ROCHESTER, NEW YORK — The Central College men's and women's track and field squads combined for four new outdoor All-Americans at the 2023 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships Saturday.
Caroline McMartin (junior, Pella) took another six seconds off the school record in the women's 3,000-meter steeplechase, finishing third in 10 minutes, 24.39 secondsTeammate
Megan Johnson (junior, Parkersburg, Aplington-Parkersburg HS) finished seventh in 10:36.98.
"They both ran phenomenal," coach
Brandon Sturman said. "They competed well, and it was an awesome race to watch. It was a fun year for both as they got better every week and capped it off this weekend."
In the men's steeplechase,
Caleb Silver (senior, Conrad, BCLUW HS) also earned All-American honors by taking eighth place in 8:55.66. He finished .32 seconds ahead of the No. 9 runner to take the final All-American slot.
"He went out there and ran hard," Sturman said. "It was a little warmer today and obviously his legs were tired. He found a way to hold off the one extra runner and get on the podium. It's a commitment to his hard work over the last year."
Noah Jorgenson (junior, Sidney) placed eighth in the men's 800 meters finals in 1:53.61. The school record holder was not able to match his mark from the preliminaries.
"I'm sure he would have liked to run faster," Sturman said. "The hardest part is getting into the finals, and he did that yesterday. He had a short turnaround from Friday, but he gave it his best effort to try to hang in there on his first lap. All that matters is that he got on the podium."
Today's quartet joined
Brody Klein (junior, Rainier, Wash.), who was fifth in the men's decathlon yesterday, as All-Americans to bring Central's total of All-American performances to five. In the team standings, the Dutch women tied for 31st with eight points. The Dutch men tied for 30th with six points.
"We had a good year," Sturman said. "We came to the national meet with nine qualifiers and are going home with five All-Americans. Hopefully, we can use this to build some momentum and help the rest of our team be motivated to join this group next year."
