WASHINGTON HUSKY Nathan Green, who won the men’s 1500 two years ago in Austin, but finished a non-scoring 10th last year as Husky teammate Joe Waskom won, made a triumphant return to the winner’s circle, overcoming a late rush by North Carolina’s Ethan Strand.
The field’s path to the title was made easier in Wednesday’s semifinals when reigning indoor mile champion Abel Teffra of Georgetown and CR holder Liam Murphy of Villanova were surprisingly bounced and failed to qualify.
Murphy finished a spot out of qualifying, placing 6th in the chaotic finish of the first semi in 3:52.44, while Teffra was 11th in that section in 3:53.52. Both time qualifiers came out of the second semi and Harvard’s Ferenc Kovács earned the last spot in 3:42.31.
In the final, Oregon’s Simeon Birnbaum went to the front and promptly slowed it down with Wisconsin’s Olympian Adam Spencer and Bradley’s Jack Crull just behind.
For most of the race, Green kept himself in position to react to whatever moves the frontrunners were making.
After the field went through 800 in 2:12, the real racing began, as Spencer and Birnbaum went to the front just before the bell.
Green squeezed his way through a small gap between Birnbaum and Virginia’s Gary Martin, and the race was on.
Birnbaum found himself trapped on the rail as they went down the backstretch with Kovács and Martin in hot pursuit.
Green said he and Washington coach Andy Powell knew that he was going to need to run the last 100 in about 12.5 in order to win. In fact, Powell yelled at Green to “jump!” as he ran down the backstretch on the last lap, encouraging him to do whatever it took to win.
As they came off the turn, Spencer held the rail, while Green was on the outside of lane 1, gaining about a step advantage with less than 50m to go.
On Green’s outside, Strand found some room to run and made a late charge at the leader.
Strand ran out of real estate, as Green got the win in 3:47.26 to Strand’s 3:47.33.
Kovács squeezed past Spencer to take 3rd in 3:47.42, with Spencer finishing 4th in 3:47.50.
Green finished his final 400 in 51.45, just enough to overcome Strand’s last lap of 51.27.
All but one runner in the field ran under 3:48, and the top 11 were separated by just 0.68.
Green said, “300 to go I kind of got pushed up to the front, and I just thought, ‘This is it now.’ I was…
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