The Run Down: Jenny Simpson's double at USA's leads a big weekend

Simpson had lots to smile about in Albuquerque
 (photo: TrackAndFieldPhoto)

It was another incredible weekend to be a Track and Field fan. Whether you were competing or spectating, it was hard to keep up with it all. The USA Indoor Championships were happening in Albuquerque, NM, tons of conference meets were going on all over the country (USTFCCA has an excellent page with links to all results) and the Brooks PR Invite ended the weekend for the top preps the in country.

Jenny Simpson's performances led the way, as she repeated her 1500/3000 double at USA's. On Friday, she bided her time in the 3000 and took the win in a tactical 9:19.15 over Jackie Areson and Sara Hall and Saturday, she held off a hard charging Brenda Martinez and the newly signed to Nike, Sara Vaughn. It looks like she'll be skipping World's in Instanbul, so the above four ladies will be booking their tickets. Also, it should be noted that Erica Moore looked superb in the 800, winning in a very nice 2:01.08, and pulling her teammate, Phoebe Wright, along with her for a trip to Turkey.

Introducing Erica Moore...
(photo: TrackAndFieldPhoto)

On the Men's side, Bernard Lagat said it best with the line (to the AP): "I just wanted to show those guys that Daddy can still kick." That may have been the understatement of the night, as he left Lopez Lomong, a 1:45 and 3:32 guy in the blocks with a 25 second last lap in the Men's 3000. Duane Soloman made it look easy in the 800 and pulled Michael Rutt along with him to Worlds, while Leo Manzano outkicked an unknowing Matt Centrowitz in the 1500. Centro may indeed have heard him coming after he went past Galen Rupp, but it sure didn't look like it.

In the collegiate world, Southern Utah's Cam Levins quadrupled to help the Thunderbirds take the Summit League Men's title. There was also an 800 round he had to run in there to complete this impressive feat. Here's how his weekend went:

Friday - qualified in 800 semifinal (1:54) then won the 3000 final in 8:19 (meet record).

Saturday - at 1:20 pm, he won the Mile in 4:10. At 2:45 pm, he won the 800 in 1:50 (meet record). Finally, at 3:25 pm, he won the 5000 in 14:35. What a weekend. Hope he's got something left for NCAA's and Outdoor!

Martinez runs out of real estate in the
 1500 (photo: TrackAndFieldPhoto)

Finally, the Brooks PR Invite was back and produced some excellent results. Molly Seidel continued her excellent season by winning a competitive two mile in 10:13.45, while Texas' Daniel Vertiz ran a very strong race from the front and broke the meet record (in the same event) with a nice 8:59.15. He also led North Dakota's Jake Leingang under 9 in the process. Check out Flotrack's Crack Recap here.

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