Sayen takes down school record at Drake Relays
DES MOINES, Iowa. – Clayton Sayen's closing speed helped him top the Michigan Tech 1500 meter school record for the second time this spring Thursday night at the Drake Relays. Sayen (Houghton, Michigan) finished in second place amongst a field of 27 with a time of 3:44.33, bested only by Alec Basten of the University of Minnesota (3:43.64).
He also upped the NCAA provisional mark he previously set at the Raleigh Relays with the fastest 1500 time of his Husky career, giving himself a good chance to qualify for the NCAA Outdoor Championships.
Sayen's top-five time was quicker than more than a dozen Division I athletes in the field and he picked up six positions over the final leg, a split nearly four seconds faster than his first 1100 meters.
"Clayton once again showed that he is one of the top 1500-meter runners in the nation," said head coach Kristina Owen. "He put people on notice with a blistering fast finishing sprint."
Prior to Sayen's races this spring, the previous Tech school record for the 1500 meters was 3:46.53, set by Jani Lane in 2014.
In addition to Sayen, senior Michelle Bollini (Charlevoix, Michigan) crossed the line 13th in the women's 10,000 meters amongst a field of 29 finishers with a time of 36:52.46. Bollini ran a brisk pace in the first half of the race, then faded slightly to post a strong time.
"Michelle ran a very disciplined first 10,000 meter race," commented assistant coach Robert Young. "She clipped off tightly bunched splits the whole race to consistently move up the field. There was a bit of confusion between Michelle and the race leaders at the finish and she had to restart for one more lap. Still, she did an incredible job even with the stoppage."
Freshman Drew Kolodge (Clay, Michigan) did not finish in the men's 10,000 meters. He stepped off the track after running 6,000 meters.
"Drew has been fighting injury issues that flared up and caused him to drop at around the 6K mark," Owen said. "That's a difficult call to make in the middle of a race you have poured your heart into preparing for. I was really proud of his maturity in making the best decision for his health. We'll get him back and ready to compete in the next one."
Michigan Tech student-athletes competed in both the Elaine Leigh Invitational and Drake Relays this week in preparation for the GLIAC Outdoor Championships, scheduled for May 4-6 in Allendale, Michigan. Grand Valley State is the host institution.