May 8, 2024

This Week's Preview
MADISON, S.D. (May 8, 2024)—The Dakota State University Trojan women's and men's outdoor track & field squads prepare for the postseason section on their 2024 schedule.  The Trojans prepare for the 2024 North Star Athletic Association Outdoor Track & Field Championships to be held at The Dan Beacom Track Complex (1302 N. Washington Ave.).  The two-day conference meet will begin Thursday afternoon and will continue Friday with a full day of events.

The conference meet starts Thursday afternoon at 12:30 p.m. with the men's javelin.  The action continues at 2:30 p.m. with the women's javelin, men's triple jump, men's hammer throw, and men's pole vault with another group of field events at 4:30 p.m. with the women's triple jump, women's hammer throw, and women's pole vault.  The running events begin at 3 p.m. with the sprint hurdles and wrap up at 4:05 p.m. with the 10,000-meter run.

The conference meet continues Friday morning at 10 a.m. with field events and 12 p.m. with the running events.  The NSAA Champions of Character presentation is scheduled for 1:25 p.m. and the post-meet awards ceremony is set for 4:05 p.m.

The North Star Athletic Association Outdoor Track & Field Championships can be followed live via through DSU Athletics' YouTube on https://www.youtube.com/@TrojansAthletics/streams.  Black Squirrel Timing will provide the live results of the conference meet on https://results.blacksquirreltiming.com/meets/37303. 

Next Up:  DSU prepares for the 2024 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships on May 22-24 in Marion, Ind.

Three DSU earn final NSAA weekly honors
Madison, S.D. (May 7, 2024)—Three Dakota State (S.D.) athletes collected the final edition of the 2024 North Star Athletic Association Outdoor Track & Field weekly honors, announced by the conference office.
 
Sophomore Lindsey Roth was selected to the NSAA Women's Outdoor Track Athlete-of-the-Week after her performance at the NCAA Division II Minnesota State-Mankato Maverick Open on May 1.  She established a new school record in the 1500-meter run, clocking a time of 4 minutes, 42.15 seconds.  She finished sixth in the race.  She currently leads the NSAA conference in both the 1500– and 800-meter runs.
 
Roth broke a 26-year-old school record held by former NAIA All-America and DSU Hall of Famer Marie Parker-Sample in 1998 with a time of 4 minutes, 45.76 seconds.  
 
Senior James McClain was chosen as the Men's Outdoor Field Athlete-of-the-Week.  He threw the fifth best shot put in school history at the Maverick Open.  He improved his season best 16.11 meters (52 feet, 10.25 inches) to finish seventh in the event, which is the NAIA 'A' automatic qualifying mark.  He currently ranks 20th in the nation.  He also threw 42.12 meters (138 feet, 2 inches) in the discus in the same meet.

McClain also threw a personal record in the discus at the NCAA Division I meet, the University of South Dakota Tune-up on May 3.  He posted a mark of 43.76 meters (143 feet, 7 inches), which is the fourth best mark in the North Star conference.  He tossed 15.16 meters (49 feet, 9 inches) in the shot-put.

Nolan Slominski was named to the NSAA Men's Outdoor Track Athlete-of-the-Week.  He ran the third fastest 800-meters in school history at the Maverick Open.  He captured the individual title by hitting the NAIA 'A' automatic qualifying time of 1 minute, 51.83 seconds.

He then followed up with his second best time in his career at the USD Tune-Up.  He beat the field except for his teammate and clocked a time of 1 minute, 52.24 seconds to finish second. 

Slominski capped his week by leading off the 4 x 400-meter relay team that ran 3:22.70 with Evan Armstrong, Evan Slominski, and Curtis Johnson.  The relay team finished third in the event and currently holds the fastest time in the North Star conference this season.

2024 NSAA Outdoor Track & Field meet overview
Madison, S.D. (May 8, 2024)—Dakota State (S.D.) will be the host for this year's North Star Athletic Association Women's & Men's Outdoor Track & Field Championships.  It will be held at the Dan Beacom Track Complex for the first time.  The last time DSU hosted the NSAA outdoor track & field conference meet was on May 10-11, 2018 at the former Trojan Field.
 
