LeDuc Places Third in 5000 Meters at NCAA Championship

Submitted release 

NEW LONDON — Connecticut College junior Michael LeDuc of Canton posted a time of 14:31.80 to place third in the 5000 meter run at the 2013 NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championship hosted by North Central College Saturday, March 9.

LeDuc, who entered the race as the #6 seed, posted his highest finish at a national championship in his fourth All-America performance.

“We are really proud of what Mike’s performance today,” Connecticut College Head Track & Field Coach Ned Bishop said. “It was another great national meet for him.”

LeDuc passed three competitors in the final 100 meters to move from sixth to third place. The Camels have tied for 29th place in the nation with LeDuc’s six points.

Haverford College junior Chris Stadlerwon the race with a facility record time of 14:27.74. North Central College junior John Crain placed second, surpassing the previous course record with a time of 14:28.92. 

At the Tufts University Invitational February 11, LeDuc posted a school record setting time of 14:28.61 to win the event.

LeDuc contributed to another school record this season in the distance medley relay. At the All-New England Championship hosted by Boston University back on February 23, LeDuc ran the anchor leg for a team that posted a record setting time of 10:05.08.

LeDuc and Kim Bolick (Hopkinton, Mass.), a qualifier in the one-mile run, become the first men-women duo to qualify for the NCAA Indoor Track & Field Championship in the same season for the Camels.

This past fall, LeDuc turned in an All-American performance with a 13th place finish in 24:48 at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship hosted by the Rose-Holman Institute of Technology.

It established a program record for the highest finish for a Connecticut College men’s cross country runner at a national championship.

LeDuc has been honored on the first team of the All-New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) Men's Cross Country squad in each of the past three years.

In June of 2012, LeDuc was named to the Capital One Academic All-America Men’s Cross Country/Track & Field Third Team in Division III as selected by The College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

LeDuc garnered All-America accolades in the 3000 meter steeplechase at the 2012 NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championship in Claremont, Calif. He posted a school record setting time of 8:59.54 en route to a fourth place finish, moving up two spots from his All-America finish in 2011. 

In the classroom, the botany major has been recognized on the NESCAC All-Academic Team during the past five seasons. Last week, LeDuc was honored by the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association on the men’s cross country all-academic team.