CEDARVILLE, Ohio -- The men's indoor track and field team won the programs second ever NCCAA National Championship today at Cedarville University in Cedarville, Ohio.
The men edged host Cedarville by six points for the national title, 122.5 points to 116.5 points. Greenville (Ill.) College was third with 110 points. A total of 14 teams earned points in the meet.
The Indiana Wesleyan women also had a very strong showing, finishing third of 14 teams that scored. Bethel (Ind.) College won the national championship by a wide margin with 166 points. King (Tenn.) College was runner-up with 84 points while Indiana Wesleyan finished with 79.5 points.
Individuals or relay teams finishing in the top three of their event earned NCCAA All-American status. The men earned All-American status in 10 different events, including a pair of national champions.
The national champions were a pair of relay teams. The Men's Distance Medley team of freshman Andrew Albert, junior Jeff Stuttler, freshman Jason Wenzel and sophomore Ethan Naylor crossed the line first in a time of 10:29.38. The Men's 4x800-Meter Relay also earned national championship status in a time of 8:11.29. The relay team consisted of freshman Matt Mitchell, senior Josh Schweigert, Albert and senior Dan Carrick.
Indiana Wesleyan leaped to a pair of All-Americans in the Men's Long Jump. Senior Thomas Collet was second at 22 feet 11.25 inches while freshman Seth Virgil was third at 22-11 feet. Collet also nabbed another second place finish in the Men's 200-Meter Dash. He finished in a time of 22.8 seconds.
Wenzel helped the Men's Distance Medley team to a national championship in addition to a second place finish in the 800-Meter Run. He finished the race in 1:57.33.
In the Men's Pole Vault, Wildcat freshman Jonathon Carder placed second with a height of 14-6.25 feet.
A trio of Wildcats placed third in field events to earn the tile of NCCAA All-American. Sophomore Nick Brown did so in the Men's High Jump (6-4.75 feet), junior Derek Gay in the Men's Triple Jump (42-10.75 feet) and Kyle Abney in the Men's Shot Put (47-3.5 feet).
The women's team had individuals or relay teams earn NCCAA All-American status in six events, including one national championship.
Winning a national championship was the Women's 4x200-Metery Relay team consisting of sophomore Chelsea Heyne, junior Katelin Morgan, freshman Lizzy Skinner and senior Laura Bowman. The team won the relay in a time of 1:47.08.
Morgan, a member of the 4x200-Meter Relay, also earned All-American as an individual in two events. She finished second in the Women's Long Jump with a mark of 18-1 feet while placing second in the Women's 55-Meter Hurdles in a time of 8.48 seconds.
Another Wildcat relay team had an impressive showing as the Women's 4x800-Meter Relay team raced to a second place finish in 9:39.79. On the team was junior Cassidy Wagner, sophomore Amanda Johnson, senior Kailee Whitaker and junior Angi Wolgemuth.
Sophomore Victoria Lee earned third place in the Women's Weight Throw with a toss of 48-7.5 feet while junior Kelsey Devereaux crossed the line third in the Women's 3,000-Meter Run. Devereaux ran a time of 10:34.59.
Indiana Wesleyan will next compete at the NAIA National Championships on March 4 in Johnson City, Tennessee.
CLICK HERE for men's results
CLICK HERE for women's results
