AZUSA, Calif. – When Maya Ewing started the current track season, she was 41-plus seconds away from the Seattle Pacific school record in the 3000-meter steeplechase.
 
Just 12 days ago, she broke it – with two seconds to spare.
 
On Wednesday evening, she broke the record again – this time her own record …
 
… with eight seconds to spare.
 
The Falcons junior ran exactly the pace she was hoping to run for all 7½ laps and came across the finish line in 10 minutes, 27.61 seconds at the Bryan Clay Invitational track and field meet.
 
Ewing's time inside Cougar Athletic Stadium easily beat the 10:35.63 she posted on April 4 at the Stanford Invitational. That time eclipsed the old record of 10:37.53 that Kaylee Mitchell ran in 2019.
 
"That's crazy to me, so exciting – I'm so thankful," Ewing said of her back-to-back record races.
 
Heading into the outdoor calendar at the start of March, Ewing's best steeple time was 11:19.21 from her freshman year in 2023 at the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Championships. She started off with a 10:48.00 at the PLU Open on March 8, then came the 10:35.63 Stanford.
 
Now this.
 
"I don't put anything past her at this point. She's just running out of her mind right now," SPU assistant coach / distance coach Eric Hansen said. "It's really cool to see the improvements from week to week."
 
Ewing wasn't the only speedy Falcon on Wednesday. Senior Annika Esvelt ran a personal best in the 10,000. She finished her 25 laps in 33 minutes, 34.30 seconds. That was seven seconds below her previous PB of 33:41.59, which she ran in the same meet on this same track last April 11.
 
Esvelt's time ranks No. 3 nationally as of Wednesday evening.
 
SHE JUST KEEPS GOING AND GONG AND …
Her mark on Wednesday placed Ewing 20th out the 93 finishers in the Open Division. She was third among the 21 NCAA Division II runners, A total of four more D2 competitors had faster times in the Invitational race.
 
Breaking 10:30 was the ultimate goal here because that very likely assures Ewing of a trip to the NCAAs next month in Pueblo, Colorado. The top 22 declarations get into the meet. With six other Division II runners posting faster times on Wednesday (one of those was already ahead of her on the provisional qualifying list), Ewing was hovering around No. 12 at the end of the evening.
 
Last year, her 10:27.61 would have ranked No. 15 on the final qualifying list – well above the red line.
 
 

"It was just another really good race with a lot of really good girls in it," Ewing said. "I had wanted a 10:30 or a 10:29, so this was better than expected."
 
Ewing had the lead through the opening strides, then settled in and let others occupy that front spot while she focused on her pace. After a 42.70 through the first 200, she had splits of 83, 84, 84, 83, 84 and 84 seconds before closing with an 80. At Stanford, she opened with a 41, then went 85, 85, 85, 87, 87, 86, and closed with a 79.
 
"I would say it felt pretty similar (to Stanford)," Ewing said. "I think it was just more like I knew I didn't want go like an 87 in the middle part. I knew the fifth and sixth laps would be tough, so at that point, I just tried to surge and stay attached with those girls.
 
"It felt similar physically, but I think mentally, I was ready and engaged," she added. "I was more anticipating what I needed to do at that point in the race."
 
Heading into the bell lap, there was no doubt Ewing would break the school record and very likely would break 10:30, as well.
 
She did both by a comfortable margin – but didn't actually see her time on the board.
 
"Annika told me; I wasn't even looking at the clock," Ewing said. "I was so excited – I couldn't believe it."
 
Hansen said it all played out just the way they wanted.
 
 

"It was a really, really good field, a lot of good racing going on, and she executed the race plan perfectly," he said. With two (laps) to go, I knew she had a shot; she always has an amazing last 400."
 
In addition to being another school record, Ewing's time on lifted her into the GNAC's all-time top 10, occupying the No. 9 spot on the list.
 
"We knew she was capable of breaking 10:30 on a good day and could be probably around the neighborhood of 10:29,": Hansen said. "Her trajectory has been so amazing this year.
 
ANOTHER NCAA TICKET FOR ESVELT
After two races at NCAA outdoors last year and two at NCAA indoors this past winter, Esvelt has set herself up for another double dose of distance next month in Colorado.
 
 

She already had a spot essentially locked up in the 5000 meters. Her 15:56.94 at Stanford two weeks ago not only was her first-ever sub-16, it was the first – and so far only – sub-16 in Division II this spring. That might change by the end of this weekend, but a time that fast gets in the door.
 
Her 10,000 time of 33:34.30 (which was 13th in her heat) likewise should be in the door. There were just seven D2 finishers in the two Invitational heats on Wednesday, and Esvelt beat all of them. The closest time to hers was Naomi Addo of West Texas A&M, who went 34:13.37 in the second heat.
 
With Esvelt's time in the No. 3 slot on the national list, the only two faster are Breanna Robles of Adams State (32:50.18) and Anna Fauske of UC Colorado Springs (33:22.66).

UP NEXT
Those were SPU's only two entries in the Bryan Clay. The rest of the team will head to Ellensburg on Saturday for the CWU Wildcat Invitational. The Collegiate session at the CWU Recreational Sports Complex begins at 8:30 a.m., and the Premier session starts at 2:30 p.m. Nearly all of the Falcons will compete in the afternoon session.
 
 
NCAA WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD
Bryan Clay Invitational
Wednesday, April 26, 2025
Cougar Athletic Stadium / Azusa, Calif.
 
Team scores – Not kept.
 
SPU EVENTS ONLY
10,000 – 1, Jenna Hutchins (Brigham Young) 32:22.98.  SPU – 14, Annika Esvelt 33:34.30# (13th in her heat).
3000 steeplechase Open Division – 1, Raygan Peterson (Brigham Young) 10:08.12.  SPU – 20, Maya Ewing 10:27.61# (8^th in her heat) (School record, breaks old record of 10:35.63 set by Ewing on April 4).
 
 
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