NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, N. Carolina

Clint Brownlee, d3photography.com

Double Trouble: Phillip Wins 2nd National Championship, Dailey Wins 2nd All-American, JCU Finishes 6th

3/12/2022 7:54:00 PM | By: Joe Ginley '16, SID

Alex Phillip and Jamie Dailey stand as one of the best duos in JCU T&F history.

WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Alex Phillip and Jamie Dailey cemented themselves today as one of the best duos in John Carroll Track & Field history.

On Day 2 of the 2022 NCAA Division III Men's Indoor Track & Field Championships, Dailey and Phillip continued a run of excellence that may never again be matched.

In the men's 3000m on Saturday afternoon at JDL Fast Track, Alex Phillip claimed his second National Championship of the weekend and Jamie Dailey captured his second All-American trophy of the weekend. The duo's incredible feat pushed JCU into a tie for sixth-place as a team, the best in program history.

Between Phillip and Dailey, that's 4 All-American trophies and 2 National Championships this weekend. That's never been done in JCU Track & Field history. And no other team duo this weekend got top eight in both the 3k and 5k.

After yesterday's incredible 5000m race, Phillip and Dailey entered in the 3000m (3k) with legs not as fresh as others in the field. Nick Andrews of SUNY Geneseo took advantage of that fact, dashing ahead of the pack in the early goings, and holding the lead for a long while.

With this in mind, Phillip held steady with the front of the pack and bided his time. He made his move in the last 400m, firing off a split of 29.780 in his penultimate lap and a split of 28.612 in the final 200m, overtaking all and holding off Aidan Ryan of Williams by just 0.47 seconds. Phillip vanquished the field with a time of 8:16.62.

Phillip became just the second male in Division III history to win both the indoor 3k and the 5k.

Meanwhile, Dailey had to fight for positioning. All of the race, it was a cluster of runners fighting for All-American honors. The runners stood nearly deadlocked behind Phillip, Ryan, Andrews, and David Fassbender (UW-Whitewater). In the last 200m, Dailey kicked for a time of 29.874, clocking in at 8:19.95 for eighth place.

"It feels great. I was finally able to get the monkey off my back and become a two-time All-American at indoors," said Dailey. "I've been wanting to accomplish a double, and being able to do it on a national stage is pretty special. I'm just happy to gather points for the team and get on the top of the leaderboard."

Dailey and Phillip become JCU's first All-American indoor combo in the same year.

"Running with Alex has helped me a lot," said Dailey. "Alex has been pushing me for the past three years, and I can't say how grateful I am to have him as my teammate, and more importantly, a friend. He's a huge leader for our team, and he'll do more great things in the next year. I'll miss him so much, but we want to carry this into outdoor season with our last season together."

A top 10 finish on the national stage is a gamechanger for the Blue Streaks as a program. Under Basista's watch, the Blue Streaks have been moving towards national prominence. This weekend's finish proves that JCU has arrived.

"We came into the meet with little expectations. We wanted to compete and do the best we could," said Basista. "You couldn't ask for a whole lot better. When you think about a national championship and the level of competition we saw this weekend, our guys showed up. It's so difficult to perform at this elite level. Frankly, a lot of individuals and teams faltered a bit and that's where guys can rise to the occasion. A good example is Jamie, he was outside the top 16 in both the 3k and 5k, and got All-American in both. To be in the top 10 in the country is something I didn't expect in our wildest dreams. It says a lot about our program and how far we've come and how the guys competed this weekend."

Basista also had lots of praise for the DMR relay of Ian Pierson, Garrett Clark, Caleb Correia, and Ethan Domitrovich.

"This senior class and Jamie's class have helped us make the jump. Ian is a major part of it," said Basista. "So many of the guys on the team joke that Ian is the team dad, which shows you how much they look up to him. You want him leading your relay.

"And with Garrett, he's got so many All-American titles, it's impossible to count. Both his best races came in the DMR. His 47 second split in Boston is still probably the best in the entire country. He had his second-best split yesterday, which shows you he's a competitor. When push comes to shove, when it's on the line, he'd rather do it for his teammates than maybe in an open event. He has the ability and time left to do more in his career, but he's a gamer."

The success also sets up JCU for what should be an outstanding outdoor season.

"We've had two top 10 finishes this year, so why not try to get a third," said Basista with a smile. "I'd like to think we're a better outdoor team with some of the events that open up and the abilities we have within our group. We'll mix it up with the best in the country. It's so competitive and difficult. A couple points here or there can be the difference of a place."

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