Liberty University’s Michael Long was named the Conference USA Men’s Track Athlete of the Week after setting a new program record in the men’s 800 meters, according to a May 5 announcement.
Long’s achievement marks the first time a Liberty runner has finished an 800-meter race in under either 1:47 or 1:48. He recorded a time of 1:46.77 at The Hill City Twilight meet on Saturday, breaking his own previous school record of 1:48.22 and securing victory in the men’s 800 invite section.
A junior from Sterling, Virginia, Long is now ranked No. 40 nationally in the men’s 800 meters and posted the fastest Conference USA time in this event since UTEP’s Michael Saruni placed third at the NCAA national final in 2018. He is also only the second consecutive first-year Flame to receive this weekly honor, following Tahj Brown on April 28.
With his performance, Long qualified for the NCAA Division I East First Rounds meet, continuing Liberty’s tradition of having a men’s 800 qualifier for seven out of the last nine editions of that competition.
The Flames are scheduled to conclude their regular season on Wednesday by hosting the Liberty Twilight Qualifier at Matthes-Hopkins Track Complex. The event will start at 11 a.m., with a senior day ceremony planned for 1:30 p.m. While Long will not compete in his signature event that day, he is entered to run both the men’s 400 meters—his first attempt as a Flame—and the men’s 1,500 meters.
