While most students at Washington were feeling the pressure of final exams and papers, senior Ryan Brown was feeling a different sort of pressure. Brown headed into the NCAA Indoor Track and Field Championships March 9-10 as the reigning 800-meter champion from the same meet last year in the outdoor season. However, whether the underdog or the top dog, Brown proved he is something special as he ran to his second consecutive NCAA title in the event.

The end of winter brought an end to the indoor season for the Washington track and field team. On March 7, 11 Huskies boarded a plane for Fayetteville, Ark., to compete in one of the most prestigious collegiate track and field competitions. Eight men and three women headed east to compete in the two-day. Two of the Huskies were selected from automatic qualifying marks, while the remaining nine were selected from provisional marks.

The Husky men concluded the meet with a tie for seventh place with Arkansas, while the women returned to Washington with a tie for 34th. All eight Husky men competed well, but it was the senior from Renton who stole the show for the men that weekend. Brown went into the race holding the nation’s fifth-fastest time overall.

“I wasn’t really that nervous going into it,” said Brown. “I had already won the race last year so my goal was just to make finals.”

For the second straight year, Brown was able to come from behind to win the race. After trailing initially, he moved up the pack and beat out Michigan’s Andrew Ellerton to get the victory.

“Halfway through the race, I knew I could win again,” Brown said. “It was the exact same pace as last year and I felt comfortable, so I thought, well, I think I can win.”

Brown’s time of 1:48.40 is the second fastest by an American athlete this year and earned him his second All-America honor in the meet. It is the eighth of his career, bringing him short of matching sprinter Ja’Warren Hooker’s all-time UW record of 10 All-America honors.

“Winning another NCAA title doesn’t change my goals for the rest of the year,” Brown said. “It just makes me realize that I’m actually pretty good and is an extra bonus.”

Brown also became just the fifth Husky ever to win multiple NCAA track and field titles and the first to do so exclusively in an event on the track since 1930, according to gohuskies.com.

Austin Abbott performed well in the 800 meters as well. The junior finished fourth in the event. His time of 1:49.65 was just a little over a second slower than Brown’s and was one second off his lifetime best.

“Things worked out well for both of us,” Brown said of his and Abbott’s performances.

In the field events, Norris Frederick led the Huskies with a tie for 10th in the men’s high jump and sixth in the long jump. The junior from Seattle earned his second All-America honor and the fourth of his UW career.

However, it was a Husky woman who kicked off the meet for her team with a great performance in the 60-meter hurdles. Senior Ashley Lodree placed third in the hurdles after achieving a personal record in her signature event.

She entered the finals on Friday seeded second with a qualifying time of 8.04. After running neck-and-neck with the two leaders the entire race, it was Georgia Tech’s Shantia Moss who crossed the finish line first. Lodree’s final time of 8.01 was a personal best and ranks eighth among American women this year.

Lodree’s performance in Arkansas earned the senior her fifth career All-America honor, equaling former Washington pole vaulter Kate Soma for the most ever by a UW track and field athlete.

Also on the women’s side, junior Amanda Miller made Washington history by becoming the first woman ever to have All-America honors in both the 800 meters and the mile. On the second day of competition, Miller finished ninth in the mile, achieving a personal record for the Wenatchee native and earning her second All-America honor.

Reach reporter Rebecca Rogers at sports@thedaily.washington.edu.