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Three Sentences Or Less: 2024 D2 NCAA Outdoor Championship Men's 1500 Meters Preview
- Marissa Kuik
- May 22, 2024
- 6 min read
Written by Marissa Kuik, edits and additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin & Gavin Struve
Editor's Note: Our TSR writers were asked to produce three sentences or less of analysis on every entrant in every distance event for every division.
The below athletes are ordered alphabetically to match the start list
Predictions coming later this week!
1. Cole Benoit (Mississippi College)
It has been a couple of seasons since we have seen Cole Benoit compete at the outdoor national meet. Though he may be a little rusty when it comes to racing through the preliminary rounds of the 1500 meters, Benoit still has great turnover which could put him in the mix over the final 100 meters.
2. Alberto Campa (Colorado Mines)
Similar to his teammate, Brock Drengenberg, Alberto Campa has not raced often this outdoor track season. However, he did put together a great recent metric mile effort at altitude to qualify for this outdoor national meet. While it's hard to place his fitness given that all of his races have been at altitude this season, Campa reached the mile finals at the 2024 indoor national meet, so he has displayed an ability to advance through preliminary rounds on an even playing field.
3. Juan Diego Castro (Azusa Pacific)
Coming in as the top seed in this event, Juan Diego Castro could be argued as the favorite considering that Miguel Coca is not competing this spring and that Romain Legendre has opted out of the 1500 meters. The only issue for Castro is that he has not come close to matching his 3:40 (1500) seasonal best from March in recent weeks. Is this former Oklahoma State Cowboy fit to stamp himself as a D2 superstar this weekend?
4. Elliot Dotson (Anderson (SC))
It's a little tricky to analyze how Elliot Dotson will fare over 1500 meters at the outdoor national meet because the majority of his recent efforts have been outdoor mile races. A recent 3:47 (1500) PR is solid, but his 4:04 mile effort (in which he ran a 3:43 metric mile en route) a week later was more impressive. If Dotson is comfortable moving through the strategic preliminary rounds, then he will be just fine.
5. Brock Drengenberg (Colorado Mines)
He may not have raced often this season, contesting only three meets in total and racing just the 1500 meters, but Brock Drengenberg was able to sneak into the outdoor national meet. His qualifying time being altitude-converted and coming via a 7th place finish at the RMAC Outdoor Championships is less than ideal and might make it a challenge for him to get out of the first round. But at least Drengenberg has his experience racing the mile at the 2024 indoor national meet to pull from.
6. Roberto Fajardo (Lee (Tenn.))
Midway through the season, Roberto Fajardo ran a huge personal best of 3:40 over 1500 meters. Since then, he has put together some strong times in the half-mile distance with a couple of 1:49 marks. With one of the most robust middle distance skillsets in this field, Fajardo should be prepared for any kind of race scenario.
7. Caleb Futter (Grand Valley State)
One of the more surprising developments at the 2024 indoor national meet was Caleb Futter’s mile national title. Futter will be hard-pressed to defend that crown (if you think it carries over to a similar distance) in the metric mile, however. He will have his hands full with the steeplechase finals as well, but as long as that race doesn't take too much out of him, Futter should be with the 1500-meter race leaders entering the final lap.
8. Simon Kelati (Western Colorado)
Simon Kelati's improvements when racing in tactical situations have been impressive. Coming off of a national title over 3000 meters, he's riding a lot of momentum this spring with personal bests in several events to go with high placements, including an RMAC 1500-meter title. One may argue that this event, rather than the 5k, is Kelati's best chance at doubling his national title count.
9. Samuel Lange (Michigan Tech)
Though Samuel Lange was the last name to sneak into the 1500 meters, his progression throughout the season has been nearly flawless. Starting at 3:57 (1500) and working his way down to 3:45 at a last chance meet makes Lange a wildcard, but he could also be someone who sneaks into the finals if he continues that momentum.
