Army West Point Athletics
Mikayla Cheney Sets New Program Best in 1500m at Virginia Challenge
April 18, 2025 | Women's Track and Field
CHARLOTTESVILLE, VA. — Sophomore distance runner Mikayla Cheney became the third runner, the second on the women's side and at the Virginia Challenge, to set a new Army Track and Field program record in Friday.
The sophomore beat the program record in the 1500m that she had previously broken with a final time of 4:16.14, passing her old record by 3.19 seconds.
With her time at the Virginia Challenge, the sophomore finished fifth overall in the field and now sits in the top 25 in the NCAA East Region in the event.
Cheney will be back in action on Saturday competing in the 800m at the Virginia Challenge.
Hear From Coach Smith:
Shortly before the women's 1500-meter invitational race was scheduled to go off, I noticed a missed call on my phone from one of our team captains. As I was trying to figure out what I needed to respond to, Sophia Dykstra came running over to me to tell me that Mikayla Cheney ('27) had sent her over to retrieve me with instructions to have me report to the 1500-meter starting line right away. It was an unusual request given that there was maybe one or two minutes until the start of that race. My immediate assumption was that something must be wrong. I hustled over to the start area and made eye contact with Mikayla. She met me at the fence near the starting line and told me that the pacer for the women's 1500m was taking the race out through 800 meters in 2:13. She had a look of concern on her face as if to say, "Can I do that?". Then she said, "What should I do?" I was very firm in my answer to her, "Try to win the race. Go out in the middle of the pack and then try to win the race. Don't allow any gaps and be there at the end". A calm settled over her and she said simply, "Ok. That's what I'll do". Mikayla Cheney ('27) is the Academy record holder in the 1500-meter run. The best woman to ever run the event for Army and also a relative newcomer to elite track and field. Her ascension to the highest levels of our sport has not come without a little doubt creeping in every now and again. Every elite race is a first for Mikayla. So today, when she heard what the split would be at the halfway point, she had a brief moment of doubt. Twenty-two months ago, she could not run 2:13 for 800 meters. Now it is a split on her way to something bigger. When the gun went off, Mikayla executed the race plan as well as she ever had. She pushed hard off the starting line, established herself in the top five, and then settled in behind the train of runners. At the halfway point the leader was 2:13 and Mikayla was comfortably off that pace at 2:16….and she looked strong. She then pushed past the fourth-place runner and started hunting down the Penn State runner in third. She got close but could not pull even with that runner and got nipped at the line to hold on for fifth. Her time of 4:16.14 eclipsed her previous academy record by 3.19 seconds. She was beaming with excitement post-race and confident that there was more that she could do. I can't say much more about the path that she is on. When the year started, the Academy record for 1500 meters was hers at 4:22.80. She has dropped six seconds with ease, and we are only in mid-April. She, like Emily and Nathan, has her sights set very high. We are all along for the ride. She is currently ranked among the top 25 in the NCAA East Region and while that means that there are at least 24 women who have run faster than her, she doesn't see that as an obstacle, she sees it as the next challenge to get better.
Players Mentioned
