Smith second at Summit for Bison in steeplechase

Payton Smith would have loved to been in attendance for his older brother Brady's graduation at UND to receive his doctorate of physical therapy.

However, the younger Smith had other commitments.

Payton finished up a strong sophomore campaign for the NDSU Bison track and field team by taking second place in the 3,000-meter steeplechase at the Summit League Track and Field Championships in Tulsa, Okla., May 12-14.

Smith's time of 9:10.94 was just behind event winner Luke Labatte of UND, who crossed the line in 9:07.31.

His finish in Tulsa represented an improvement of five places from his freshman season at the Summit League meet, and almost 12 seconds better than last year's season best.

He helped the Bison capture their 12th consecutive Summit League team championship with a total of 241.5 points, 36 points clear of runner-up South Dakota State.

Earlier this season, Smith ran his top career time of 9:04.42 at the Mt. SAC Relays April 13-16, in Walnut, Calif.

He is the son of Kyle and Layne Smith of Carrington, and is majoring in exercise science.