Photo of Elise Cranny at 2015 NCAA Indoor Championships by Image of Sport.
NEW YORK CITY -- Stanford junior Olivia Baker races at the 110th Millrose Games on Saturday in one of four competitions Cardinal track and field athletes will compete in this weekend.
Baker is the only collegian among a field of professionals in the women's 800 meters at The Armory in Manhattan. Overall, Stanford sends 42 athletes to four cities – New York, Seattle, Albuquerque, and Ames, Iowa. The distances to each venue total 5,695 miles.
This will be a prime qualifying weekend for the Cardinal as it looks toward the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships March 10-11 in College Station, Texas. Only the top 16 individuals and top 12 relays earn passage to nationals.
Here is a closer look at each meet:
Millrose Games
Where: New York, N.Y.
Site: The Armory
Surface: 200-meter banked track.
Start time: Saturday, 8:45 a.m. PT.
Heat sheets: Click here.
Follow the Action:
Live results: Click here.
TV broadcast: NBC (1-3 p.m. PT)
Webcast: usatf.tv (8:45 a.m.-1 p.m. PT)
Stanford in USTFCCCA rankings:
Men: No. 13
Women: unranked
Notes: This race includes two of Stanford's fastest women in the indoor 800 meters – pro Justine Fedronic, the school-record holder at 2:03.24 from 2014, and Olivia Baker, who is No. 2 at 2:04.10. Baker is seeking an NCAA qualifying time and probably will need to break 2:04.5 to ensure a spot. She could get pulled to fast time by Olympian Ajee Wilson, a four-time U.S. champion. Two others ran in Rio -- Fedronic, for France, and Great Britain's Lynsey Sharp, the 2012 European champion. This will be Baker's first 800 this season, though she opened by breaking her own school record in the 600 (1:28.22) on Jan. 14. Charlene Lipsey, who ran 2:00.65 outdoors last year, also is in the field.
Other events have Stanford connections, primarily the women's pole vault, which features 2016 Olympic gold medalist Katerina Stefanidi and silver medalist Sandi Morris. Stefanidi, competing for Greece, was the first Stanford woman to win an individual track and field gold. She opened her 2017 season with a victory at the New Balance Indoor Grand Prix in Boston, at 15-2 ½.
Stanford recruit Brandon McGorty races pros like 2016 NCAA outdoor 800 champ Donavan Brazier and American 1,000 indoor record holder David Torrence in the Mel Sheppard 1,000. Fellow Card recruit D.J. Principe, who ran a 4:00.97 mile indoors on Jan. 21, runs The Armory Invitational Mile, essentially a pro 'B' race. Also, Stanford alum Garrett Heath competes in the Paavo Nurmi 2 Miles.
Stanford schedule (Pacific time):
Saturday:
2:41 p.m.: Women's 800 (Olivia Baker).
Other Stanford-affiliated athletes (all times Pacific):
Saturday
11:52 a.m.: Invitational mile (D.J. Principe).
12:58 p.m.: John Catsimatidis pole vault (Katerina Stefanidi).
1:31 p.m.: Mel Sheppard 1,000 (Brandon McGorty).
1:56 p.m.: Paavo Nurmi 2 Miles (Garrett Heath).
* * *
Husky Classic
Where: Seattle, Wash.
Site: Dempsey Indoor
Surface: 307-meter flat track.
Start times: Friday, 4 p.m.; Saturday, 10 a.m.
Heat sheets: Click here.
Follow the Action:
Live results: Click here.
Webcast: Flotrack link (subscription), begins Friday at 4 p.m.
Notes: Consecutive events on the track are intriguing, in the women's 800 and 3,000. Malika Waschmann could factor into Stanford's NCAA crew, either in the distance medley relay or the 800 itself. Though competing in her second 800 this season, this race should provide a good gauge of her fitness.
