Well, it's that time of the year again! The Bryan Clay Invitational continually provides all-time marks and plenty of PBs, and this year won't be any different.

Next week, national champions, All-Americans, and school record-holders will converge on the Cougar Athletic Stadium just north of Los Angeles, where the best of the best will compete head-to-head, perhaps giving us a preview of the upcoming postseason.

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1. Texas Tech's Ernest Cheruiyot & Solomon Kipchoge Making Distance Debut

Both distance phenoms are coming into the race following an outdoor debut in the 1500m, as Ernest Cheruiyot and Solomon Kipchoge ran 3:48.2 and 3:53.30 at the Texas Tech Masked Rider. For Cheruiyot, it was his first race since earning All-Big 12 honors in the 3000m and 5000m, and for Kipchoge, it was his first race since the 2024 NCAA Cross Country Championships, which he unfortunately had to drop out of.

Now, roughly half a year removed from NCAA, the duo is back together again and are due for some fast times over the next few months. Next week, on one of the fastest tracks in the collegiate circuit, Cheruiyot is chasing a quick 10,000m to secure his spot on the starting line at the West Region next month, while Kipchoge is testing his legs with the 5000m, hoping to get the ball rolling and get into form ahead of the postseason.

2. New Mexico's Pamela Kosgei Chasing 1500m/5000m Double

Since stepping foot in Albuquerque last fall, Pamela Kosgei has had a pretty successful first year as a Lobo, notching a runner-up at the 2024 NCAA Cross Country Championships, as well as a third-place finish in the 5000m at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Kosgei has already clocked the NCAA lead in the 3000m steeplechase this outdoor season, running 9:15.93 (Collegiate All-Time No. 2), just under a second from the record. However, this will be Kosgei's first-ever 1500m at the collegiate level, and just her third 5000m. Granted, Kosgei comes into the Bryan Clay Invitational with a 4:36.7 mile PB and a lifetime best of 15:00.36 over 5000m, so it's safe to say she's a prime contender in both races.

3. BYU Women Looking To Assert Their Dominance On The Distance Side Of Things

In case you've been living under a rock since October, the women of BYU have taken their place at the top of the nation's distance programs, after a couple of months filled with national titles, collegiate records, and national championship contenders from the 800m to the 10,000m.

Although the team has a ton of talented runners, five athletes have excelled at the national level, cementing themselves as the best distance program in the country at the moment. 

• Jenna Hutchins, 10,000m
  • With 25 laps on tap, Hutchins is looking to punch her ticket to the NCAA West Region next month, and there's no better time than now to do so. The junior has had a heck of a year so far, contributing to two national titles (NCAA XC & DMR), as well as notching four PBs along the way. The last time she ran 10,000m on a track was at the 2024 NCAA Outdoor Championships, running 32:44:05 for sixth.
• Riley Chamberlain, 5000m
  • In her first race since the NCAA Indoor Championships, Chamberlain is toeing the line for her first 5000m since December. Granted, Chamberlain had to step off of the track in Boston late last year, but her range and consistency are more than enough to bet on her running her way to a PB.
• Lexy Halladay-Lowry, 5000m
  • The best runner on the roster finished runner-up and third in the 5000n/3000, double at NCAA Indoors last month, and has simply just been an absolute menace since the beginning of the 2024 cross country season. Just a few months removed from running 14:57.63 (No. 5 All-Dates), it's very possible we see some movement at the top of the NCAA record books once again. 
• Carmen Alder, 1500m
  • The NCAA XC All-American and sub-4:30 miler is due for her first 1500m of her outdoor campaign, where she's chasing a fast mark to not only make her presence known but to ideally run fast enough to easily punch her ticket to College Station. Her 1500m PB is 4:14.08, which she ran at this same meet in 2023.
• Meghan Hunter, 1500m/800m
  • In the first week of December, Meghan Hunter announced her presence to the women's mid-distance landscape, running 2:02.3 to win the BU Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener before following that performance up with a lifetime best of 2:00.21. Despite finishing 10th at the NCAA Indoor Championships, Hunter is a threat on the national level, and could easily be the first woman to run sub-2:00 this season if everything goes her way.

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