The Event...The Dordt University men's track and field team will send 19 athletes to compete in the 2023 NAIA Indoor Track and Field National Championships this week in Brookings, S.D.
The 58th-annual championship is a three-day event, beginning Thursday, March 2, and will be held at the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex on the campus of South Dakota State University.
Championship Information:
Championship Format...Prelims for the relays are on Thursday, March 2 with eight teams advancing to the finals on Friday (4x800) or Saturday (4x400).
Prelims for the individual races are on Friday with either eight or 10 athletes advancing into the finals on Saturday.
Top eight finishers in the finals are All-American and earn points for their team on a 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 scale. The team with the most points after all 21 championship events are scored wins the team title.
Last Year...Dordt finished 10th at last year's championship with 21 points and four Defender entries earned All-American honors:
Defenders Line-Up / Outlook...
- Payton Mauldin / Cole Zevenbergen - 600m
- Prelims - Friday, 2:05pm
- Mauldin - Heat 3 of 3 - lane 6
- Zevenbergen - Heat 3 of 3 - land 7
- Finals - Saturday, 1:35pm
- Mauldin - No.2 seed of 21 runners (1:17.9)
- Mauldin is a 3x qualifier in the 600m
- All-American in 2022 (3rd)
- national runner-up, All-American in 2021
- Zevenbergen - No.8 seed of 21 runners (1:20.1)
- Zevenbergen is a 3x qualifier in the 600m
- All-American in 2022 (6th)
- All-American in 2021 (5th)
- top qualifying time: 1:17.13 by Jacob Ulrich (Life)
- 4 All-Americans, 6 total runners return from last year
- Dylan Felger (Huntington) returns to this year's field as the defending national champion
- Trey Engen - Mile
- Prelims - Friday, 12:20pm
- Finals - Saturday, 12:35pm
- seeded 3rd of 20 runners (4:09)
- 2x qualifier in the mile
- qualified in the 1000m, DMR and 4x800 last year and in the DMR in 2020
- top qualifying time: 4:03.5, Jason Bowers (Cumberland)
- 3 All-Americans, 4 overall runners return
- Senzo Sokhela (Westmont) is the top returner from last year (3rd)
- Joe Anderson - 3000m
- Prelims - Friday, 4:15pm
- Finals - Saturday, 3pm
- seeded 3rd of 29 runners (8:17)
- 1st time qualifier in the 3K
- qualified in the mile (9th) and DMR (12th) last year
- also qualified in the DMR in 2021 (7th)
- top qualifying time: 8:08, Bryn Woodall (Milligan)
- 4 All-Americans, 10 overall runners return
- Woodall, from Milligan, is also the top returner (3rd)
- Peter Shippy, Davis Tebben, Aidan Vorster - 5000m
- Prelims - Thursday, 2:45pm
- Tebben, heat 1 of 2
- Shippy and Vorster, heat 2 of 2
- Finals - Saturday, 4pm
- Shippy - 6th of 35 runners (14:37)
- 1st time qualifier for the indoor championships
- qualified in the steeplechase at the outdoor championships last year
- Tebben - 12th of 35 runners (14:48)
- 1st time competing at the indoor championships
- qualified in the 5K at the 2021 outdoor championships
- Vorster - 22nd of 35 runners (14:55)
- top qualifying time: 14:21, Luke Pohl (Cornerstone)
- 3 All-Americans, 11 overall runners return
- Pohl is the top returner, finishind second last year
- Kyle Baumert - 60m Hurdles
- Prelims - Friday, 12:50pm
- Finals - Saturday, 12:55pm
- 22nd of 31 runners (8.26)
- 1st time qualifier
- top qualifying time: 7.81, Davonte Vanderpool (Southeastern)
- 3 All-Americans, 18 overall return
- Glenn Rodgers (Southeastern) is the top returner (2nd)
- Grant Brouwer - High Jump
- Prelims / Finals - Friday, 2pm
- 28th of 30 athletes (2.01m)
- 4x qualifier, 2x All-American in high jump for the indoor championships
- did not place - 2022
- 5th in 2021
- 7th in 2020
- top qualifying mark: Michael Millslagle (Graceland) 2.16m
- 7 All-Americans, 15 overall runners return
- defending champion, Shandon Reitzell (Midland), returns
- 4x400
- 4x800
- Distance Medley
