If East Coast teams are your fancy, look no further than this Friday and Saturday’s Larry Ellis Invitational hosted by Princeton University. Some of the NCAA's best, a slew of professionals and one very special high schooler will throw down at Weaver Stadium this weekend — here's what to expect:

Drew Hunter to Run 1500m with Robby Andrews as Pacemaker

We know the face of high school track will run a leg at next weekend’s Penn Relays, but before that happens, Drew Hunter will open up his outdoor season with a 1500m this weekend at Princeton. Last year, Mattew Maton ran 3:42.54 at the Oregon Relays, and Grant Fisher went 3:42.89 at Payton Jordan before becoming the sixth and seventh preps to break 4:00 in the mile. Hunter, the eighth, crossed the 1500m mark in 3:42.83 and 3:41.93 this indoor season en route to breaking four minutes twice. Can he break 3:40 outdoors?

He’ll be in good hands with Robby Andrews, who took fourth in the 1500m at the World Indoor Championships, as the pacemaker. Andrews trains with Princeton coach Jason Vigilante, and it's been rumored that he plans to cross the 1200m mark around 2:58. It would be tough to break 3:40 at that pace, but would also be excellent practice for finishing fast. Note: The U.S. Olympic Trials standard is 3:38.00; the U.S. national high school record is 3:38.26 (Alan Webb). 

Penn's Tommy Awad (Ivy League mile record-holder; third in 2016 NCAA indoor mile), Sam Penzenstadler (3:39 PB), and Hoka One One’s Mike Rutt (U.S. 800m finalist) are all entered, so Hunter won’t be alone when Andrews steps off the track. Can Awad be the one to pull Hunter to sub 3:40? The gun goes off at 6:30pm CT. You won't want to miss this.

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Nicole Tully, Ashley Higginson Highlight Strong Middle-Distance Fields

World 5000m finalist Nicole Tully will make her outdoor debut in the 1500m. The 4:05 1500m/15:05 5000m athlete cemented herself as an Olympic contender when she won the U.S. 5000m in 2015 and qualified for the world championship final in Beijing. This year, Tully only raced twice indoor, and was presumably banged up. But we think this tweet means she’s ready to go on Friday evening.

Finally back to feeling like myself in workouts! And @Sia is playing in my head "I'm aliiiiivvveee" And Gags says I "am back from the dead"

— Nicole Tully (@NicoleSchappert) March 18, 2016

She opened up with a 4:11 victory here in 2015 before finding her calling in the 5000m.

Watch Nicole Tully introduce herself as a 5000m runner at last year's Payton Jordan Invite, where she ran 15:05!


After grabbing a mile PB (4:30) this indoor season, Pan-American steeplechase champion Ashley Higginson will make her season debut in her signature event on her alma mater's track. Last season, she opened up with a 9:41 steeple at the Hoka One One Middle Distance Classic, but this year, she already ran 4:12 for the 1500m (one second off her PB) at the Florida Relays. She looks ready to roll, and her NJNY teammates Nicol Traynor and Rebeka Stowe will be in the mix.

Get to know Ashley Higginson better with this in-depth video profile of the pro runner and law school grad:


Princeton’s Cecilia Barowski is the NCAA’s second-fastest 800m runner this season (2:02.62) and NJNY’s Stephanie Charnigo (4:09 1500m, 2:02 800m PB) is coming off a 4:14 1500m at the Florida Relays. Charnigo was runner-up to Ajee Wilson in this race last year with a 2:03, and Barowski raced a 400m last weekend in 54.63. This weekend, strength and speed will collide to make for an excellent women’s 800m match up.

FACT: Barowski improved her 800m PB by nearly two seconds from the 2015 outdoor season—watch below!