10. Patrick Lyell (Grand Valley State)
Patrick Lyell dropped a huge 1500-meter PR of 3:42 at Lee (Tenn.)’s last chance meet and has thrust himself into the All-American conversation as a result. While he has competed individually on the national stage before, Lyell has yet to advance out of the preliminary rounds. This feels like the season for that to change.
11. Hudson Majeski (Colorado Christian)
Hudson Majeski jumped into this outdoor national meet field with an altitude-converted time of 3:43-low (1500). Like Patrick Lyell, Majeski has raced at national meets twice before, but the difference is that he has already finished as an All-American (albeit over a year ago). A recent 1500-meter PR suggests that Majeski is in shape to break through that wall again.
12. Nick Melanese (San Marcos)
After qualifying for the outdoor national meet over 800 meters last year, Nick Melanese is moving up in distance. And even though Melanese is at the bottom of the seed list, PRs of 1:48 (800) and 3:44 (1500) indicate that he has better turnover than many of the men in this field, giving him a chance to make it out of the preliminaries if his heat is tactical.
13. Aziz Mohamed (West Texas A&M)
In a somewhat surprising development, Aziz Mohamed has opted to compete solely in the 1500 meters, even after running the NCAA #3 half-mile mark this season. Mohamed’s seasonal best of 3:41 (1500) puts him high on this list as well, but it's still a converted time. Clearly, Mohamed has elite turnover, so perhaps he and his coaches see some untapped upside for him in this event.
14. Tyler Nord (Western Colorado)
Tyler Nord has a unique skillset relative to other men in this field as a top-half cross country All-American who has more of a strength-based resume, but has also experienced his greatest success over 1500 meters and 3000 meters. That scouting report suggests the oft-tactical nature of the preliminary rounds would give him more trouble than the final, but Nord's experience should guide him through the rounds and to an All-American honor with relative ease.
15. Luca Poppe (Wingate)
Even though Luca Poppe did not make it into the indoor national meet, he has run incredibly consistently this outdoor track season, qualifying for the outdoor national meet in both the 1500 meters and the 5k. With PRs of 3:44 and 13:55, respectively, Poppe belongs in both events, but might need a fast prelim to get into the metric mile final given that he has a slower half-mile PR (1:55) than the rest of the field. But admittedly, that might also be us reading too deep into the nuances of this race.
16. Dylan Sprecker (Pittsburg State)
Dylan Sprecker may have only raced on the Gorillas' DMR team at the indoor national meet, but this freshman has a legitimate chance of making it to the 1500-meter finals. He has consistently improved throughout the spring and has a strong 1:50 personal best in the 800 meters. He's a rookie, sure, but he should also be able to rely on the veteran poise of his fifth-year teammate, Mason Strader.
17. Mason Strader (Pittsburg State)
The veteran status that Mason Strader brings to this field will make him a tough name to out-duel. He just ran 3:43 in this event at two separate meets in a three-day span, so he is also riding a huge wave of momentum. As long as nothing unorthodox occurs, Strader feels like an All-American lock.
18. Dominic Suliman (Saginaw Valley)
This narrative seems to be a familiar one in this field, but Dominic Suliman put together a great last-chance meet effort with a time of 3:43 (1500). That put him right in the middle of this field seed-wise. And with a 6th place mile finish at the 2024 indoor national meet, this versatile underclassman (who also won a GLIAC half-mile title this past winter) will be looking for his second All-American finish in as many seasons.
19. Jagger Zlotoff (UC-Colorado Springs)
After placing 3rd in the mile at the 2024 indoor national meet, Jagger Zlotoff may well be a favorite for another top-half All-American finish. He doesn't have the fastest personal best in this field by any means, but Zlotoff simply knows how to navigate a championship race. With top-seven finishes in either the mile or the 1500 meters at the past three national meets, this sophomore Mountain Lion has quickly developed one of the highest baselines for success in D2 middle distance running.
