Stanford women place third at NCAA track

The Stanford women matched their highest finish in program history, placing a close third at the NCAA outdoor track and field championships on Saturday at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

In windy and chilly conditions that ranged from drizzle to downpour, Stanford picked up five top-five finishes on the meet’s final day and led through 16 of the 21 events only to fall two points shy. Stanford scored 51, to finish just behind USC (53) and Georgia (52).

With two events remaining – the 5,000 meters followed by the 4x400 relay – Stanford trailed only Georgia 50-46, with USC in third with 43. Vanessa Fraser captured fourth in the 5,000 for five points for Stanford, but Georgia nabbed two points for seventh place to stay in front 52-51 with the Cardinal done for the day.

The meet came down to the relay, but Stanford and Georgia were not in the final, which meant USC had to win to capture the team title, and the Trojans did, by 0.07, dropping the Cardinal to third.

The combined men’s and women’s 79 points were the most combined since 2000, when the Cardinal men won the championship and the teams totaled 80 between them.

The Stanford men and women combined for four school records, two victories, a second place, five thirds, two fourths, and a fifth. Fifteen individuals contributed to Stanford’s scoring. And 22 athletes competing were the most for Stanford since 2005.

Elise Cranny earned her 11th All-America honor and set a school record by placing third in the 1,500 in 4:09.49, with Christina Aragon a close fourth in 4:09.59. Aragon now trails only Cranny as the fastest in school history.

Valarie Allman placed third in the discus at 194-3 (59.20 meters), which led through five of the six rounds in a rain-delayed competition.

Olivia Baker placed fifth in her third consecutive NCAA outdoor 800 final, in 2:06.18.

In the 5,000, Fraser took the lead with 300 to go on the way to running 15:43.77 for fourth, her highest NCAA outdoor finish.

• Cal’s Ashley Anderson took 21st in the triple jump at the NCAA championships. She recorded a leap of 12.86m/42-2.25 on her second attempt. Anderson was competing in her third consecutive championship having a career-best finish of 19th last season.

• USF distance runner Charlotte Taylor capped off her final race in the NCAA championships with an 11th-place finish in the 5,000 meters, running a time of 15:49.70, narrowly missing the top eight for All-American honors by two seconds.

Taylor finishes her career as one of the most decorated athletes in USF history, earning two All-American honors in track and field, while also garnering two All-American honors in cross country. Her greatest triumph was her national title in last year’s 10,000 meters.