Gainesville, FL – For the first time in program history, the Indian Hills Men's Track & Field team captured the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Indoor Track & Field National Championship.
In just the ninth year of existence for the indoor program, the Warriors took home the coveted national title with a team score of 91.5 points, outlasting national powerhouse programs New Mexico Junior College, South Plains College (TX), Barton Community College (KS), and Iowa Western Community College. The Warriors finished 7.5 points ahead of New Mexico for the program's first-ever title.
The Warriors, coming off the program's best finish in program history last season with a seventh-place showing at the national championship, boasted silver medalist performances and a second-place relay squad to pull away for the championship.
As a team, the Warriors took home 15 United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) All-American honors for placing in the top-eight of their respective event while the distance medley rely and the 4x800-meter relay each earned All-America status.
Sophomore Traunard Folson (Jacksonville, FL/Andrew Jackson) starred in the 60-meter and 200-meter dash, taking second overall in the 60m and fourth overall in the 200m to earn his third-career All-American honor for the Warriors.
Indian Hills placed a pair of sprinters on the podium in the 400-meter dash as sophomore Chris Johnson (Houston, TX / Cypress Park) placed second overall with a time of 47.07 after running the fastest time of the meet in the prelims. Johnson was joined by teammate Jah'Vauni Wheeler (Atlanta, GA/Heritage) who took third overall with a time of 47.16. The two marks rank second and third all-time in school history.
Sophomore Terrick Johnson (Memphis, TN/Whitehaven) took home a silver medal in the men's 600-meter run, shattering the previous school record with a time of 1:17.34 to place second overall.
The reigning outdoor 800-meter run national champion, Tyrice Taylor (Linstead, Jamaica/Vere Technical) took second overall in the 800m with a time of 1:50.62. Sophomore Tray'Quan Francis (New Iberia, LA/Westgate) posted a personal best mark in the 800m with a time of 1:54.99 to place ninth overall for the Warriors.
Indian Hills took home two All-American honors in the men's 1,000-meter run as Cole Reinders (Sarnia, Ontario/St. Patrick's Catholic) placed third overall with a time of 2:27.23 followed by Keveroy Venson (Linstead, Jamaica/Calabar) who placed sixth overall with a mark of 2:28.22.
Freshman Tate Joens (Cedar Rapids, IA/Cedar Rapids Prairie) continued an unprecedented run for the Warriors in the men's weight throw, once again breaking his own school record to finish as the national runner-up. Joens placed second overall with a mark of 18.61 while teammate Michael Etuma (Iowa City, IA/Iowa City) joined Joens as an All-American with an eighth-place showing for the Warriors. Joens also took fifth overall in the men's shot put with a mark of 16.74 meters to become a two-time All-American in his inaugural collegiate campaign.
Freshman Triston Miller (Columbus Junction, IA/Columbus Junction) starred in three events for the Warriors, racking up three All-American accolades in his first national championship appearance. The multi-event athlete placed third overall in the men's heptathlon with a school record 4,986 points. Miller followed up with sixth-place finish in the men's high jump with a mark of 2.04 meters while the freshman placed seventh overall in the men's 60-meter hurdles with a time of 8.09.
Miller was joined by teammate Cyrus Ways (Ponte Vedra, FL/Nease) who took fifth overall in the 60-meter hurdles with a time of 7.99 to become an All-American for the Warriors. The duo becomes the first hurdle All-Americans in school history.
The record-breaking distance medley relay squad, comprised of Reinders, Wheeler, Venson, and Terrick Johnson took home second overall in the event with a time of 9:45.52. Indian Hills also took home All-American honors in the 4x800-meter relay with a fifth-place finish. The quartet of Reinders, Chris Johnson, Mohammed Al-Yafaee (Doha, Qatar/Aspire Academy), and Felix Petit Belleville (Paris, France) posted a time of 7:38.26.
The Warriors also saw a new school record performance from freshman standout Brandon Ford (Perth, Western Australia/Duncraig) who set a new 5,000-meter Indian Hills standard. Ford placed 10th overall with a time of 14:33.37.
With the national title, the Warriors become just the second program from the state of Iowa to win the NJCAA Indoor Track & Field National Championship.
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A first for the Warriors!
— NJCAA Cross Country and Track & Field (@NJCAAXCTF) March 3, 2024
Indian Hills claimed the program's first #NJCAATF Men's Indoor Championship title in program history at the Alachua County Sports and Events Center in Gainesville, FL ?
Full recap | https://t.co/HLorX9h548 pic.twitter.com/yZGRGMGhQt