Dickinson State (N.D.), a six-time defending women's team champion, leads after the heptathlon event where was held at The Dan Beacom Track Complex last month.  The Blue Hawks scored 22 points in the event, followed by Dakota State with a second-place with eight points.  Valley City State (N.D.) is third in the standings with six points.

Amelie Steins finished fourth in the heptathlon with 3,528 points for the Trojans.  Casey Olson added 2,121 points to place sixth in the heptathlon. 

Dakota State dominated the men's decathlon with four athletes placing in the top four spots, tallying a total of 29 points to their team standings.  Waldorf (Iowa) is second with four points, followed by Dickinson State (N.D.) third with three points. 

Treshawn Roberts won the NSAA decathlon for the second time in the past three years, setting a new conference meet record of 6,611 points for the Trojans.  Tysen Grinde was second with 5,707 points, followed by Caden Gortmaker third with 5,276 points.  Caleb Roberts finished fourth with 4,885 points.

Dakota State is a four-time men's outdoor track & field defending conference champion, the first time in school history to win four consecutive team titles. 

Six NSAA schools are set to compete in the conference meet on Thursday and Friday, including Bellevue (Neb.), Dakota State, Dickinson State, Valley City State, Viterbo (Wis.), and Waldorf.  The top eight place finishers in each event will score 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1 toward to their team standings.

The North Star Athletic Association Champions of Character recipients will be presented on Friday afternoon at 1:25 p.m.  The post-meet awards ceremony is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.  The NSAA All-Conference performers will be awarded to the top three individual events and top two relay teams.

Looking ahead to NAIA outdoor nationals meet
Madison, S.D. (May 8, 2024)—The North Star Athletic Association Outdoor Track & Field Championships will be the last opportunity for athletes to produce national qualifying mark for the upcoming 2024 NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships.

The 72nd annual Men's and 43rd annual Women's Outdoor Track & Field National Championships return to Wildcat Stadium, hosted by Indiana Wesleyan in Marion, Ind., for the second consecutive year.  The three-day national meet takes place from May 22 (Wednesday) through May 24 (Friday).

A total of seven athletes are scheduled to compete at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships.  Treshawn Roberts is set to compete in the decathlon, where is currently third in the NAIA with 6,611 points from the NSAA conference meet last month.  He also had produced national qualifying marks in the 110-meter hurdles and the pole vault.  Roberts is set to compete in his third outdoor national meet at DSU.

A pair of Trojan throwers will be making their first appearance to the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field National Championships.  James McClain is scheduled to throw men's shot put, after producing the NAIA 'A' automatic qualifying mark of 16.11 meters (52 feet, 10.25 inches) at the Maverick Open on May 1.  Oliviyah Thornton is slated to throw women's hammer throw after hitting the automatic mark of 51.42 meters (168 feet, 8 inches) last month in the Sioux City Relays.

Nolan Slominski, Curtis Johnson, Evan Slominski, and Cody Farland will team up in the men's 4 x 800-meter relay at the national meet.  They produced the automatic qualifying time of 7:39.63 at the 114th annual Drake Relays.  Johnson, E. Slominski, and Farland will be competing at the national meet for the second time, while N. Slominski will be making his first appearance.

N. Slominski also clocked the automatic qualifying time in the 800-meters for DSU.  Farland also registered the NAIA 'B' provisional qualifying time, where he was an All-America in last year's national meet.

