ALLENDALE, MI –
Ida Narbuvoll brought home her first national championship with a dominant effort in the rain. The University of Mary senior pulled away from the pack in the second half of the 10,000 meter run to capture the meet's longest event at the 2021 NCAA Women's Outdoor Track & Field championship.
Now an 8-time All-American, this is the first NCAA title for Narbuvoll. Her previous best finish on the national stage was 4
th place at the 2019 cross country championships.
Owning the nation's second-best mark in the 10K this season entering the national championships, the Northern Sun and the Central Region Track Athlete of the Year clocked a time of 33:36.59 to win the event by an astounding 29 seconds!
Just after the rain started to fall on the track, Narbuvoll made her move. After running mostly third and fourth through the first 5,600 meters, the native of Norway surged ahead by the 6,000 meter mark. Holding a 2-second lead by 6,400m, Narbuvoll continued to expand her lead at the end of each lap. A 7-second lead at 7,000m developed into an overwhelming 19-second advantage three laps later.
Showing she still had much more left in the tank, Narbuvoll's two fastest laps were the last two laps of the day. On her final victory lap, she was clocked in at her best split at 1:15.30.
Taking second place was Jennifer Sandoval of Azusa Pacific, who finished in 34:05.83. Sandoval had the nation's top time entering the championship race.
Narbuvoll becomes the Marauders 7
th NCAA champion and the fourth UMary scholar-athlete to win an individual title. The previous University of Mary NCAA national champions are Alexis Zeis (Cross Country in 2015 and Indoor 5,000 meter run in 2017 and 2018), Jennifer Agnew (Cross Country in 2013), Melissa Agnew (Outdoor 1500 meter run in 2013, Indoor Mile in 2012), and the 2012 UMary Distance Medley Relay Team of Dakota Wolf, Kathryn Stewart, Bri Lynch and Melissa Agnew.
Narbuvoll's weekend isn't yet complete. She will race in the 5,000 meter run finals on Saturday, May 29, at 6:45 pm.
Three other Marauders also competed on the opening day of the 2021 NCAA outdoor championships, with
Taylor Hestekin advancing to the finals of the 1500 meter run.
Hestekin earned the chance to earn another All-American citation after placing 8
th in the preliminaries of the 1500 meter run. In the first women's individual running event of the meet, the native of Scranton, ND, posted a time of 4:27.14 and finished third in the second heat of the preliminaries. Running in 5
th place through the first 1,100 meters, the four-time All-American kicked it into high gear on the final lap. Running the final 400 meters in a time of 1:08.51, Hestekin moved up two spots in the standings as she ran her fastest lap of the day. Additionally she had the fifth best time of the day among all 16 runners on the final lap.
Hestekin next races in the championship finals on Saturday, May 29, at 4:25 pm.
In her final race for the Marauders,
Chriss-Ann Thomas claimed second-team All-American honors for the Marauders in the 400 meter run. Competing in the first heat of the preliminaries, the dynamic Northern Sun champion from St. Catherine, Jamaica, clocked a time of 57.56 seconds to finish an extraordinary 11
th in the country.
Lexus Lovan produced her best effort of the day on her third and final attempt in the long jump. The senior from Urbandale, IA, connected for a mark of 5.68 meters but it wasn't enough to advance to the championship finals. In her final meet for the Marauders and her first NCAA event, Lovan finished an impressive 13
th in the nation. The first two jumps of the day for the Northern Sun champion covered 5.54 meters and 5.57 meters.
NEXT UP
Three Marauders must wait until Day 2 of the championships on Friday, May 28, to compete. First up is
D'Andra Morris in the triple jump at 4:10 pm. The NSIC champion placed second at the 2021 NCAA indoor meet. The Kingston, Jamaica, native ranks second in the nation entering this weekend with a school-record mark of 13.24 meters.
The Northern Sun champion in the 800 meter run,
Elizabeth Acheson opens competition at 4:40 pm when the Northfield, MN, native races in the first heat of the preliminaries. She is ranked 5th with a time of 2:08.90.
Tereza Bolibruch is the final Marauder to compete. The NSIC runner-up in the 100 meter hurdles is set to run at 5 pm. The native of Jamestown, RI, ranks 11th with a time of 13.88 seconds.
Friday, May 28
4:10 pm | Triple Jump |
D'Andra Morris | Finals – Flight 2
4:40 pm | 800 meter run |
Elizabeth Acheson | Preliminaries - Heat 1
5 pm | 100 meter hurdles |
Tereza Bolibruch | Preliminaries - Heat 1
Saturday, May 29 (All events are finals)
4:25 pm | 1500 meter |
Taylor Hestekin
4:45 pm | 100 meter hurdles
5:45 pm | 800 meter run
6:45 pm | 5,000 meter run |
Ida Narbuvoll
How to follow:
Links for live results and live video available at www.GoUMary.com/coverage
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