Two Central men’s track and field athletes take top academic honors
Central Dutch Athletics
PELLA— Will Daniels (sophomore, Geneseo, Ill.) and Mark Fairley (senior, Dubuque) took two of the four Men’s Scholar Athlete of the Year honors in NCAA Division III Track and Field as announced by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association All-Academic Team Thursday.
Daniels and Fairley were two of seven Central men to be recognized by the USTFCCCA.
To qualify for the honor, student-athletes must post a 3.3 or better combined GPA and compete in an NCAA Division III indoor or outdoor championship or finish the regular season ranked in the top 35 in the nation in an individual event.
Named the Indoor Field Scholar of the Year, Daniels was the national champion in the heptathlon, at the NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships with 5,287 points. He also earned All-American honors in the indoor high jump (seventh place – 6 feet, 9 inches) and the outdoor decathlon (third place – 6,969 points). He is a 4.0 student as a biology major.
Also a national champion, Fairley was named the Outdoor Track Scholar Athlete of the Year. He won the 3,000-meter steeplechase in a time of a 9 minutes, 4.50 seconds at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships. He graduated with a degree in exercise science and a 3.825 GPA.
Ryan Kruse (senior, St. Clair, Minn.) qualified for both the indoor and outdoor national meet, earning All-American honors indoors by finishing third in the heptathlon (5,124 points). He graduated with a degree in mathematics and a 3.737 GPA.
Hunter Howe (senior, La Plata, Mo.) was a part of the 4×400-meter relay team that finished in the top-35 nationally (outdoor – No. 35). He graduated with a degree in athletic training and a 3.87 GPA.
Michael Firkins (senior, Centerville) finished in the top-50 nationally in the hammer throw (outdoor) and weight throw (indoor). He graduated with a double major in exercise science and biochemistry and a 3.568 GPA.
Kyle Pape (junior, Dubuque, Wahlert Catholic HS) finished in the top-50 nationally in the 800-meter run (outdoor – No. 40) and was a part of a distance medley relay team that was top-35 (indoor – No. 20). He is an exercise science major with a 3.819 GPA.
Jon Specht (senior, Dubuque, Hempstead HS) was a part of the distance medley relay team that was top-35 (indoor – No. 20). He graduated with a double major of biology and exercise science and 3.585 GPA.
The Dutch men have had 31 athletes win the honor 47 times.
Central’s USTFCCCA All-Academic men’s track and field team
Craig Cantrall, 1994
Andy Goodman, 1994
Nate Smith, 1994
Jon Rathje, 1999
Matt Webster, 1999
Marc VanderVelden, 2000
Tony Brownlee, 2001, 2002
Lucas Nims, 2001
Matt Jens, 2002
Matt McCombs, 2002
Cale Van Genderen, 2003
Tanner Whipple, 2003
Ben Bollard, 2006, 2007
Bryan George, 2006
Guy Dierikx, 2007, 2008
Cody Huisman, 2007
Alex Miller, 2007
Adam Wolf, 2007
Kurtis Brondyke, 2011
Tyler Crouse, 2010, 2011, 2012
Spencer Hammack, 2014, 2015
Drew Jackson, 2014, 2015
Eric Larson, 2014, 2015
Jaemin Powell, 2014, 2016
Jamie Vander Veer, 2015
Mark Fairley, 2016, 2017, 2018
Hunter Howe, 2016, 2018
Ryan Kruse, 2016, 2017, 2018
Will Daniels, 2017, 2018
Michael Firkins, 2018
Kyle Pape, 2018
Jon Specht, 2018
