Minneapolis, MN -- Today, the Men's and women's Track & Field teams from North Central University (NCU) competed in the Gary Wilson Invite hosted by the University of Minnesota. Today's meet was highlighted by 6 broken school records, 6 personal bests, and 3 season bests. Junior Garrett Converse and freshman Josh Hinson also punched their ticket to the 2025 NCCAA National Championships. 

NCCAA National Championship Qualifiers
Ari Klein - 400m Hurdles
Garrett Converse - 3,000m steeplechase
Josh Hinson, Hunter Harris, Zak Ruhland, and Jaquan Adams - 4x400m Relay

Sprints:

Freshman Catelyn Ketterling led the way in the 100m dash, clocking a time of 12.99 seconds to place 30th overall. Jazzmin Celis (13.90) and Deshawna Hodges (14.13) also competed in the field. Freshman Joyce Horton ran a strong 100m hurdles prelim, finishing in 16.15 seconds (2nd in UMAC) for a new personal best and NCU record. Ari Klein followed with a time of 17.16. Horton also competed in the 400m hurdles, running 1:08.89 (4th in UMAC) for 10th place and yet another program record, while Klein finished in 1:12.90 (6th in UMAC). In the 400m, junior Brycelyn Brewster placed 16th with a strong time of 1:01.41, while freshman Lily Ciske ran a season-best of 1:04.16 and Celis ran a 1:08.82.

Freshman Zak Ruhland (11.36) and senior Nehemiah Juaire (11.37) posted nearly identical times in the 100m dash. Junior Jaquan Adams set a new program record in the 200m with a time of 22.67 seconds (5th in UMAC). Hunter Harris recorded a time of 23.57 in the same event. In the 400m, freshman Colton Hagen led NCU with a time of 56.69, and sophomore Connor Yslas posted a personal best of 58.60. Junior Tom Cao ran the 110m hurdles prelim, finishing with a time of 18.08.

Distance:

Sophomore Jessica Redman posted a season-best in the 1500m, finishing in 5:32.05. In the 800m, senior Savi Rael clocked 2:32.21 for 29th place, followed by freshman Avah Kraushaar in 2:49.02.

Junior Garrett Converse shined in the 3000m steeplechase invitational, finishing 15th with a season-best time of 10:26.86 (3rd in UMAC). In the 5000m, freshman Leighton Helander placed 4th in 18:04.57, followed by sophomore David Bjorge who ran 18:58.98.

Throws:

Freshman Zak Ruhland had an impressive outing in the javelin throw, placing 2nd overall with a personal best mark of 47.84m (3rd in UMAC). Junior Caleb Lundt added a solid performance, placing 7th with a throw of 42.64m.

Jumps:

Isaac Weiers continued his dominant senior campaign, setting a meet and NCU record with a new personal best jump of 2.05m (t-1st in UMAC). This mark moves him up to #18 best in all of NCAA Division III this season. Tom Cao cleared 3.98m (4th in UMAC) in the pole vault to place 10th overall and record a new personal best.

Relays:

NCU's 4x400m men's relay team, featuring Josh Hinson, Hunter Harris, Zak Ruhland, and Jaquan Adams crossed the line in 3:31.85 (2nd in UMAC) seconds to earn a 2nd-place finish.

Looking Ahead:

This weekend, the Rams will participate in the Rider/Bolstorff Invite hosted by Macalester College. The meet is scheduled for Saturday, April 26th.

All fans are encouraged to tune into the official Rams Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter (X) pages for updates on Track and Field and all things NCU Athletics.