Sophomore long-distance runner finds motivation in faith, community, and honoring first responders
When Pepperdine Waves long-distance runner Lizzy Crawford races meter after meter, she thinks about more than herself.
As she set the Pepperdine indoor track record in the women’s 5,000-meter dash and claimed a first-place finish on the first day of the University of Nevada’s Feb. 7-8 Wolf Pack Classic at the Reno-Sparks Convention Center, Crawford thought of the emergency personnel who battled blazes and helped residents impacted by the Palisades Fire, which tore through Pacific Palisades, Malibu, and surrounding beginning on Jan. 7 and burned for 24 days.
“What helps me get through the pain of racing is thinking about serving others through what I am doing,” she said. “It’sgood to get a record, but for me it’s never been about glorifying myself. It’s always been about supporting a cause greater than me and encouraging others in the process.”
Crawford’s first-place time of 17 minutes and 25.81 seconds was also a record time in the 5,000 at the convention center.
The 19-year-old sophomore and her Pepperdine teammates also had the wildfire’s victims and first responders on their minds at the beginning of the Waves’ two-month indoor track season. Members of the squad competed with red ribbons in their hair at the Jan. 17-18 UW Preview/Mile City at Washington-Dempsey Indoor in Seattle, Washington. Crawford, who also runs cross country, set a school record of 10:00.95 in the 3,000, which she finished 40th out of over 80 competitors.
“I know I would not have been able to race that hard without all of them on my mind,” she said of everyone impacted by the fires and emergency workers.
Crawford’s long-distance jaunts aren’t simply about crossing the finish line first.
“My faith is a very important part of my racing,” she explained. “I try to glorify God in my races and be there to do my absolute best for my team. If Jesus can die for me, then I can run a little bit faster for him.”
Crawford said her first-place finish in Nevada was a challenge because she didn’t have pacemaker — an experienced runner who sets pace for time and speed so a runner can focus on running — during the event.
“It was mentally challenging to push through 25 laps all alone and to try and get the school record,” she said. “Luckily, I had goals, and I do a lot of training and workouts pacing myself. It felt really good to set a record in the 5,000. I’mgrateful to all the people who helped me achieve it.”
Waves runner Eden Mittelsdorf, a senior, finished second in the race in 18:18.41.
Other Pepperdine team records were set that day.
Freshman Brittany Rivas, junior Isabella Reyes, senior Maddy Ortman, and freshman Lexi Thoms broke a 9-year-old school record by running the 4×400 in 3.56.01 at the Wolf Pack Classic. Meanwhile, at the Sunshine Open in Santa Barbara, sophomore Gordy Nilsen won the 3,000 in a school-record time of 8:20.53. Freshman Jordan McCray (60), junior Daniel Whitaker (600) and sophomore Henry Hicks (1,000) were the first Pepperdine athletes to ever run those races, so they set the top slots in the Waves’ record book.
Crawford, a former youth soccer player, got her running start as a freshman at Horizon High School in Thornton, Colorado. Initially, she competed in cross country to stay in shape for soccer. However, Crawford caught a runner’shigh with the sport. She also thought she was a better distance athlete than soccer player, so track and cross country became her sports focus her 10th grade year.
She bounded blazing times. She was an all-conference runner in cross country, and her time of 18:04 in the 5K is the second-best time in Horizon High history. She is also on the all-time top 10 lists for the school in the 1,600 and 3,200.
Crawford realized she could compete in college and reached out to Pepperdine head coach Lauren Floris and assistant coach Victor Pataky. After two visits to Pepperdine, Crawford committed to be a Wave.
Her freshman year in cross country was standout. Crawford jaunted the second-fastest 6K time in program history with a 20:52.2 at the Bronco Invitational. She was the top Waves’ runner in all five of the races she scampered in.
Crawford suffered an extreme bout of planter fasciitis in her feet — it was so bad she couldn’t walk around Pepperdine’s campus without feeling pain — at the end of cross country season, so she didn’t compete in the 2024 indoor track season and missed part of the outdoor track season. Her best time in the three meets she competed in was an 18:11.17 in a 5,000.
In the fall 2024 cross country season, Crawford had two top 10 finishes, three top 15 placements, and four top 50 finishes in six races. She was the Waves’ first top 100 finisher at the NCAA West Regionals in November since 2015.
Crawford didn’t run indoor track in high school, and missed meets last season, so she was excited about Pepperdine’sindoor track campaign this year.
“I had so much left in me from having to miss the last indoor season,” she said. “I knew a bunch of our records were pretty manageable in order to try and get. They were my main goals in trying to reach.”
Pepperdine is competing in the MPSF Indoor Track & Field Championships on Friday and Saturday. Crawford will run the 5,000 with thoughts of her teammates darting through her head.
“I’ll be thinking about all the girls who are with me at 6:30 in the morning every day putting the work,” she said. “They are like family to me. I want to thank them for all the hard work they have put in with me.”
Crawford also wants to break a time of 16:50 but knows she might not be satisfied.
“The funny thing about me is I’m never ever satisfied with my performances,” she said. “It’s not like I’m actually going to break a world record, but if I ever did break a world record in a race, I still would never be satisfied. I can run faster. It’s not about me being physically good at running. It is about the mental side. I have always had some type of mental connection of pushing myself really hard.”
