This weekend was the penultimate chance for athletes to hit nationally qualifying marks, and many individuals succeeded in punching their ticket to the big dance.

The Swarthmore Twilight was the premier meet for mid-distance qualifying marks: of the twenty-one provisional marks in the men’s 800, seven came at Swarthmore this past weekend. Haverford’s Tim Schoch, already an auto qualifier in the 1500, was the fastest among these half milers, as he hit the automatic standard with a 1:50.45 finish, good for fourth in the fast heat. Matthew Winkler of Christopher Newport was the only other automatic qualifier, finishing in 1:50.93. The provisional qualifiers were middle distance All-Americans Clay Reynolds of Gettysburg, Tyler Newhook of Messiah, and Frank Redmond of Misericordia, as well as freshmen Mett Rever of Elizabethtown and Dominic Tasco of TCNJ. However, the performance of the meet (and of the week) belongs to Matt Turlip of NYU, who rolled to a 3:45.76 automatic qualifier, breaking a 44 year-old school record in the process. In the second heat, Haverford’s Eric Arnold and Widener’s Mike Garrity hit the provisional standard with 3:50.73 and 3:50.86 clockings. Dickinson’s Kent Pecora and Dylan Straughan both hit 5k provisional marks, and Pecora’s 14:28.62 gives him lots of options—he already has an auto in the steeple and a strong 1500 provisional. Elizabethtown’s Chris Heisey added a 10k provo of 31:03.65, while Haverford’s Lucas Fuentes and NYU’s Calvin Lee both ran steeple provos of 9:12.77 and 9:20.72.

The women’s field was equally stellar, with the veteran Meryl Wimberly of TCNJ edging out freshman Cynthia Adams of Lebanon Valley, though they both finished with strong provisional times of 2:10.92 and 2:11.30. Rebecca Hammond of host Swarthmore and Annie Monagie of Johns Hopkins added 800 provisionals of 2:13.44 and 2:13.70. However, the 1500 again stole the show, where Sheena Crawley of Franklin and Marshall won her heat en route to an impressive 4:28.72 automatic qualifier. TCNJ’s Alyssa Bannon also hit the provisional standard with a 4:37.86 clocking. Rowan sophomore Jen Rawls ran 17:24.65, but was unable to better her seasonal best and finds herself right on the bubble of making the nationals field. Not too far behind were Olivia Mills of Bridgewater, who ran a solid personal best of 17:32.73, and indoor 5k Al-American Maeve Evans of NYU, who just missed the provisional standard with her time of 17:35.51. Haverford’s Emily Lipman, Dickinson’s Taylor Ludman, Moravian’s Cadee Rockwell, and Elizabethtown’s Eileen Cody all hit 10k provisional marks, but Lipman was the only one to improve on her seasonal best. Her time of 36:41.62 moves her to twenty-second on the performance lists, though ironically she is still behind the three women she just defeated. Jenna Peacock of Rowan and Elizabeth Laseter of Johns Hopkins also ran steeple provos, but both have already run faster this outdoor season.

The national qualifying marks continued to fly at North Central’s Dr. Keeler Invitational, where Principia’s Drew Clark led La Crosse freshman Sean Royer and Stevens Point veteran David Litsheim to 800 meter qualifiers. Clarks’ 1:50.59 auto qualifier ranks fifth in the division, while Royer’s 1:51.60 and Listheim’s 1:51.89 rank tenth and thirteenth, respectively. The 1500 produced even more provisional marks, with Platteville’s Patrick Klein leading the charge in 3:51.57. The next best times came from the slower heat, where 5k auto-qualifier Nate Stymiest of Oshkosh rolled to a 3:51.68 mark, followed closely by Jack Zander of Eau Claire, who finished in 3:52.76. Andrew Wagner of Colorado College, Parker Thompson of Wheaton, and Alex Wrobel of Calvin all added provisional marks from the fast heat. The men’s 5k featured a great duel between Eau Claire’s Thomas Breitbach and Wash U’s David Spandorfer, with Breitbach pulling away to win 14:25.26 to 14:27.76. Though both just missed the auto qualifier, we will definitely get to see them race again at nationals as they are currently eighth and eleventh on the performance lists. North Central’s Neal Klein also ran a provisional qualifying time of 14:44.77, though it does not improve upon his prior seasonal best. The 10k saw its fair share of provisional marks, too, with Wash U teammates David Hamm and Michael Burnstein, Oshkosh’s John DeWitt, and Centre’s Clinton Cahall all running between 31:01 and 31:11. Despite the impressive times already mentioned, the performance of the meet came from Alden Black of Wash U, whose time of 8:57.10 in the steeple makes him the third man under 9 flat this season, a very impressive feat considering that only fifteen D3 men have done so in the past ten years, including at nationals. Following close behind were Calvin teammates Nick Kramer and Matt Vander Roest as well as River Falls’ Jared Brandenburg, who ran times of 9:06.04, 9:16.54, and 9:21.35. Kramer now has two automatic qualifiers (he ran 14:17 in the 5k), so it will be interesting to see if he declares in both events or opts to be fresh in an attempt to dethrone indoor 5k champ Mike Spain.