The 3,000 offers prime qualifying opportunities for Elise Cranny and Vanessa Fraser. For Cranny, the 2016 NCAA 1,500 outdoor runner-up, the 3,000 is important because it would fit better in her NCAA schedule than the mile, which is run the same night as the DMR. Cranny was the 2015 NCAA runner-up at 3,000, and she forms a strong 1-2 punch with Fraser, an NCAA qualifier last year. Anything under 9:10 should be enough to make the NCAAs. The field includes reigning Pac-12 cross country champ Erin Clark of Colorado, Oregon's 9:00.62 freshman Katie Rainsberger, and Olympic Trials steeplechase finalist Mel Lawrence.
In the men's 35-pound weight throw, Tristen Newman has improved upon his pre-2017 personal record by four feet and is seeking to maintain his momentum after a 60-10 toss last time out. In the women's 20-pound weight throw, Valarie Allman, recently named the No. 6 discus thrower in the U.S. in Track & Field News' annual rankings, competes for the first time since breaking her own school record on Jan. 27 (63-1 ½, 19.24 meters) in the same ring.
Stanford schedule:
Friday
4 p.m.: Men's weight throw (Flight 2: Tristen Newman).
Saturday
10 a.m.: Women's weight throw (Flight 3: Valarie Allman).
11:25 a.m.: Women's 800 (Section 5: Anna Laman, Sarah Walker).
11:55 a.m.: Men's 800 (Section 1: Christian White; Section 4: Daniel Book; Section 5: Scott Buttinger, Brian Smith).
12:45 p.m.: Men's 3,000 (Section 4: Patrick Gibson).
1 p.m.: Women's shot put (Flight 3: Lena Giger).
1:35 p.m.: Women's mile (Section 4: Catherine Pagano; Section 5: Maddy Berkson).
3 p.m.: Men's shot put (Flight 2: Tristen Newman).
4:20 p.m.: Women's 800 (Section 7: Malika Waschmann).
4:40 p.m.: Women's 3,000 (Section 4: Elise Cranny, Vanessa Fraser).
5:30 p.m.: Women's 4x400 relay (Section 2: Maddy Berkson, Anna Laman, Sarah Walker, Malika Waschmann).
5:45 p.m.: Men's 4x400 (Section 1: Daniel Book, Brian Smith, Christian White, Scott Buttinger).
* * *
Don Kirby Invitational
Where: Albuquerque, N.M.
Site: Albuquerque Convention Center.
Surface: 200-meter banked track.
Start times: Friday, 2:30 p.m. PT; Saturday, 8:30 a.m. PT.
Heat sheets: Click here.
Follow the Action:
Live results: Click here.
Webcast: Flotrack link (subscription), begins at noon each day.
Notes: A focus for Stanford will be preparation for its 4x400 relay teams. The Cardinal brings most of its sprints, hurdles, and jumps crew to Albuquerque.
With the exception of Olivia Baker, who is at the Millrose Games, the Cardinal has all of its possible women's 4x400 runners here – Michaela Crunkleton Wilson, Gaby Gayles, Hannah Labrie-Smith, Amber Lewis, and Missy Mongiovi. They won't run a 4x400 in this meet, but will be prepping with 200s for an NCAA qualifying run later, perhaps at the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation championships Feb. 24-25. Last year, the team, with only one senior, missed NCAA qualifying by 0.45 seconds.
The Cardinal men's 4x400 won the 2016 Pac-12 outdoor title last year, ending a 62-year conference drought. All four runners are back this year. With the exception of multi-event athlete Harrison Williams, who is taking this week off to rest, the other members of that team – Isaiah Brandt-Sims, Frank Kurtz, and Jackson Shumway – will race. Kurtz and Shumway run the 400 and Brandt-Sims the 60 and 200. The team could run in the 4x400 at this meet and should contend for an MPSF title in two weeks.
Stanford schedule (all times Pacific):
Friday
2:50 p.m.: Women's 60 hurdles qualifying (Section 1: Amber Lewis; Section 8: Hannah Labrie-Smith).
3 p.m.: Women's long jump (Flight 3: Marisa Kwiatkowksi).
