OK, it wasn't necessarily a record performance, but Matthew Centrowitz's 2009 1500 at the Payton Jordan was too good to pass up. Centrowitz officially jumped out from under his father's enormous shadow at the 2009 Stanford Payton Jordan Invitational, winning the 1500 against some steep competition.

He had undeniably had great success before this meet back in 2009.  He was a terrific prep runner and bright young star early in his career at the University of Oregon. His 11th place finish at World Junior Champs in 2008 (with a PR of 13:58) indicated Centrowitz's versatility and range. 

But it was at Payton Jordan in '09 that Centrowitz officially arrived.  

The 19 year old won the Payton Jordan 1500 outright, beating a handful of terrific milers that included Lee Emanuel, Chris Lukezic and Garrett Heath. Centrowitz's time of 3:36.92 signified a huge PR, and nearly eclipsed his father's Oregon school record (at the time) of 3:36.70.  

Perhaps as impressive as Centro's victory was the overall depth of the field. The entire field broke 3:40, with 7 runners eclipsing the 3:38 mark!  



(Centrowitz and teammate A.J. Acosta finish 1-2 at Pac-10's)

1  Matthew Centrowitz  Oregon  3:36.92
2  Peter van der Westhuizen  Team Nebraska  3:37.22
3  Lee Emanuel  New Mexico  3:37.25 
4  Chris Lukezic  Reebok  3:37.32 
5  Garrett Heath  Stanford  3:37.57 
6  Jack Bolas  Wisconsin  3:37.64 
7  Craig Miller  Wisconsin  3:37.81 
8  Matt Lincoln  Phoenix Athletics  3:38.44
9  Juan Luis Barrios  Nike  3:39.40