Distance stars shine at Stanford

FAYETTEVILLE – Select members of the Arkansas Razorback men’s track and field team competed at the Stanford Invitational Distance Carnival Friday night in Palo Alto, Calif.

"We did exactly what we needed to do at Stanford," head coach Chris Bucknam said. "We ran some really fast 10Ks and got Duncan Phillips into a good race for his first race on the track. He did a good job and I think he’s right where he needs to be in terms of fitness and training. Our 10K guys did a great job. And Solomon Haile and Eric Fernandez were running their first collegiate 10Ks. I’m excited about the future of those two young guys."

Freshman Eric Fernandez finished third in the top-seeded section of the 10,000 meters. He clocked a time of 28:37.77 in his first collegiate 10K race. He was the top freshman finisher and his time ranks No. 3 in the NCAA (No. 1 among freshman) and leads the SEC.

Freshman Solomon Haile finished sixth in the top-seeded section of the 10,000 meters. Running his first collegiate 10K, he clocked a time of 28:43.35. He was the second freshman finisher and his time ranks No. 5 in the NCAA (No. 2 among freshmen) and No. 2 in the SEC.

Junior Lane Boyer was ninth in the top section of the 10K. His time of 28:52.25 is a 20-second personal best, ranks No. 8 in the NCAA and No. 3 in the SEC.

Sophomore Duncan Phillips ran his first race since the 2009 indoor season Friday night. Competing in the 1,500 meters, he finished 10th in the top-seed section with a time of 3:50.09. His time leads the SEC.

The remaining squad members will compete in Saturday’s Razorback Spring Invitational at John McDonnell Field.