Mile posts: Items on Erik Sowinski, Festus Lagat, Alexina Teubel, Kassie Parker, Alec Baldwin, Christopher Collet, Blake Whalen
Former University of Iowa five-time All-American Erik Sowinski accomplished something very special Sunday in Nashville, Tenn.
The former world indoor 800-meter bronze medalist finished fifth in a season-best 1 minute, 46.72 seconds in the men's pro 800 meters at the American Track League's Music City Track Carnival on the campus of Vanderbilt University. The time is notable. Sowinski broke 1:47 for the distance for the 100th time in his career, according to Race Results Weekly's David Monti, who has logged Sowinski's races over his career. Sowinski, the primary pacer for the Diamond League events in Europe and recognized as the best in the world for pacing 1,500- and 800-meter races, achieved another notable accomplishment at the Drake Relays in April. In that 800 meters, the Iowa City resident broke 1:50 for the 200th time in his career and he leads off this edition of the WEEKEND UPDATE of the best performances by Iowa-based collegiate and postcollegiate distance runners and triathletes last weekend.
Former Iowa State All-American Festus Lagat finished one spot ahead of Sowinski in that men's pro 800 after running 1:46.33. Lagat is a Under Armour/District TC athlete now based in the Washington, D.C., area. The winner was his Under Armour/District TC teammate Alex Amankwah of Ghana in 1:46.14.
Other race results in Nashville included former Iowa State standout Daniel Nixon of the Atlanta Track Club finishing seventh in the men's pro B race in 1:48.29. Under Armour/District TC's Vincent Crisp was the winner in 1:46.31.
In the men's pro C race, current Iowa athlete and former Woodbury Central runner Alec Still finished seventh in 1:49.26. The winner was Will Sumner in 1:46.53.
Former Crestwood of Cresco athlete Ellie Friesen of the Baylor track team was ninth in the women's pro B race in 4:26.85. The winner was Germany's Celine Ritter in 4:14.92.
And, former Iowa and Davenport Assumption runner Mallory King finished fifth in the women's pro C 800 race in 2:03.59. The winning time was 2:02.17 by France's Berenice Cleyet-Merle.
At the HOKA Festival of Miles in St. Louis on Thursday, current Northern Iowa assistant track and cross country coach Alexina (Wilson) Teubel finished runner-up in the women's mile. Teubel, a Tracksmith and Runablaze Iowa athlete, ran 4:32.72, just .39 of a second behind champion and Oregon graduate Susan Ejore. Wilson is a former Panther star who prepped at Mount Vernon/Lisbon.
Also at that event, former Iowa State NCAA 5,000 indoor champion Wesley Kiptoo finished seventh in the men's pro mile, running 4:00.25. The HOKA Naz Elite athlete was 4.30 seconds behind winner Paul Ryan.
In the high school boys championship mile, Dowling Catholic's Jackson Heidesch was the overall winner in 4:06.14. That time ranks in the top 10 in Festival of Miles history for that race. Heidesch, the Class 4A 1,600 state champion, won by 2.20 seconds.
In the high school boys 800, Sioux City North's Gabe Nash finished third in 1:51.23, a top-10 time in Festival of Miles history. Nash, the state champion in the Class 4A 800 meters two weeks ago, set a new Sioux City record with that time. The previous mark was former Iowa Hawkeye Carter Lilly's 1:51.52 set in 2014.
At the inaugural Bank of America Chicago 13.1 road race on Sunday, two former Hawkeyes fared well. Former All-American Diane Nukuri finished fourth in the women's half marathon in 1:15:09. The Asics-sponsored runner now living in Flagstaff, Ariz., averaged 5:44 per mile and was 3:54 behind winner Carrie Verdon.
Daniel Soto, a former All-Big Ten runner and Valley High star, took sixth in the men's pro competition in 1:05:24. The Hansons-Brooks Distance Project averaged 5:00 per mile and was 3:07 behind champion John Dressel.
Moving overseas, at the Diamond League event in Rabat, Morocco, on Sunday, former Iowa State standout Hillary Bor finished sixth in the 3,000 steeplechase in 8:13.12. The two-time U.S. Olympian in this event trailed a strong field led by Tokyo 2021 gold medalist Soufiane El Bakkali's 7:58.28 time. Bakkali is from Morocco.
