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Akbar and Carlstrom Set School Records at Penn Relays; Akbar Provisionally Qualifies for NCAA Championships
Akbar places second in 10,000m; Carlstrom finishes 10th in 3000m

April 24, 2003

Samia Akbar provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships in the 10,000m.

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — American University senior Samia Akbar and freshman Keira Carlstrom each set school records while running on distance night at the Penn Relays. Akbar finished second among collegiate runners and third overall in the 10,000-meters, running a school record 34:17.48 to provisionally qualify for the NCAA Championships. Carlstrom placed 10th in the 3000m running 9:45.75 to break the old mark.

In a field of over 50 runners, Akbar positioned herself in the front pack at the start. Running among both collegiate and unattached runners, the race broke into three packs, Akbar settled into the third pack of four runners. At the first mile, she ran 5:27 and quickly made a move to catch the second pack as the first pack of three runners consisting of unattached runners Tara Quinn and Sheila Klick and Keene State's Mary Proulx broke away from the field. Akbar paced herself off WIlliam & Mary's Maura McMahon through the second mile in 5:37.

Unattached runner Josianne Lauber led Akbar's pack beginning in the third mile as Akbar remained patient and sat on the leader of her pack. With 15 laps remaining, she began to make a move, taking control of the pack and leading Lauber and DePaul's Erin Moffett. Akbar led the trio through the third mile in 5:30 and through the 5000m mark in 17:18.

Akbar and Lauber pulled away from Moffett in the fourth mile as Akbar continued to set the pace. The duo ran a 5:30 fourth mile as Akbar continued to look strong over halfway into the race. Akbar then dropped Lauber with seven laps remaining as she ran in pursuit of an NCAA berth. Akbar used the lapped runners to help her as she caught Klick who had dropped off the lead pack's pace as she continued her impressive debut at the 10,000m distance.

After a 5:26 fifth mile and her first lap of her sixth mile, Akbar needed to close in 5:14 to make the NCAA automatic qualifying time. She closed with a 2:37 last 800m to just miss the automatic mark, finishing in 34:17.48. Akbar's time places her 17th in the country.

Earlier in the evening, running in a field of 35 runners, Carlstrom got a good start and was in the front half of the field through the beginning of the race. The pack remained tightly bunched over the first two laps. As the field began to spread out, Carlstrom made a move on the third and fourth laps, covering this 800m stretch in 2:31 to put her with the lead pack as she ran her first mile in 5:12.59.

The top five runners broke open the lead pack in the fifth lap of the race. Carlstrom ran strong, but ended up caught between two packs. Running with Laura Stanley of Duke, Carlstrom began to make a move on her seventh lap as she closed on some runners that fell off the pace in the front pack. She closed the race in 32.7 seconds over the final 200m, catching Kristin Meyer of Connecticut in the final 50 meters.

Tomorrow, the men's distance medley relay competes in the distance medley relay Championship of America at 3:30 p.m.

Event 79, Thursday, 7:45 pm
CW 3,000m Run Championship

1 9:22.56 Carol Henry North Carolina
2 9:24.41 Rebecca Walter Michigan
3 9:33.47 Maureen McCandless Pittsburgh
4 9:34.82 Yuliya Stashkiv Abilene Christian
5 9:40.15 Jackie Nunez Stony Brook
6 9:40.20 Mary Kinyanju Texas Christian
7 9:41.43 Julie Culley Rutgers
8 9:42.42 Renee Gunning North Carolina State
9 9:43.79 Lisa Stublic Columbia
10 9:45.75 Keira Carlstrom American
11 9:46.08 Kristin Meyer Connecticut
12 9:46.23 Trish Nolan Columbia
13 9:47.14 Kay Livick East Carolina
14 9:48.62 Laura Stanley Duke
15 9:48.91 Nora Sullivan Brown
16 9:49.21 Pilar Marin Princeton
17 9:49.28 Ashley Urick Army
18 9:50.79 Jennifer Davis West Virginia
19 9:53.12 Erica Moriarty Toledo
20 9:53.80 Mindy Peterson Indiana
21 9:54.77 Romy Krueger North Florida
22 9:59.50 Allyson Hammond Indiana
23 10:00.49 Tara Guelig William & Mary
24 10:00.70 Lisa Cappello Providence
25 10:04.24 Heather Cappello Providence
26 10:06.34 Emily McCabe Cornell
27 10:08.34 Christina Seremetis Stonehill
28 10:09.47 Jackie Kosakowski William & Mary
29 10:14.25 Julie Pitney Findlay
30 10:15.24 Jane Martineau Michigan
31 10:15.99 Suzanne Hussey Maine
32 10:19.32 Tara Johnson Penn State
33 10:21.14 Michelle Wale Penn State
34 10:31.35 Erin Anderson Tennessee
35 10:36.73 Susan Davis West Virginia
dnf Meredith Lambert Princeton
dnf Emily Reaman Georgetown
dnf Cara Nichols Western Kentucky

Event 85, Thursday, 9:30 pm
CW 10,000m Run Championship

1 33:21.80 Mary Proulx Keene State
2 34:17.48 Samia Akbar American
3 34:30.25 Adriana Zalucka Akron
4 34:39.89 Molly Landreth Penn State
5 35:00.47 Erin Moffett DePaul
6 35:16.28 Maura McMahon William & Mary
7 35:31.05 Laura Jakosky Arkansas
8 35:33.61 Adrien Ricci Elmhurst
9 35:41.52 Paige Higgins Kansas
10 35:44.06 Danielle Kramer Bloomsburg
11 35:48.60 Chelsea Loomis Michigan
12 35:51.46 Leyne Williams La Salle
13 35:54.20 Maureen Thomas Penn State
14 35:57.58 Crystal Meeks Ball State
15 36:03.57 Kristyne McGuinn Loyola (Ill)
16 36:08.23 Everlyn Cheptoo Fairleigh Dickinson
17 36:09.37 Mindy Sawtelle Indiana (Pa)
18 36:10.35 Candice Kolb Texas A&M
19 36:17.59 Carling Cookerly Florida
20 36:20.79 Neta Ezer Georgia Tech
21 36:29.95 Liza Grudzinski Marist
22 36:30.89 Katie Flaute Tennessee
23 37:12.67 Sarah Huddleston Ball State
24 37:25.83 Charity Learn Mansfield
25 38:09.13 Andrea Good Eastern Mennonite
26 38:10.49 Jackie Baumgartner Toledo
27 39:46.48 Maria Castro Lehman
dnf Laura Magee North Florida
dnf Lindsey Roberts Edinboro