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Results

Day One Recap

LINCOLN, Neb. (Mar. 15, 2014) - The script played out differently, but the third act remained the same for North Central College's John Crain on Saturday, as he completed a sweep of the distance events with a gutsy finish in the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships at the Bob Devaney Sports Center.

Crain emerged victorious in the 3,000-meter run, a new event to the national meet this year, by setting aside the fatigue brought on by Friday's victory in the 5,000 and using every last bit of energy in a late surge that proved to be just enough to keep him clear of the field.

Unlike Friday's night's convincing 13-second win, Saturday's outcome was not decided until the final lap of the 15-lap event. After leading briefly in the early going and enduring some early contact in a tightly-bunched field, Crain moved up into second place with 1,000 meters to go behind Grant Wintheiser of St. Olaf College, who was the only competitor in the 15-man race who had not competed on Friday.

"That was tough," Crain said. "My plan was to take it out hard and see who was going to go with me. About 200 meters into the race, I realized that wasn't going to happen. My legs were a little tired, so I decided to just back off and save my gears until the very end."

Wintheiser gamely held onto the lead until the start of the 14th lap, when Crain was able to nudge himself ahead. He was not able to extend his advantage until just over 100 meters remained, but had enough left to find another gear and break free for another victorious homestretch to the finish line.

"That was all heart the last 1,000 meters," Crain said. "Wintheiser went, and I was just holding on for dear life at that point. I thought about whether or not I should let him go, but I hung tough."

Crain's time of eight minutes, 10.40 seconds is a personal best and will stand as the Division III meet record, as the 3,000 is a new event to the championship this year.

"(Winning both distance races) was the ultimate goal," he noted. "To win both and score as many points as I could for the team. I knew the 3,000 was going to be tough because of all the fast guys in the race and I was coming off a double, but that was the ultimate goal and I'm glad I was able to do it."

The Cardinals were also represented in the 3,000 by Troy Kelleher, who recovered from a midrace collision and nearly chased down an All-America certificate before finishing ninth in 8:22.81, and Travis Morrison, who placed 13th (8:27.58).

North Central nearly claimed accolades in the final event of the championships as well, as the 4-by-400-meter relay team of Dionte Hackler, Derek Nelson, Abraham Oshipitan and Mustapha Olaoye placed ninth with a season-best time of 3:16.39. The Cardinals were less than a half-second from a spot on the awards stand.

Getting 20 points from Crain, the Cardinals finished with a team total of 21, putting them seventh in the final standings.