Back in Iowa, several top times were run at the inaugural Belmont Mile at Pleasant Valley High School. Loras College's Kassie Parker, a week after finishing runner-up in the 10,000 and 5,000 at NCAA Division III nationals, was the women's combined elite and high school overall winner in 4:58.33. Parker topped recent Mount Mercy graduate Andrea Ertz by .39 of a second. Ertz is an athlete for Running Wild Elite, the running group that put on the event. Grace Boleyn was third in 5:12.57. Boleyn and fourth-place Lydia Sommer, both Pleasant Valley High students, were on the Belmont TC team. Sommer ran 5:13.57.
The men's champion was Runablaze Iowa's Alec Baldwin, a former Spirit Lake prep. Baldwin was timed in 4:08.75 to top Runablaze teammate Josh Evans by 2.08 seconds. Baldwin, from Clive, is a former Black Hills State runner. Evans, living in Ankeny, is a former Linn-Mar star who ran at the Colorado School of Mines. Recent Dallas Center-Grimes graduate Aidan Ramsey finished third in 4:10.88. That time by Ramsey, who set a Drake Relays record in the 3,200 meters this spring, is reported to be the ninth-best time in Iowa high school history. Ramsey has committed to run for Drake University.
Craig Becker of XLR8 finished fourth in 4:12.04. Isaiah Wittrock, who won an NAIA national title a week ago in the 1,500 meters for Grand View University, was fifth in 4:14.05. Wittrock is a former Pekin runner. Nash finished sixth in 4:15.86, followed by Grand View senior Trevor Albert's 4:19.34. Albert led a Viking contingent that finished seventh, eighth and 10th. Carter Huyser, from Oskaloosa, was eighth in 4:20.14 and Ben Huftalin, a former Osage prep, was 10th in 4:23.15. Squeezing between Huyser and Huftalin was Runablaze's Kallin Carolus Kahn of Iowa City in 4:22.12.
Recent NCAA Division III steeplechase champion Christopher Collet of Wartburg College captured the overall victory in the Men's Magis Mile on Saturday. Running at Saint Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, Collet ran a personal-best 4:05.01 to top Ben Rosa by .86 of a second. Collet ran the seventh-fastest time in meet history and improved on an eighth-place finish from a year ago when he ran 4:28.58.
Turning now to triathlon, where former Cedar Rapids Washington and Luther College swimmer Carson Christen, back in Iowa for Sunday's Ironman Des Moines race, won the Pigman Triathlon sprint title in Palo on Sunday. Christen, a triathlon coach based in Taiwan, won in 1:06:28, 3:20 ahead of runner-up Kevin O'Connor. Sarah Doneth was the women's winner and 10th overall in 1:19:21.
The women's Olympic distance winner was former Coe College runner Elaina Biechler of Dubuque in 2:20:53. Biechler was 11th overall. The top Iowan in the Olympic-distance triathlon was Adam Kassen in third place in 2:07:32.
Finishing with road racing and trails, where Runablaze's Blake Whalen won his fourth Grandview Gallop title in Dubuque. The former Dubuque Senior and Iowa Central athlete ran 19:32 for the four-mile race. It was 22 seconds off his course record, set in 2021. Whalen also owns wins in the event in 2015 and 2018.
Running Wild Elite's Dan Froeschle of Davenport was runner-up in a new personal-best 19:56. Froeschle is a former Assumption prep. John Donovan of Dubuque took third in 20:05, followed by Loras College senior and former Dubuque Hempstead runner Joey Schultz in 20:28. Will Whalen, brother of Blake and a Loras runner, was fifth in 20:58.
Former Wartburg and Linn-Mar runner Kyle Read was the winner of the fourth Dam to DSM half marathon Saturday from Saylorville Lake to Cowles Commons. Read ran 1:14:43 to top Michael Johnson by 25 seconds. Former Johnston High athlete Evan Culbert was third in 1:15:16 on a cool, cloudy morning. The women's winner was Laurel Johnson in 1:27:49. Dean Furness was the men's wheelchair winner in 1:06:51.
Former Simpson College and Clinton High product Jonathan Facio was the overall winner Saturday of the Ledges 5K race as part of the Iowa Trail Run Series. Facio covered the 3.1 hilly miles in 19:36.
MISSING A TOP DISTANCE RUNNER OR TRIATHLETE?: Let me know at bergeson@registermedia.com.
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This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Mile posts: Items on Erik Sowinski, Festus Lagat, Alexina Teubel, Kassie Parker, Alec Baldwin, Christopher Collet, Blake Whalen
