Preview: Peterson & Lyle at NCAA Championships

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Birgitta Gray O: (406) 896-5917 E: birgitta.gray@msubillings.edu May 24, 2016 2 set to run in steeplechase at NCAA Division II national meet MSUB Track and Field on Facebook | MSUB Track and Field on ISSUU GNAC Track and Field Weekly Reports | NCAA Performance Lists | NCAA Live Streaming

Senior Della Lyle will compete in the 3,000 meter steeplechase at the NCAA Division II National Championships.

Seniors Della Lyle and Robert Peterson are heading to Florida to compete in the 2016 NCAA Division II National Outdoor Track and Field Championships.

BILLINGS, Mont. – After stunning regular seasons on the MSUB track and field team, seniors Della Lyle and Robert Peterson hope to complete their careers at the NCAA Division II National Outdoor Track and Field Championships by finishing as All-Americans.

With two of the best seasons in the history of the MSU Billings track and field program, Lyle and Peterson have one more weekend of competition, closing out their collegiate campaigns at the NCAA national meet May 26-28 in Bradenton, Fla., hosted by the University of Tampa and IMG Academy. Both athletes will compete in the 3,000 meter steeplechase after completing top-15 finishes nationally at the conference championships two weeks ago.

Lyle enters the preliminary race on Thursday, May 26, posting the 11th fastest time in the country in the women’s 3,000 meter steeplechase in 10:29.98. The native of Buffalo, Wyo., placed second at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Outdoor Championships with the fourth-fastest time in GNAC history.

The transfer from the University of Redlands in California, had just a season each of indoor and outdoor track and field eligibility remaining in her collegiate career, and she has made the most of it at MSU Billings.

In just a single season, Lyle has amassed five Yellowjacket track and field records, including the steeplechase, and was named the GNAC Female Newcomer of the Year after the indoor season. She has continued to improve each week and has dropped her times every meet she has been on the track.

Lyle advanced to the NCAA Division III national cross country championships from Redlands, but has yet to attend a track and field national championships.

Peterson has competed in two indoor national meets, but this is the first time the native of Billings, Mont., has qualified for the outdoor championships. With his GNAC title winning time of 8:59.23, Peterson is ranked ninth nationally heading into the prelim’s on Thursday. Like Lyle, Peterson set the MSUB school record and also holds the fourth-fastest time in GNAC history.

Even more astounding than the records is the fact Peterson has only competed in the steeplechase three total times in his career, all in the past two months, and is entering the championship meet ranked in the top-10 in the nation.

Peterson holds six individual records at MSU Billings in track and field, and is part of two relay team records, including the Distance Medley Relay team that won the conference title this season at the GNAC indoor championships.

So what exactly is the steeplechase?

The 3,000 meter steeplechase is a singular event that combines a distance race with horse-high barriers and a hurdle plus water jump that’s on an incline. It’s basically a booby-trapped obstacle course that showcases not only an athlete’s running stamina and form, but jumping and recovery ability as well.

How does it work?

The course is set-up with four barriers and a water jump on each of seven and a half laps around the track. The race bypasses the first barrier and water jump on the opening lap which leaves 28 barriers and seven water jumps to clear over the entire race.

Della Lyle clearing one of 28 barriers on the steeplechase course.

The barriers are 36 inches high for the men and 30 inches high for the women. Unlike a hurdles race, the barriers do not fall over which allows athletes to jump and step-off each of them, if they choose that strategy. In the Olympics, most athletes hurdle the barriers, but at the NCAA Division II collegiate level, most choose to push-off the top of the barrier.

If a competitor can successfully navigate the barriers, the water jump can be the trickiest. The key is to maintain speed each time an athlete approaches it, jump far enough out to minimize the amount of water landed in, and then continue forward momentum without falling or losing time because of balance.

The water barriers are solid, and after jumping over it, each water pit is 12 feet long. The landing area slopes upward starting with a height of 28 inches of water directly below the barrier and stretches down the 12 feet to the edge of the track.

Although Peterson has run the course just a few times in competition, the senior has found the keys to his success are rooted in his previous training.

“The first time I went out on the course, I thought my time would be faster,” Peterson commented. “I think I went out too slow, but once I was done I thought I could definitely improve on my time, and I was hooked. I had always wanted to run the steeplechase since my freshman year, but the opportunity wasn’t there.”

Robert Peterson landing in the middle of the water pit.

Peterson has been a NCAA indoor national qualifier in the men’s mile the previous two seasons. His focus was on the 1500 meters and the 5,000 meters during the outdoor season, which didn’t allow for the him to add the steeplechase. His senior season, Peterson tried out two new events collegiately, breaking the MSUB school record in the 800 meters and the steeplechase.

“The steeplechase is a really cool-looking event, and it takes a special person to want to compete in it,” Peterson said. “You don’t want to go out too fast and the first mile seems fairly easy.

