COLLEGE: WYALUSING'S PATTON BREAKING THROUGH BARRIERS IN THE 800 (2023-06-11)

BY CHRIS MANNING
Northern Tier Sports Report
In high school Wyalusing graduate Alex Patton was known as a miler, but at the Air Force Academy he’s cut that distance in half, and found twice as much success.

The former Ram broke the 1:50 mark in the 800 this past season for the first time, and just missed making Nationals by .01, painfully close in any race, but especially in the mid-distance.

The journey to getting there, though, is a story all its own.

“At the end of my junior year in high school I had some solid splits in the 4x800, which gave me some motivation to shoot for that my senior year in high school,” explained Patton. “When track was cancelled due to COVID I never really had a chance to see what I could do in the 800. When I came to the Academy and talked to coach (Ryan) Cole, he gave me a shot at it during indoor, and, after dealing with some injuries, worked down to 1:54 by the end of my freshman season.”

That’s quite a leap for Patton, who was just under two minutes in high school.

“It’s pretty wild to look back and see my high school PR at a 1:59.0, and to compare that to what I’ve done over the past three years,” he said.

He continued to creep downward, hitting 1:53.63 as a sophomore, and dropping down to 1:51 a few times during this past year.

“I’d say my most significant season, besides by freshman one, was certainly this year,” continued Patton. “I went from a 1:52.9 guy in indoor to running a 1:49.3 in LA a few weeks ago. I think the most satisfying part is just finally seeing all of the hard work show through, because I know a sub-1:50 was in there all season. I just took a while to get in a strong race to prove it.”

While Patton knew it was in there, he wasn’t sure if it was ever going to come out in time to get him to Nationals.

“I’ve talked a lot with coach Cole about my chances of making the NCAA prelims, and he never said there wasn’t a shot,” he remarked. “I will say, though, that as the season went on, and I continued to run 1:51, I didn’t see it happening. When coach pulled me from the Conference Championships roster, and put me in a mixed pro race at Azusa Pacific University, I saw an opportunity to go for a qualifying time.”

That’s when he ran a 1:49.30 to put himself in contention to make the NCAA West Prelims, but just came up short.

“I was the last spot out of the 48 athletes invited to the NCAA West Prelims, with a 1:49.29 being the spot in front of me,” Patton said. “While that was a little disappointing, it stills the me up well for next year, and gave me a lot of confidence going into the off-season.”

While in high school Patton could be called upon to run anything from a 400 to the 2-mile, in college he’s exclusively an 800 meter runner.

“I feel like at this point in my career I’m used to it,” he said. “Coach trained me more as a distance guy my freshman fall season, but once the spring came, I’ve only trained for the 800. I’d say it’s much more simple focusing on one event, especially one like the 800, where experience goes a long way. Being able to focus on changing and adapting to difference race strategies and situations for one distance has helped me much more than racing two or three other events.”

Patton will have another shot during his senior year, and plans on doing what he can to maximize it.

“I think the biggest thing I’m going to focus on this off-season is staying healthy, and consistent,” he said. “I believe injuries are the biggest obstacle in the way of reaching your potential. Being able to connect training blocks, and have consistent training goes a long way for your fitness, and your ability to compete regularly.”

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PHOTOS COURTESY OF ALEX PATTON