Ellingson posts nation's second-fastest 1500 time

WALNUT, Calif. – Catie Ellingson wasn't intimidated by a field of 124 runners in the 1500 meter run at the Mt. San Antonio College Relays on Thursday.

Instead, she held her own in a field largely consisting of runners hailing from Division I institutions.

Ellingson finished second in her heat and 46th overall, finishing in a time of 4:27.91, currently the second fastest time in all of Division III. Finishing behind Ellingson in her heat were runners from Washington, Colorado, Hawaii and Iowa State, among others.

The effort is only 0.68 seconds shy of Ellingson's all-time best of 4:27.23, which got her a second-place finish at the 2010 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships. Today marks only Ellingson's second 1500-meter race since then, as she sat out all of the 2011 outdoor season due to injury.