Hall of Fame
In her 4-year Cougar career, Brianna Carstensen established herself as the finest distance runner to date in Azusa Pacific history. She was a 19-time NAIA All-American (then the most ever by any Cougar) and a seven-time NAIA champion. By the time she graduated in 2005, she owned five school individual records and anchored two relay records as well. She played a significant role in leading Azusa Pacific to the 2003 and 2004 NAIA indoor and outdoor national team championships, making APU the first school ever to sweep the NAIA’s indoor and outdoor team titles in successive years. Twice, she won the indoor 1000-meters, including as a 2002 freshman in her first-ever collegiate national meet. She also won the indoor 3000, and then ran winning anchor legs on two distance medley and two 4x800-meter relays. As a 2003 sophomore, she was named Most Outstanding Performer of NAIA Indoor Championship Meet in Johnson City, Tenn., after leading the Cougars to their first-ever national team championship by running a winning anchor on the distance medley and 4x800-meter relays and then setting the NAIA record in the 1000-meters with a 2:50.54. In cross country she was a three-time NAIA All-American and led Azusa Pacific to 4 straight Golden State Athletic Conference cross country titles (2001-04), winning the conference’s individual championship three times. She was also the NAIA regional champ three times. The Thousand Oaks, Calif., native finished third at the 2003 NAIA championship meet, the best showing ever by a Cougar, with a then school-record 17:40 over the 5K course.
Brianna Carstensen Career Bests at Azusa Pacific (2001-05)
600 800 1000 1500 Mile 3000 Steeple 5000
1:35.43 2:11.24 2:50.54* 4:28.08* 5:02.75* 9:49.68* 10:28.24* 17:01.34*
*APU record
