FREMONT, Neb. – The Northwestern College cross country runners had the opportunity to compete at the Midland Half Marathon in Fremont, Neb. Three Raiders qualified for the opportunity to compete in the Marathon event at the 2022 National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Outdoor Track & Field Championships in Gulf Shores, Alabama.

For a half marathon hosted in the first week of December, the weather proved to be beautiful for the Raider runners who ran the 13.1 miles with winds from 5-8 mph from the east.
 
"Ian Wiersma, Levi Cross, and Katlyn Wiese all posted times that put them in the top-10 of Red Raiders in the half marathon since the year 2000, along with hitting the automatic standard," noted head coach Scott Bahrke. "Very impressive performances!"
 
Ian Wiersma (Sr., Zeeland, Mich./Zeeland East) guided the Raiders in the race, with a time of 1:12:22, and Levi Cross (Sr., Des Moines, Iowa/Iowa Christian Academy) was only 12 seconds behind Wiersma with a time of 1:12:34 for an 11^th and 13^th place finishes, respectively. Both hit the automatic standard to qualify for the Marathon at the NAIA Championships.  
 
On the women's side, Katlyn Wiese (So., Holstein, Iowa/Ridge View) also hit the automatic standard with a 40^th place finishing time of 1:26:13.
 
"It was a fun day for our Raiders," said Bahrke. "I was proud of the way they all competed over the difficult 13.1-mile race."
 
Senior Dawson Jacobsma (Sr., Sheldon, Iowa/Sheldon) ran his best half marathons ever. Fellow senior Derek Janzen (Sr., Centerville, Minn./Centennial), another senior completed his first ever half marathon.
 
Bahrke noted, "Coaches and athletes will converse and determine the best course of action when it comes to competing in the marathon."

Up Next: The Track & Field season officially opens up next weekend on Friday, December 10 and Saturday, December 11 at the Bulldog Early Bird Meet hosted by Concordia (Neb.) in Seward, Neb. Events will begin at 2:00 p.m. on Friday, and 9:00 a.m. on Saturday morning.