Kraybill Runs Her Best 800, Takes 3rd in NCAA Final
May 24, 2003

EDWARDSVILLE, Ill. (May 24) -- Sarah Kraybill ran the race of her life but the Seattle Pacfic University senior was still forced to settle for third place in the 800-meter final at the NCAA Division II Track & Field Championships Saturday at Korte Stadium.

Kraybill (Sr., Seattle, Wa./Ballard) improved her personal record time by more than seven-tenths of a second, to 2 minutes, 8.41 seconds. In a steady rain, Steph Kuhlman of Grand Valley State (Mi.) upset favorite Andrea Morgan of Findlay to claim first place in 2:05.34. Morgan's time was 2:06.84 and Lincoln's Kelly Marshall was fourth in 2:19.12.

The only other SPU athlete involved in a final event, Josie Lavin (So., Bremerton, Wa.), finished 12th in the 1500.

Although it was her lowest finish of the outdoor season, it was Kraybill's best ever placement at a national meet. She was fourth indoors this winter and had not qualified for the outdoor final in the past two years. Her time ranks No. 4 all-time at Seattle Pacific and it was the best NCAA finish by a Falcon since Heidi Hamlin was third in 1993.

"Sarah joined the front group after the first lap and went with Kuhlman and Morgan with 300 to go, but then they just kept going," said SPU Coach Jack Hoyt. "She's happy, though, because she ran her best race and that was still good for the top three."

Krabyill and Danielle Ayers-Stamper (Fr., LaCrosse, Wa.), who took second in the heptathlon, were the Falcons' only All-America finishers. SPU finished with 14 points.

Lavin, whose pre-race strategy was to stick with the lead pack and then kick the final 300 meters, was unable to keep pace with the leaders after two laps. Her time of 4:46.62 was more than 10 seconds off her most recent outings.

"The field went out fast and then faster," said Hoyt. "Josie's used to shifting into gear later, and in this case she wasn't able to run her race."

Romy Krueger of North Florida won in 4:29.39.