STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford will be represented by five individuals and two relay teams at the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships March 13-14 in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Cardinal women's qualifiers are Christina Aragon (mile), Ella Donaghu (3,000 meters), Julia Heymach (mile), Jessica Lawson (3,000). Alex Ostberg (3,000) will represent the Cardinal men. The men and women each qualified a distance medley relay team.
The championships fields – 16 in each individual event and 12 in the relays -- were based on best marks. They are final except for medical scratches.
This is the 11th consecutive year that the Cardinal men's distance medley relay team has advanced. Its season's best time of 9:32.42 was accomplished with a team of Matt Rizzo, Julian Body, Brandon McGorty, and Ostberg.
The women's DMR will be Stanford's highest ranked entrant. The Cardinal is ranked No. 2 at 10:55.89, with a team of Donaghu, Ashlan Best, Heymach, and Lawson.
Though the Stanford women did not qualify in the DMR last year, they have a rich recent history in that event. From 2014-18, Stanford was second four times and third once, finishing behind the winners in all those races by a combined difference of a mere 6.00 seconds.
In 2017 and 2018, Stanford finished second by a combined 0.05, after being edged by Colorado by 0.02 in 2017 and 0.03 by Oregon in 2018, the latter with Aragon running the 1,600 anchor in a scorching 4:33.35. After being limited most of the past year and a half, this meet marks a return to prominence for Aragon, a five-time All-American.
If both the Stanford men and women run the same lineups as in their fastest performances this season, Stanford will compete with nine total athletes. Heymach, a junior, and Rizzo, a freshman, would make their first NCAA track championships appearances, including indoor and outdoor.
If Heymach runs the DMR, she will face a difficult double, with two races on the same Friday evening at the Albuquerque Convention Center and another on Saturday. On Friday, the women's mile semifinal is at 5:35 p.m. MT and the women's DMR is at 8:45 p.m. On Saturday, the mile final is at 4:20 p.m. MT, potentially giving Heymach three races within 23 hours. Keep in mind that Albuquerque is at 5,300 feet in elevation.
* * *
Stanford's NCAA qualifiers
Men
Alex Ostberg: 3,000 (No. 9, 7:49.01).
Distance medley relay (No. 11, 9:32.42).
Women
Christina Aragon: Mile (No. 14, 4:37.30).
Ella Donaghu: 3,000 (No. 4, 8:54.72).
Julia Heymach: Mile (No. 3, 4:33.37).
Jessica Lawson: 3,000 (No. 9, 8:59.38).
Distance medley relay (No. 2, 10:55.89).
* * *
Stanford's schedule
Friday, March 13
4:35 p.m. PT (5:35 p.m. MT): Women's mile semifinals (Christina Aragon, Julia Heymach).
7:30 p.m. PT (8:30 p.m. MT): Women's distance medley relay final (Stanford).
7:45 p.m. PT (8:45 p.m. MT): Men's distance medley relay final (Stanford).
Saturday, March 14
3:20 p.m. PT (4:10 p.m. MT): Women's mile final.
5:10 p.m. PT (6:10 p.m. MT): Men's 3,000 final (Alex Ostberg).
5:25 p.m. PT (6:25 p.m. MT): Women's 3,000 final (Ella Donaghu, Jessica Lawson).
* * *
Championship Broadcast. ESPN3 will stream the meet live on Friday, March 13 starting at 4:15 p.m. PT and Saturday, March 14 starting at 3 p.m. PT. A re-air of the meet will take place Monday, March 16 on ESPNU starting at 6 p.m. PT. To access the live stream, visit ESPN3.com.
