Senior Stephanie Sherman ran the race of her life in the 10,000m at the NCAA Track & Field Championships in Eugene, Ore. on Thursday, earning second-team All-America honors in the process. Sherman ran a personal-best time of 33:25.31 to take 16th place, which earned her the final spot as a second-team All-American.
Sherman shattered her previous best time of 34:08.86 in the 10K, which she ran two weeks ago at the NCAA East Regional Championships, and set a school record in the process. Carmela Cardama Baez of Oregon won the race with a PR of 32:16.13
Sherman
Also competing Thursday was senior Petronela Simiuc, who came in eighth place in her heat of the 1500m. Simiuc, who has been battling a foot injury, did not qualify for Saturday’s finals but ran a gutty race from beginning to end, finishing with a very respectable time of 4:16.64. She finished in 20th place overall, 1.99 seconds behind fifth-place qualifier Kelsey Harris of Indiana (4:14.65) for the automatic qualifying spot.
Simiuc
“I could not be more proud of the efforts of these two women,” said Head Coach Andrea Grove-McDonough. “I know Petro is capable of making the final and competing to win if she is healthy. But she handled the adversity of her injury this past month and still competed right up to the final stretch against the best 1500 meter runners in the country.
“Steph proved you don’t have to be a Footlocker finalist or a high school star to achieve your goals. She’s an All-American, ran a sub 33:30 and is the new school record holder in the 10K. She is an absolute competitor.”
