Aragon, Donaghu and Rainsberger to square off in High Performance 1,500 at Portland Track Festival

By Erik Boal, DyeStatCAL Editor

There were five Pacific 12 Conference stars competing in the women’s 1,500-meter final Saturday at the NCAA Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field.

Three of the conference’s elite senior recruits will competing Sunday in another quality 1,500 field at the Portland Track Festival at Lewis and Clark College.

Christina Aragon of Billings Senior (Montana), Katie Rainsberger of Air Academy (Colorado) and Ella Donaghu of Grant (Oregon) -- three of the top eight prep 1,500 runners in U.S. history -- are scheduled to race in the second of four high performance sections.

Aragon and Donaghu are Stanford signees, with Rainsberger headed to Oregon. Aragon ran U.S. No. 4 all-time May 1 with her 4:11.24 at the Payton Jordan Invitational and Donaghu clocked 4:15.28 in a separate heat on the same track at Stanford to make her the No. 8 prep performer in history.

Rainsberger elevated to No. 5 all-time May 6 with her 4:14.20 at the Oregon Twilight meet.

“It will be great to race Ella and Christina. They’re such great competitors and even better people,” Rainsberger said. “Training has been rocking these past few weeks. I took a little down time after state to recoup and now I’m feeling pretty good. Portland Track Festival will be a great tune-up for adidas and then USATF Juniors, so just taking each race at a time.”

It will be the first of two head-to-head matchups in less than a week for Donaghu and Rainsberger, who are also entered June 17 in the Dream 1,500 as part of the adidas Boost Boston Games, which has taken the place of the annual adidas Grand Prix in New York.

Following the Portland Track Festival, Aragon is scheduled to compete June 18 in the 800 at the Brooks PR Invitational in Washington, where she is the defending champion.

“Hopefully we’ll all be able to run faster,” Aragon said. “It will definitely be a good race. It’s going to be fun, for sure.”

Mary Cain still holds the U.S. prep 1,500 record of 4:04.62 from 2013, with Alexa Efraimson second all-time with her 4:07.05 from 2014.

Elise Cranny, a Stanford sophomore who placed second in the NCAA final in 4:09.54, ranks third all-time among American prep performers with her 4:10.95 in 2014.

Aragon, Donaghu and Rainsberger will not only be chasing the marks of Cain, Efraimson and Cranny, but also trying to secure the U.S. Olympic Trials 1,500 standard of 4:09.50.

Annie Hill of Glacier High in Montana is also scheduled to compete in the fourth section of the high performance 1,500. Hill ran 4:22.34 at last year’s meet.