For the second straight season, Illinois’ Olivia Howell qualified for nationals in the women’s 1,500-meter race. And for the second straight season, Howell advanced to the finals.
After a fourth-place run Thursday, Howell topped that qualifying time by more than a second, completing Saturday’s race in a season-best 4:12.22, good for a ninth-place finish and Second-Team All-America honors. Sintayehu Vissa of Ole Miss claimed the national championship with a time of 4:09.42 — in fact, only 0.64 seconds separated first from fourth place.
It was a repeat performance of sorts for Howell.