North Central Distance runners racing at Wheaton
Mark Black

Men's Track and Field

Men’s Track Improves Marks Across Three Meets

Contact: Taiah Gallisath, Associate Director of Athletics Communication, 630-637-5302

April 16-18, 2026 - Spreading its talent across the country, the North Central College men's track and field team competed in three meets this weekend: the Bryan Clay Invitational in California, the Meet of Champions in Rock Island, Illinois, and the Wheaton "Don Church" Invitational just down the road in Wheaton. The Cardinals continued to improve their marks and climb the program record books as they head into the second half of the outdoor season.

Out in California, a trio of Cardinal distance runners competed against the nation's best across all divisions at the Bryan Clay Invitational hosted by Azusa Pacific University. In the 10,000m race, Daniel Kasperan set a new freshman record by nearly 10 seconds after recording a 30:22.90 time to finish 30th overall. Ari Elmayan finished 60th in 31:41.51. BJ Sorg also competed in California, clocking a 14:52.52 in the 5,000m. 

North Central also sent a handful of student-athletes to Wheaton College for the Don Church Twilight Invitational. Bryce Chamberlin and Kyle Nofziger turned in a pair of top five finishes in the 5,000m, taking second and third, respectively, as Chamberlin clocked a 15:43.87 and Nofziger was just behind in 15:44.36.

Gabe Parker tied his season best of 4.40m (14'5.25") in the pole vault, good for a third place finish in the field.

Down at Augustana in Rock Island, Ill. Ben Balboa notched a personal best in the discus of 49.89m (163'8"), a nine-inch improvement, to finish fourth in the field. The bump moves him to fifth in program history and 20th in Division III. In the triple jump, Jayden Leise secured a third-place finish with a 14.29m (46'10.75") jump.

Also earning top five finishes in the horizontal jumps was Brandon Woods and Prentice Myles who finished fourth and fifth in the long jump, respectively. Woods jumped a 6.78m (22'3") while Myles was good for 6.60m (21'8").

Three Cardinals qualify for 110m hurdle finals. Christian Kokot led the way in finals, breaking 15 seconds for the first time this season as he clocked a 14.89 to finish third overall. Daniel Nwatu was fifth in 15.27 seconds. 

Jake Juneau turned in a fifth-place finish in the 400m with a time of 50.96 seconds. In the 800m, Drew Patterson ran a 1:58.18 to take third-place while Dakota White finished in fifth-place with a 1:58.75 effort. Aidan Armstrong landed a spot in the top-five of the 1500m with a time of 4:05.81 for fourth. 

Rylan Deichen snagged a fifth-place finish in the 10,000m run after clocking a 33:56.93 and Tyler Schick turned in a 9:39.00 personal best in the 3,000m steeplechase to place fourth in the field. 

Next up for North Central is the Drake Relays, held Wednesday through Saturday, April 22–25, along with the Drake Alternative Meet, hosted by the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, on Friday, April 24.
 
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Players Mentioned

Aidan Armstrong

Aidan Armstrong

Distance
Junior
Ben Balboa

Ben Balboa

Throws
Sophomore
Bryce Chamberlin

Bryce Chamberlin

Distance
Sophomore
Jake Juneau

Jake Juneau

Sprints
Sophomore
Jayden Leise

Jayden Leise

Jumps
Sophomore
Prentice Myles

Prentice Myles

Hurdles/Jumps
Junior
Kyle Nofziger

Kyle Nofziger

Distance
Junior
BJ Sorg

BJ Sorg

Distance
Sophomore
Rylan Deichen

Rylan Deichen

Distance
Sophomore
Ari Elmayan

Ari Elmayan

Distance
Freshman
Daniel Nwatu

Daniel Nwatu

Hurdles
Freshman
Gabe Parker

Gabe Parker

Jumps/Sprints
Junior

Players Mentioned

Aidan Armstrong

Aidan Armstrong

Junior
Distance
Ben Balboa

Ben Balboa

Sophomore
Throws
Bryce Chamberlin

Bryce Chamberlin

Sophomore
Distance
Jake Juneau

Jake Juneau

Sophomore
Sprints
Jayden Leise

Jayden Leise

Sophomore
Jumps
Prentice Myles

Prentice Myles

Junior
Hurdles/Jumps
Kyle Nofziger

Kyle Nofziger

Junior
Distance
BJ Sorg

BJ Sorg

Sophomore
Distance
Rylan Deichen

Rylan Deichen

Sophomore
Distance
Ari Elmayan

Ari Elmayan

Freshman
Distance
Daniel Nwatu

Daniel Nwatu

Freshman
Hurdles
Gabe Parker

Gabe Parker

Junior
Jumps/Sprints