2024 Dakota State University Trojan Outdoor Track & Field Top Marks
 

Women's	Events	Men's
Molli Thornton - 12.71 seconds	100-meter dash	Willie Hutchins - 10.79 seconds
Molli Thornton - 25.77 seconds	200-meter dash	Willie Hutchins - 22.46 seconds
Molli Thornton - 58.59 seconds	400-meter dash	Evan Armstrong - 51.63 seconds
Lindsey Roth - 2:21.13	800-meter run	Nolan Slominski - 1:51.83
Lindsey Roth - 4:42.15	1500-meter run	Curtis Johnson - 3:58.36
N/A	3000-meter run	N/A
N/A	5000-meter run	Taylor Myers - 15:36.81
Brooke Beaucaire - 41:55.44	10,000-meter run	Taylor Myers - 31:50.76
Amelie Steins - 16.78 seconds	100-/110-meter hurdles	Chantz Minear - 14.25 seconds
N/A	400-meter hurdles	Chantz Minear - 54.65 seconds
Valerija Curikova - 11:47.30	3000-meter steeplechase	Dalton Brouwer - 10:13.01
Amelie Steins, Bethany Lawson, Raylee Wallis, Molli Thornton - 49.38 seconds	4 x 100-meter relay	Willie Hutchins, Hudson Fix, Lukas Bennett, Michael Foster - 42.32 seconds
Raylee Wallis, Anna Schneider, Bethany Lawson, Molli Thornton - 4:06.65	4 x 400-meter relay	Nolan Slominski, Evan Armstrong, Evan Slominski, Curtis Johnson - 3:22.70
Anna Schneider, Afton Schlumbohm, Kierra Miller, Lindsey Roth - 9:48.70	4 x 800-meter relay	Nolan Slominski, Curtis Johnson, Evan Slominski, Cody Farland - 7:39.63
Molli Thornton, Raylee Wallis, Anna Schneider, Lindsey Roth - 4:15.4	Sprint Medley Relay	Michael Foster, Lukas Bennett Nolan Slominski, Curtis Johnson - 3:27.84
Kierra Miller, Molli Thornton, Afton Schlumbohm, Lindsey Roth - 12:34.76	Distance Medley Relay	Evan Slominski, Chantz Minear Nolan Slominski, Cody Farland - 10:17.95
Lahna Matucha - 1.55 meters	High Jump	Tysen Grinde - 1.97 meters
Hope Bryant - 2.38 meters	Pole Vault	Treshawn Roberts - 4.71 meters
Molli Thornton - 5.10 meters	Long Jump	Nathan Ingalls - 6.61 meters
Molli Thornton - 10.83 meters	Triple Jump	Nathan Ingalls - 13.70 meters
Oliviyah Thornton - 12.52 meters	Shot Put	James McClain - 16.11 meters
Oliviyah Thornton - 40.18 meters	Discus	Jackson Zastera - 44.68 meters
Oliviyah Thornton - 51.42 meters	Hammer Throw	Zachary Haugen - 52.14 meters
Lahna Matucha - 35.70 meters	Javelin	Treshawn Roberts - 46.68 meters
Amelie Steins - 3,528 points	Heptathlon/Decathlon	Treshawn Roberts - 6,611 points

2024 Dakota State University Trojan Outdoor Track & Field National Qualifiers
 

Name	Event	NAIA Qualifying Standard Mark/Time	Meet/Date
Treshawn Roberts	Men's 110-meter hurdles	NAIA 'B' Provisional 14.80 seconds	Wildcat Outdoor Classic - March 29
Treshawn Roberts	Men's Pole Vault	NAIA 'B' Provisional 4.71 meters (15 feet, 5.5 inches)	University of South Dakota Early Bird - April 6
Oliviyah Thornton	Women's Hammer Throw	NAIA 'A' Provisional 51.42 meters (168 feet, 8 inches)	Sioux City Relays - April 12
James McClain	Men's Shot Put	NAIA 'A' Provisional 15.95 meters (52 feet, 4 inches)	The DSU Twilight Meet - April 23
Treshawn Roberts	Men's Decathlon	NAIA 'B' Provisional (Top 16 qualify) 6,611 points	NSAA Outdoor Multi-Events Championships -
Nolan Slominski Curtis Johnson Evan Slominski Cody Farland	Men's 4 x 800-meter relay	NAIA 'A' Automatic 7 minutes, 39.63 seconds	Drake Relays - April 25
Chantz Minear	Men's 110-meter hurdles	NAIA 'A' Automatic 14.25 seconds	Drake Relays - April 26
Nolan Slominski	Men's 800-meter run	NAIA 'A' Automatic 1:51.83	Maverick Open - May 1
Cody Farland	Men's 800-meter run	NAIA 'B' Provisional 1:52.20	USD Tune-up - May 3