The difference from my other events is that the hurting is a lifting pain. Your muscles get tired from jumping, so one of the main things is form.”

Robert Peterson coming out of the tricky water pit.

“The steeplechase is a very difficult event in that it’s hard to run an even pace across the course,” MSUB head coach Dave Coppock said. “The water jump is the most difficult to master in the event as there is a bit of a fear factor when you have to launch off the top of the barrier, land somewhere in the water pit and hopefully have your feet still under you to run out of it without losing too much momentum. In the end, it is almost two miles of running and strength and endurance are two major determining factors, both of which Robert and Della possess. I think their endurance will help them get through the preliminaries and finals.”

Both Lyle and Peterson are multi-dimensional, excelling in longer distances, but have also trained in the 1500 meters that calls for a straight-away kick that is also utilized in the steeplechase.

“My form hasn’t been as good so there has been a lot of room for improvement which is why I feel good about this weekend,” Peterson said. “I have been concentrating on my form since conference and I think I have really developed my technique. I am also really happy about my ranking going into the race because I have somewhere to go. I feel like I do better as the underdog so that is an advantage for me.”

Della Lyle coming out of the water jump.

This is the first time in the MSUB program two athletes have qualified for the national championships and with both contending in the same event, Peterson and Lyle will compete one after each other which will add a layer of support to the experience.

“The national meet is a completely different experience than competing in even our conference championships, much less the regular season meets,” Coppock commented. “Everyone there is at such a high level, that there is no margin for error. The races become more tightly-packed and everyone is trying to get through the preliminaries to make the finals, so there’s a lot more to race strategy to be concerned about.”

The men’s preliminaries in the 3,000 meter steeplechase are set for Thursday, May 26, at 7:25 p.m. Eastern time which is 5:25 p.m. Mountain time. In the men’s race, Peterson will compete in the second of two heats. The first heat contains 10 athletes with the second consisting of nine athletes. Out of the men’s preliminaries, the top-4 in each heat plus the next four best times advance to the finals for a total of 12 athletes. The finals will be contested at 7:15 p.m. Eastern time (5:15 p.m. Mountain time) on Friday, May 27. Peterson has competed against two athletes this season in the first heat and is familiar with almost half of the athletes entered in the race. One other athlete from the GNAC is competing in the event, Matthew Lutz from Western Washington.

None of the top-8 athletes from last year’s championships are returning to the event, including two-time champion and NCAA championships record holder Tabor Stevens from Adams State. The top time heading into the championships is held by freshman Leakey Kipkosgei from American International of 8:47.51. The second-best time is held by freshman Jonah Theisen from Black Hills State of 8:50.63. Peterson finished three seconds behind Theisen the first time the senior

competed in the steeplechase at the Bauer Invitational in Rapid City in April. Theisen will be competing in the opening heat, and Peterson will be up against Kipkosgei in the second preliminary race.

In the women’s preliminaries, Lyle will also be competing in the second of two heats. The same number of women’s athletes will advance to the finals. Three more total athletes are set to compete in the women’s opening heats than the men’s which will begin following the men’s preliminaries. Each women’s heat contains 11 athletes with the top-four from each heat plus the next four fastest times advancing to the finals. The women’s preliminary heats begin at 7:55 p.m. Eastern time start which is 5:55 p.m. Mountain time on Thursday, May 26, with the finals to be run at 7:30 p.m.

Eastern time (5:30 p.m. Mountain time) on Friday, May 27.

Eight athletes from the west region will compete in the women’s race, four of them from the GNAC. The winner of the GNAC title this season, Dani Eggleston from Central Washington, will compete in the first heat. Lyle, Erin Chinchar from Central Washington, and Brittany Grant from Western Washington are all in the second heat.

The women’s race has seven returners from the top-12 finishers at last year’s championships, including the title winner senior Emily Oren from Hillsdale. Oren is a five-time individual national champion and enters the steeplechase with an Olympic-standard time of 9:50.54, the only time under 10 minutes in the field, and almost 15 seconds faster than her sister, junior Molly Oren who enters the race with the second-fastest qualifying time of 10:14.27.

However, advancing onto the finals is the first task of the meet, and with all championship finals, anything is possible in the title race.

“The NCAA championships are highly structured and organized and the officiating is top notch so it’s a highly charged atmosphere,” Coppock said. “Having two athletes competing will be fun, and it’s also rewarding for me as well to have them competing in an event in which I had competed in college decades ago. We’re all hoping they can at least get to the finals at which point the rankings kind of go out the window as it’s anyone’s race. Regardless of the outcome, I’m really proud of these two and I know we’ll all have a great experience out there.”

The complete list of athletes competing at the championships along with the meet schedule can be found here. The championship program is available online here. For more information on the championships, please visit the NCAA site here. Live streaming of the events will be broadcast online at the NCAA live schedule site here.

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