A championship run: Dutch men 2nd in NCAA track!
Central College
COLUMBUS, OHIO—A personal best performance in the pentathlon and a record-breaking shot put performance propelled the Central College men’s indoor track and field squad to a stunning second-place finish at the NCAA Division III championships Saturday—and nearly a national title. The Dutch finished just one point behind perennial power North Central (Ill.).
Senior Kurtis Brondyke (Clinton) captured Central’s second individual NCAA title in two days as he and Ethan Miller (junior, Seymour) placed one-two in the pentathlon. Then Matt Graber (Newton), the last qualifier in the shot put, pulled off a surprising second-place finish, giving Central 44 points for their best track team showing ever.
“Every single performance was special,” coach Joe Dunham said. “All three men had to dig deep and find a way to win. It was a great national meet.”
The top-four teams were each separated by a point. North Central won their second consecutive title with 45 points while Wis.-La Crosse took third with 43 and Wis.-Oshkosh was fourth with 42. Central’s hardware is the first team trophy for the men since 2000, when the Dutch finished third at the outdoor championships.
“I’m just extremely excited for the entire team,” Dunham said. “Every person on our roster had a part in this. I’m also happy for the entire Dutch nation – everyone ever involved with the program.”
Scoring a personal best 3,827 points, Brondyke opened the pentathlon with two third-place finishes in the 55-meter hurdles (7.91 seconds) and the long jump (22-4.5) He vaulted to the top of the standings with a win in the shot put, launching a throw of 42-8. He finished third in the high jump (6-6.75) before taking eighth in the 1,000-meter run (2:53.35).
Brondyke’s title is Central’s 11th national individual crown in men’s track and field and the 27th NCAA Division III individual championship in school history.
Miller claimed runner-up honors in the pentathlon after winning the high jump title and finishing second in the long jump Friday. He held the pentathlon lead after winning the first two events, the 55-meter hurdles (7.89 seconds) and the long jump. His 23-5.5 mark set an NCAA championships pentathlon long jump record. He finished fifth in the shot put (36-9) before taking second in the high jump (6-6.75) and ninth in the 1,000-meter run (2:54.01).
“Those two had a huge target on their back,” Dunham said. “They were expected to do exactly what they did and that’s hard to do under pressure with everyone watching. It’s a testament to their hard work and to coach Mosher.”
Senior Matt Graber (Newton) entered the shot put ranked 13th (53-7) and was the last one to make the cut to nationals. But Graber dominated the event, ripping off a personal best throw of 55-7 to finish second. He broke his own school record set last season (54-9.6) by almost a foot.
“Matt’s second-place finish just shows his competitiveness and drive to win,” Dunham said. “He was the last one to even make the meet and he knew there was a lot of pressure on him since he was our last opportunity to score points. But he threw out a bomb to get us second.”
On the women’s side, the 4×400 relay team of Jill Ziskovsky (senior, Dallas Center, Dallas Center-Grimes HS), Emily Teas (senior, Indianola), Felicia Coleman (sophomore Houston, Texas, J. Frank Dobie HS) and Rachel Purdy (sophomore, Ankeny) earned all-America honors with a fourth-place finish, crossing the line in 3:53.63.
“They had an outstanding race,” Dunham said. “They just missed all-America recognition last year with a 10th-place indoor finish and a ninth-place outdoor finish, so for them to step up and see them improve as much as they did is awesome. They’ll build off what they accomplished this season to reach some big goals for the outdoor season.”
Junior Morgan Darrow (Newell, Storm Lake HS) placed 12th in the shot put with a 43-7 mark. She entered the event ranked 15th, but was unable to record back-to-back all-America honors after an 8th-place finish in 2010 competing for Buena Vista.
“It’s a little disappointing but she’s still the 12th-best throw in the nation,” Dunham said. “We’ve got big plans for her in the outdoor season and this has only lit a fire under Morgan to get after it and return to the national meet then.”
With Ziskovksy’s fifth-place finish in the pentathlon yesterday, the women posted nine points, finishing tied for 24th in the team standings. It’s the program’s best finish yet and a huge jump from a 46th-place finish in 2010.
Both the men’s and women’s squad take a short break before opening up the outdoor season with the Viking Olympics in Rock Island, Ill., March 25-26.
“We’ve got big expectations for the outdoor season,” Dunham said. “We’ll regroup and refocus and get back to square one to keep improving and return to Columbus for the national meet at the end of May.”
