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Cibola (Ariz.) track star Bernie Montoya runs national-best 4:01.71 mile at Prefontaine

June 1, 2013 by MaxPreps, AZPreps365


Bernie Montoya bounced back in a big way on Friday during the prestigious Prefontaine Classic in Eugene, Ore.

The recent graduate of Cibola (Yuma, Ariz.) came closer than ever to the magical four-minute mile when he placed eighth against older runners in the International event with a national 2013 high school best time of 4:01.71.

The Arizona State University recruit told dailyrelay.com, "Three years ago I was on the gridiron and now I'm at Hayward Field. It's amazing. I'm enjoying it."

One week earlier Montoya failed to defend his title in the adidas Dream Mile when he placed fourth with a time of 4:05.65 on a  cold, wet and windy day in New York City.

Still, he long will be remembered as, perhaps, the greatest distance runner in Arizona history after winning eight state titles in track and three in cross country. He holds state records in the 800, mile and 3200.

He has at least one more shot to break the four-minute barrier, the New Balance Invitational in Greensboro, N.C.