3:15 p.m.: Men's 60 qualifying (Section 1: Isaiah Brandt-Sims).
3:30 p.m.: Women's 60 qualifying (Section 5: Michaela Crunkleton Wilson, Amber Lewis).
5:15 p.m.: Men's 200 (Isaiah Brandt-Sims, Colin Dolese, Isaac Westlund).
5:15 p.m.: Women's high jump (Rachel Reichenbach).
6:15 p.m.: Women's 200 (Michaela Crunkleton Wilson, Gaby Gayles, Hannah Labrie-Smith, Missy Mongiovi, Amber Lewis).
7:30 p.m.: Men's high jump (Trevor Rex).
Saturday
8:30 a.m.: Women's pole vault (Taylore Jaques, Nicole Summersett).
9:45 a.m.: Women's 60 hurdles semifinals.
9:55 a.m.: Men's 60 semifinals.
10 a.m.: Men's triple jump (Jaak Uudmae).
10:05 a.m.: Women's 60 semifinals.
11:30 a.m.: Women's 60 hurdles final.
11:40 a.m.: Men's 400 (Julian Body, Daniel Brady, Colin Dolese, Frank Kurtz, Jackson Shumway, Isaac Westlund).
12:20 p.m.: Women's 400 (Gaby Gayles, Hannah Labrie-Smith, Missy Mongiovi).
1:05 p.m.: Men's 60 final.
1:10 p.m.: Women's 60 final.
1:45 p.m.: Men's 4x400 relay (Stanford TBA).
* * *
Iowa State Classic
Where: Ames, Iowa
Site: Lied Recreation Athletic Center
Surface: 300-meter flat track
Start times: Friday, 9 a.m. PT; Saturday: 10 a.m. PT
Heat sheets: Click here.
Follow the Action:
Live results: Click here.
Webcast: Flotrack link (subscription), begins at 10 a.m. PT each day.
Meet Web page: Click here.
Notes: Grant Fisher will race in the invitational 3,000 at 6 p.m. PT (8 p.m. CT) in what may be the most anticipated showdown of the meet.
Fisher, a redshirt freshman, will be making his collegiate indoor debut and will do so while taking on Justyn Knight of Syracuse in a matchup of two of the premier runners in the country. Knight was second at the NCAA Cross Country Championships on Nov. 19 and Fisher was fifth. Both raced in the NCAA outdoor 5,000 final last year, with Fisher sixth and Knight 10th.
Fisher raced the 3,000 once indoors last year while running unattached and beat a stellar field at the Husky Classic while running 7:50.06. Knight is the reigning Atlantic Coast Conference champ in this event and was third in the NCAA. He won this race at Iowa State last year in a personal best 7:48.71.
Also in the field is 2016 U.S. Olympic steeplechaser Hillary Bor, who ran a world-leading time at the Stanford Invitational last spring.
Both Fisher and Knight are likely aiming for this distance at NCAA's. With the DMR on Friday and the 3,000 on Saturday, the NCAA schedule allows for an obvious double. Qualifying may be assured with a sub-7:53 on Friday night.
Interestingly, Fisher and Knight could be future teammates for Canada. Knight is from Vaughan, Ontario. Fisher, the newly-minted USTFCCCA cross country National Scholar-Athlete of the Year, is a dual citizen who was born in Calgary, Alberta, and raised in Grand Blanc, Michigan.
Stanford schedule (all times Pacific):
Friday
11:55 a.m.: Men's 5,000 (Section 1: Blair Hurlock).
2:20 p.m.: Men's mile invitational (Section 1: Isaac Cortes).
2:30 p.m.: Men's mile invitational (Section 2: Tai Dinger).
4:30 p.m.: Women's 5,000 (Abbie McNulty).
5:45 p.m.: Women's 3,000 (Section 1: Sophie Chase, Danielle Katz, Julia Maxwell).
6 p.m.: Men's 3,000 invitational (Section 1: Grant Fisher, Jack Keelan).