The women’s meet was equally impressive. Eau Claire’s Maria Peloquin dominated her heat of the 800 while on her way to a 2:13.07 provisional qualifier, and North Central’s Krista Cota also ran a provisional 800 qualifier, though it did not better her 2:13.87 from last weekend. However, the 1500 again stole the show as Wash U’s Liz Phillips and Stevens Point’s Claire Roberts finished 1-2 in automatic qualifying times of 4:28.10 and 4:28.42, respectively. The two indoor All-Americans occupy fourth and sixth on the performance list, separated only by Willamette’s Kimber Mattox, who notched a solid personal best of 4:28.11 at the West Coast Invitational. Cara DeAngelis of Ohio Wesleyan also hit the provisional mark at the Dr. Keeler 1500, as she continued her stellar freshman campaign with a 4:37.54 clocking. North Central’s Amanda Laesch continues to improve in the 5k, and her second place finish in 17:02.84 moves her to fifth in the division. Leading the chase pack were Franklin’s Heather Waterman and Wash U’s Jessica Londeree in provisional times of 17:32.87 and 17:32.89. Ohio Wesleyan’s Kaitlin Zimmerly added a 10k provo with a time of 36:41.10. However, the steeplechase proved to be the event with the most depth. Eau Claire’s Ashlyn Mauer became the ninth steeple auto qualifier with a 10:40.87 personal best, while Wheaton’s Sara Greeley, Wash U’s Molly Wawryzniak, Hope’s Kelly Lufkin, North Central’s Alicia Zimmerman, and Wheaton’s Annie Shults all hit the provisional standard. Greeley was the only one of this bunch to run under 11, and her time of 10:53.66 continues the steady improvement that has seen her drop over 30 seconds in a month and a half.

At the NEICAAA championships, Amherst’s Ben Scheetz continued to show his prowess at the half-mile distance with a 1:49.52 victory over a solid field, while Addison Godine of Middlebury added a 1:52.63 provisional qualifier. Despite some talented fields, the steeplechase was the only other men’s distance event featuring D3 provisional marks. Jack Davies of Middlebury, already an auto-qualifier, held off Brandon Abasolo of Williams for the second time in three weeks, but Abasolo can’t be too disappointed after improving his seasonal best for the third straight week (9:10.13). Ben Wallis of Tufts also dipped under the provisional standard with a 9:23.89 clocking.

The women’s half of the meet provided significantly more national qualifiers. The 800 featured a good battle between Middlebury’s Juliet Ryan-Davis, Williams’ Elizabeth Danhakl, and Bates’ Elizabeth Arens, who all finished within a second of each other (2:12.87, 2:13.52, and 2:13.65, respectively). The week of the 1500 continued, though, as a great battle emerged between Margo Cramer, the anchor of Middlebury’s national champion DMR, Wellesley’s Randelle Boots, indoor mile champion and the division’s eighth fastest 1500 runner of all-time, and Keene State’s Amy Knoblock, third place finisher in the mile. Cramer emerged victorious with a time of 4:29.89, followed closely by Boots in 4:30.35 and Knoblock in 4:31.95. Fllowing this trio was Middlebury’s Erin Toner and Amherst’s Melissa Sullivan, who ran provisional marks of 4:33.06 and 4:34.46. Though there were no 5k or 10k qualifiers, the depth of the steeplechase made up for it. Wellesley’s Leah Clement led the D3 charge with solid personal best of 10:41.09, the only steeplechase automatic qualifying time on the day. Keene State’s Andrea Walsh wasn’t far behind in 10:44.05, while Tufts’ Amy Wilfert, Amherst’s Keri Lambert, and Williams’ Brianne Mirecki all broke 11 (10:50.16, 10:50.23, and 10:56.99, respectively). Colby’s Emma Linhard also hit the provisional mark with a time of 11:02.54.

