***Camarillo Distance Classic***
Hasay sets another U.S. record!
Distance star breaks own sophomore class 3200m standard
in commanding victory; readies for sub-10:00 bid at Arcadia
 
Photos by Kirby Lee
It was a historic evening at the Camarillo Distance Classic as national record holders (in left photo)
Kim Mortensen and Jeff Nelson flank new sophomore national recordholder Jordan Hasay of
Mission Prep HS after her fine 10:04.07 run. At right, Hasay receives the winner's trophy!

By Richard Gonzalez
Editor, DyeStatCal
      CAMARILLO, Ca -- Distance-running legends past and present converged at Camarillo High School on Friday night and "the new young gun" proved she's just as formidable on the oval as the multi-laps gods from the good ole' days.
      With national recordholders Jeff Nelson and Kim Mortensen among those cheering her on, Mission Prep High School distance-running specialist Jordan Hasay ran her way into the record books for the second time in as many weekends.
      Hasay headlined an all-star cast of female distance runners assembled, yet needed less than 20 seconds to begin asserting her superiority en route to a wire-to-wire triumph in national class record time at the 5th Annual Camarillo Distance Classic.
      Hasay charged quickly from the opening gun and then rode near-even splits most of the way (the middle six laps all ranged between 75.9 and 77.0 seconds) to win the featured girls' 3200-meter run in a sophomore class American prep record 10:04.07, shaving just under an additional half-second of the 10:04.52 standard she established at the Wildcat Relays in Watsonville the weekend before. Her effort, achieved under a race-time temperature of 55 degrees with no wind, also ranked eighth-fastest on the all-time national prep outdoor list.
      Hasay previously clocked a lifetime-best 10:02.9 in a co-ed time trial in early February the week before her U.S. Cross-Country Junior Nationals title triumph. She'll take her next stab at the evasive sub-10:00 barrier on April 7th at the Arcadia Invitational in the Los Angeles area.
      "I really wanted to get under 10 minutes, but I just can't do it, it's so frustrating," said the smiling 15-year-old Hasay with an upbeat and good-natured laugh. "It's really hard (racing) by myself. I wish someone could go out in five minutes for me (in the first 1600m) or help me in that last (1600)."
       Camarillo Classic coordinator Tom Trumpler did a fabulous job procuring the all-star lineup but was victimized by an 11th-hour dose of bad news as reigning California state 1600m champion Christine Babcock of Woodbridge HS withdrew due to a scheduling conflict and national steeplechase champion Marie "Mel" Lawrence of Reno HS  (Nev.) sustained a problematic iliotibilal band flare-up in recent days and opted for rest. They each missed a great race.

Photo by Bill Leung
Bill Leung captures (from left) Lauren Saylor, Shannon Murakami
and Jordan Hasay as they react to the starter's gun in the 3200m race.
Bill Leung's photo collage from the race!

      Hasay established an aggressive tempo from the very start in this talented eight-runner field organized, opening a 7-meter gap through the opening curve. Splits of 74.2, 2:30.2, 3:46.1 and 5:02.1 expanded her edge over the field, with Saugus' Shannon Murakami and Buchanan's Lauren Saylor crossing together 20 seconds in arrear in a battle for second place at the halfway point (5:22.2).
       But then -- despite cheers from the sparse yet vocal crowd and an exuberant Doug Speck providing a quality race call over the sound system -- Hasay found herself without peer and battling fatigue in the crucial 6th and 7th laps. Yet she still was able to almost exactly match the 1600m split on the latter half (a 5:02.0 closing), while Saylor and Murakami each improved upon their own midpoint paces to eventually 'negative split' their races. Both national-class runners impressively finished very close to their lifetime bests while all three Crescenta Valley runners in the field (Claire Collison, Rachel Lange and Shelby Pock) clocked personal bests.
      "We'd been practicing (in workouts) on running 73 to 75 (seconds per lap), then go after it in the last mile," explained Hasay, when asked of her pre-race strategy. "I'm working on the mile next for speed to try and get under 10 minutes. ... I'm really excited that I'm just running faster than last year and improving on my times."
      She's not the only one enamored by her prospects.
      "The most important thing for Jordan is that with this second sub-10:05 race for 3,200 meters in the last two weeks (plus a 10:02 clocking in a co-ed time trial early last month) she is forming a solid base," said Track & Field News high school women's editor Mike Kennedy, who was lured into the hour-long drive to the meet by the likelihood of a historic performance such as did play out.
      "Last year she ran a best 10:07.56 but had a "backup best" of just 10:13.55. Off of her two recent sub-10:05 races (and the 10:02 time trial), she now can have realistic expectations this season of running under 10 minutes for 3,200 and challenging the national sophomore record of 9:21.99 for 3,000 meters set by Julia Stamps of Santa Rosa in 1996."
       Mortensen, who three times during her prep career at nearby Thousand Oaks HS clocked under 10:03.2 (including the national record 9:48.59 in 1996) to be regarded as the most successful eight-lapper in prep history, came away impressed by what she saw.
      "She's pretty incredible," said Mortensen of the solo effort. "I really didn't run that fast until I was a senior ... for her to be doing that the last two years while starting out in high school is pretty amazing. She's a beautiful runner to watch."
      Nelson, the boys prep recordholder for two miles (8:36.3) while at Burbank High in the 1970s, was equally floored: "She's just awesome. Very strong and a real pleasure to watch."
      Hasay and Coach Armando Siqueiros will now likely back off from racing a tad after four solid racing efforts in the last seven weeks, perhaps doing a 1600 at an upcoming county meet before gearing up for Arcadia, where she set the national freshmen record with a 10:07.56 effort last April.
     "I'm really confident (about breaking 10 minutes)," she said. "If I can work on the mile a little bit, I'll have a bit more strength. ... I'm looking at pulling a big time at Arcadia. There'll be a really good crowd. Last year they really helped me. That was really cool."

Photo by Kirby Lee
From left, Marie Lawrence, Kristabel Doebel-Hickok, Katie Dunne, Kim Mortensen, Shannon
Murakami, Jordan Hasay, Lauren Saylor, Claire Collison, Rachel Lange, Jeff Nelson
and Shelby Pock gather for a group picture that Kiby Lee took at the awards ceremony.