Washington's All-American Men's Lineup Runs U.S. Record In the DMR; Women Break Own Collegiate Record

By Doug Binder, DyeStat Editor

Images Courtesy University of Washington

In what figures to be a big weekend in the college distance medley relays, with a handful of meets across the country likely to set the order for the NCAA Indoor Championships, the University of Washington dropped the proverbial mic on Friday. 

At the Arkansas Qualifier in Fayetteville, the Huskies' lineup of Joe Waskom, Daniel Gaik, Nathan Green and Luke Houser broke the American indoor record and ran the third-fastest time in collegiate history: 9:18.81. 

And Washington needed every bit of Houser's 3:54.54 anchor leg to hold off Virginia and its anchor, Gary Martin, which was next in 9:18.95 for the fourth-fastest time in collegiate history. Oklahoma State was third in 9:19.74. Arkansas was fourth in 9:20.09.

Waskom led off with a 2:51.34 lead-off 1,200 meters, Gaik split 46.37 on the 400 and Green put the Huskies into the lead with a 1:46.57 800 split. 

Hours later at the Terrier DMR Challenge in Boston, the women's team from Washington, with Chloe Foerster, Anna Terrell, Marlena Preigh and Carley Thomas, smashed its own collegiate record by three seconds in 10:43.39. 

Foerster opened with 3:15.29, followed by Terrell's 54.74, Preigh's 2:03.34 and Thomas anchored with 4:30.02.

Providence (10:44.07) and BYU (10:44.67) also ran faster than Washington's 2023 record-setting team that clocked 10:46.62. Stanford was fourth in 10:47.03.

Washington's time is also the eighth-fastest in world history. 

Saturday's Alex Wilson Invitational at Notre Dame could also produce headlines.