Running a remarkable 3:41.98, Senior Will Leer smashed the 1500m Pomona-Pitzer school record Saturday, May 12, 2007 at the Occidental Invitational track meet in Eagle Rock, CA – and established some other notable milestones with his superb race. The Minnetonka, MN native won the race in a time equivalent to a sub-4:00 mile.
Will Leer
Leer's splits were 59.9 / 59.5 (1:59.4) / 60.0 (2:59.4) / 42.6 (3:41.98), with a last full 400m run in 57.6. In addition to the usual crowd of spectators, Leer ran in front of his parents, who were in town to watch him graduate from Pomona College with a degree in Math on Sunday, May 13.
Leer's 1500m time easily leads the 2007 NCAA Division III qualifying marks in the 1500m. Leer also stands 2nd currently on the 800m and 5000m lists.
In addition to breaking John Armstrong's school record of 3:45.3 set back in 1977, Leer established a new SCIAC Conference best, beating the 3:45.0 converted mark (from a 4:03.0 mile) of Bill Schabarum (Occidental) set in the California Relays in 1969. Most notably, Leer's mark is the 4th fastest all-time in NCAA Division III history (see list below).
All-Time NCAA Division III Bests – 1500 Meters
3:39.84 Karl Paranya, Haverford 1997
3:40.91 Nick Symmonds, Willamette 2006 Nike Farm Team Invite
3:41.56 Tom Tuori, Rochester 1987 New England TAC Champs
3:41.98 Will Leer, Pomona-Pitzer 2007 Occidental Invite (1)
3:43.15 Sandu Rebenciuc, Augustana 1992 Indianapolis
3:43.75 Jason Bernstein, Haverford 2001
3:44.50 Kevin Foley, Haverford 1982 NCAA Championships (1)
3:44.71 Liam O’Neill, Haverford 1986 Princeton Invitational
3:44.9 Mark Beeman, Brandeis 1985 Hoya Invitational
3:45.05 Jeff Wachter, UW-Stout 1984 NCAA Championships (1)
3:45.0 Dave Cooper, Mount Union 1996
3:45.0 Matt Leighningher, Haverford 1992 Boston Hi-Performance
Leer will compete next at the NCAA Division III National meet May 24-26, 2007 held at the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh.
