Hedengren doubles with a 3000 m record; Arkansas and Georgia win NCAA team titles

Jane Hedengren finished what she started. A day after winning the 5000 m, the BYU freshman led the NCAA indoor 3000 m from the gun on Saturday in Fayetteville, pulled away over the last 800 m and closed in 66.97 to win in 8:36.61, a championship record. Parker Valby's 8:41.50 from 2024 was the old mark. Pamela Kosgei of New Mexico was second, more than seven seconds back. Hedengren is the first freshman to win both distance titles at the same NCAA indoor meet.

The men's 3000 m was decided after the finish. Habtom Samuel of New Mexico, chasing his own double, crossed the line first but was disqualified for impeding on the last lap after contact with Colin Sahlman and Marco Langon in the final 100 metres. Sahlman of Northern Arizona was given the title in 7:41.66, his second of the weekend after the DMR, with Oregon's Simeon Birnbaum second in 7:41.85 and Langon third in 7:42.56.

Carter Cutting of BYU won the mile in 3:58.94. Wilma Nielsen of Oregon repeated in the women's mile in 4:40.06. Arkansas went one-two in the 800 m through Tyrice Taylor, 1:46.00, and Rivaldo Marshall, 1:46.12, and Clemson's Gladys Chepngetich won the women's race in 2:00.01.

The hosts won the men's team title with 73.5 points to Oregon's 40, Arkansas's 22nd indoor championship and the first under new head coach Doug Case, in front of 3,584 people. Georgia won the women's title with 53 points from Oregon, 44, and Illinois, 42. BYU was fifth with 27, 20 of them Hedengren's.

Two titles, one record, one freshman. The college season has its name for the year.

Sources: BYU Athletics; Arkansas Razorbacks; Wikipedia.