I like her chances of postseason success the most given her recent surge of success.

But I guess we'll see! Penn State's Madeline Ullom also had a fantastic race, putting together a breakout race where she ran 4:14 to finish as the third-best collegiate in the field.

There were indicators suggesting that Ullom was due for a breakout performance, but I thought that her breakout race would come at the Bucknell Bison Outdoor Classic, not the Virginia Challenge.

Ullom is another one of those "she's gaining momentum and is a lot better than some people realize" kind of runners. Admittedly, I want to say that about half of the women who run these huge personal bests, but if I did that, then my postseason predictions would probably look like a little funky.

Furman's Megan Marvin also deserves a shoutout for her 4:14. Between this result, her Raleigh Relays result, her indoor track season and her proven 800 meter middle speed, there are a lot of signs signaling that Marvin is going to be a factor in the postseason.

In a lot of ways, she reminds me of Izzy Thornton-Bott who I mentioned above...

Tuohy Returns, Drops Monster 15:14 Mark For NCAA Lead

I really enjoy basketball. It's a game that I'll occasionally play with my brother. However, despite him being four years younger than me, he's four inches taller and has turned out to be a pretty solid player.

Throughout our college and post-grad years, we would play in a few pickups games and for the most part, he would generally beat me pretty handily.

But then I moved to a new place where there was a basketball court one block away. When I moved there, I began to play religiously. I would practice all of my shots, improve my handles, work on new moves, etc.

In my estimation, I had become pretty decent.

When I returned home for the holidays, I was confident that I could be pretty competitive with my brother. I was fairly eager to get on the court and show off what I could do.

My brother, however, then proceeded to put together the single-most impressive ass whooping he has ever given me.

Not only did he also get better, but he had gotten so much better to the point where a competitive game wasn't even a possibility anymore.

The reason I tell this story is because it perfectly reflects what's happening with the NCAA and with Katelyn Tuohy right now.

I'm the NCAA and my brother is Tuohy.

Coming into this weekend, there were zero questions about Katelyn Tuohy's abilities. We knew that she was easily amongst the best distance runners in the country and that she was going to be a potential national title contender in the longer distances, especially after seeing how her indoor season ended.

But after running 4:12 for 1500 meters and then taking a small hiatus, the rest of the NCAA seemed to be making rapid progress. New national leads were being established and top-tier times, specifically in the 5k, were being run.

Whenever Tuohy returned to the outdoor oval, we expected her to match some of the firepower that we had seen from some of the other top women in the country so far.

Someone like Taylor Roe, who had run 15:21 for 5000 meters, seemed like a good bar for this second-year NC State runner who ran no faster than 15:30 during the winter months.

Of course, Katelyn Tuohy doesn't really seem to care what we/I think (and rightfully so).

The Wolfpack megastar just dropped a monster time of 15:14 for 5000 meters, taking over the collegiate lead and earning the NCAA #8 all-time mark in the outdoor 5000 meters.

Tuohy's growth is outpacing the already insane growth that we've seen throughout the rest of the NCAA this year -- by a lot. She now boasts some of the fastest personal bests that the NCAA has ever seen.

The finishing kicks that Tuohy displayed in the postseason this past winter makes her the fairly clear-ish title 5k favorite come June...depending on how you view Roe and maybe Nichols (assuming Wayment doesn't run the 5k fresh).

At this point, Tuohy has done everything that she can.

She has historically elite marks.

She has displayed incredible turnover.

She has flexed great consistency.

She has proven that she can contend for a top national meet finish on numerous occasions.

And after this weekend, she has shown us that she is only getting better.

The only thing left for her to do is to win a national title.

Outside of Tuohy, we also need to give credit to Michigan State's Jenna Magness who will unbelievably fly under the radar after this weekend with her 15:26 mark.

For the most part, I don't have a ton to say here. I've been a Magness fan for a few seasons now and she is probably one of the more reliable postseason runners in the NCAA right now. Seeing her run 15:26 simply suggests that her improvements are keeping up with the growth of the NCAA and that she'll continue to be a factor.

Also, Magness is five-for-five in her last five national meets when attempting to earn All-American finishes. That may not necessarily be important now, but it might be a good thing to remember for the future...

Stokes Earns Statement Win, Runs 8:32 in Steeple

Georgetown's history of steeplechase success will be extended by Parker Stokes who proved last year that he can be one of the talents in the NCAA when it comes to the barriers and water pits.

The Hoya standout matched his personal best at the Virginia Invitational with an 8:32 mark which, assuming no one runs faster than that this weekend, should barely put him in the collegiate lead.

But it's not like Stokes just cruised his way to that time. He soundly defeated top talents like El Hocine Bouchrak (8:37) and Ahmed Jaziri (8:39) in the process.

Stokes is still a younger runner, but this is someone whose fitness has been reflected across a variety of distances. He ran 3:58 in the mile past winter, giving him some unique speed and middle distance success that you don't always get from steeplechasers.

Stokes' 8:32 personal best came in the prelims of last year's outdoor national meet. He later earned an 8th place All-American finish. Between his eyebrow-raising mile PR, his recent steeple win which matched his personal best and his past national meet experience, all signs are pointing upwards for Stokes.

On paper, Stokes is someone who will likely run sub-8:30 this spring and contend for a top-five finish at the national meet. Who knows? If he's able to build off of this performance, then maybe we're talking about him as an outside title contender...

As for Bouchrak, this is another great result from him. He had a solid performance at the Duke Invitational, but this performance validates early-season suspicions that he could be an exceptional talent.

I admittedly thought Jaziri would play a bigger role in this race, but 8:39 is far from bad and I still believe that he can be a major factor in the postseason. Time will tell, but Eastern Kentucky often produces some of the best steeplechasers in the nation and typically, they peak in the postseason.

That will be the case here for Jaziri.

Quick Hits

• Yale's Kayley DeLay ran a promising 9:44 steeplechase mark at the Virginia Invitational, forcing us to wonder what she will pursue in the postseason. She ran 15:39 for 5000 meters at the Raleigh Relays, finishing as the top collegiate, so it's hard to know what her best event is. However, she could try the double at the national meet which, in theory, would probably work out in her favor. She's a lot better than some people realize.

• Wake Forest's Thomas Vanoppen just secured ANOTHER 1500 meter win over Duke's Nick Dahl, as well as a field featuring many of Villanova's top men. After running 3:38 earlier this season, Vanoppen's momentum and ability to earn statement wins makes him one of the top talents in the country. His stock has never been higher.

• Remember when sub-13:40 for the 5k put you in the All-American conversation? Nowadays, it puts you in the "he might qualify for the national meet" category. That's because 12 men ran between 13:36 and 13:40 at the Virginia Invitational. Seeing Ostberg get the win was very encouraging, Schaffer validated his talent with a 2nd place finish and Van Der Els earned a 3rd place finish which was potentially the best race of his career.

• Villanova's Haftu Strintzos continues to emerge as one of the more underappreciated distance runners in the country. He won the Virginia Invitational 10k with a time of 28:34. He's at his best in the longer distances and I could realistically see him in the low 28:10s later this season.