Though most teams were focused on qualifying this past weekend, there were still some conferences league meets left to be decided. Foremost among these was the MIAC meet, which saw St. John’s dethrone a St. Thomas squad that was missing valuable points from injured indoor All-Americans Mike Hutton and Ben Sathre. However, the St. Thomas women prevailed despite a strong challenge from Gustavus Adolphus. The 800 was the premier men’s distance event, as St.. John’s picked up key points from Tom Hoffman, winner in a time of 1:51.76. Augsburg’s Matt Schafer finished second with a provisional qualifying time of 1:52.35. The premier women’s event was the 10k, which featured four provisional qualifying times. Carleton’s Simone Childs-Walker, already an auto-qualifier, got the win, while St. Thomas’ Allie Metzler, St. Olaf’s Emma Lee, and Carleton’s Allison Smythe battled it out for the next three places. The three would finish in that order with times of 36:50.31, 36:52.72, and 37:08.73.

The IIAC meet featured dominating performances from indoor runner-up Central College on the men’s side and indoor champion Wartburg on the women’s side. The only distance provisionals came in the men’s steeple from Wartburg’s Jon Stover and Coe’s Ryan Schroeder (9:18.72 and 9:22.92) and in the women’s 10k from Luther teammates Ellie Neubauer, Emma Spoon, and Kim Horner (36:55.50, 37:16.32, and 37:22.24).

Other results of note include some stellar performances from the Gator Invitational. Fredonia’s mid-distance star Nick Guarino improved on his 800 auto qualifier with a 1:49.12 victory, while Josh Guarino ran a 1500 provisional qualifier of 3:52.98. However, the top D3 runners in the 1500 field were Jeremie Parker of host Allegheny and Nate Brussiere of Carnegie Mellon, who ran 3:51.96 and 3:52.10, respectively. Geneseo’s Lee Berube ran away with the 5k (though his time of 14:33.42 just missed his seasonal best) and his teammate Bill Juda posted a provo in the steeple with his time of 9:20.10. Geneseo’s Marisa Liberati continued her squad’s success with a 17:22.94 victory and provisional qualifier in the 5k (though she, too, has run faster this season), and her teammate Alyssa Smith did the same with a 10:39.31 automatic qualifier in the steeplechase.

Other qualifiers from this past weekend include Robert Willett and Jessica Thornton of Birmingham-Southern, who ran 800 times of 1:52.11 and 2:12.88, while St. Norbert’s Emily Schudrowitz ran a provisional time of 2:12.36. In the men’s 1500, Kevin McCarthy of Wabash ran 3:50.68, placing him sixth on the performance lists and placing him in the national top ten of the 800, 1500, and steeplechase. Derek Bischak of Rose-Hulman ran 3:53.42 to dip under the provisional standard, and Stefan Redfield of Willamette ran 14:42.72, showing nice range to go along with his strong 1500 provisional mark. Last but not least, Matt Rand of Tufts rolled to the top 10k time of the weekend with a 30:26.59 provisional qualifier.

Finally, it’s time for this week’s shout-outs: Methodist had an incredible weekend at the Aggie Classic, with Ruby Blackwell and Ashlynn Chavis running 11.66 and 11.67 wind legal times in the 100, which ties them for second and fourth on the all-time D3 lists. Chavis also bettered her division record in the long jump, with a leap of 6.25 meters. Also, there was a little D3 love handed out by the mainstream media this past week: Centre's four time national champion jumper Chrys Jones made a well-deserved appearance in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd".

Some of you may have noticed some interesting results from the Aggie Classic, including a 3:30 1500 from a Va Tech freshman who has never run faster than 3:47 (which has since been updated to 3:50), and a 34:55 10k from Methodist’s Kristyn Zeiler. Her 10k would have been a division-leading time, but that result has also been revised (another competitor was given her time, and she is listed with no time). That being said, I can find no reason to doubt the validity of the times and marks reported for Chavis and Blackwell, so congratulations to those two women for an excellent weekend.

Also, next weekend marks the final qualifying weekend before nationals, so it will be interesting to see how things shake out—keep an eye out for indoor 5k champion Wendy Pavlus, who has yet to run a 5k qualifier this outdoor season.

Anyway, best of luck to everyone gunning for those qualifiers! Check back in next week for a recap of the final qualifying weekend as well as a men's and women's preview article.