Gavin Struve
Mar 45 min
Written by Gavin Struve, edits and additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin
Editor's Note #1: Our TSR writers were asked to produce three sentences or less of analysis on every entrant in every distance event for every division.
MIT waited until virtually the last minute to run a national qualifying DMR time, but the Engineers produced the NCAA #1 mark on March 2nd by the time that they did. Sam Acquaviva figures to give this group one of the more accomplished anchors in this field, especially with no other races on day one. Ziyad Hassan and Charlie Glass are nationally competitive middle distance runners who could make up the lead-off and the 800-meter legs, but the Engineers' 11th place DMR unit from last year's indoor national meet was composed of three different men who are still on this roster and could reprise their roles.
2. Central College Dutch
Like MIT, Central College produced its national qualifying mark at the dawn of March, and the Dutch likely have the best one-two middle distance punch of any team in this field between Adam Sylvia and Noah Jorgenson. It should be noted that both of those men are entered in the mile this weekend with real individual All-American prospects. The fact that both of these men ran this event twice during the regular season has to bode well for DMR fans who have hopes of seeing them compete in this relay on the national stage.
3. UW-La Crosse Eagles
This could be the most complete lineup in this DMR field. All of these men earned top-three or better finishes at the WIAC Indoor Championships last month except for their expected anchor, Michael Madoch, who is probably the most versatile of all. While the Eagles' relay finished just outside of All-American placement at last year's NCAA Indoor Championships, Cael Schoemann's development into a half-mile national title contender should put them in the hunt for gold in 2024 as long as he can double back from the 800-prelims effectively.
4. Wartburg Knights
The Knights earned a "DQ" in the DMR at the 2023 NCAA Indoor Championships and Christopher Collet's recent (but minor) struggles relative to expectations aren't necessarily reassuring for a unit that figures to be heavily reliant on his firepower. It's worth noting, however, that Wartburg nearly topped Central College's top lineup at the Knights' "Qualifier" meet this past weekend and Lance Sobaski is no slouch of a lead-off leg, either. And frankly, any relay that features Christopher Collet is almost definitely better off for it.
5. UW-Whitewater Warhawks
UW-Whitewater boasts one of the more accomplished and veteran lineups which stamped their spot for the indoor national meet with time to spare. Christian Patzka's recent history includes both a steeplechase national title and a WIAC mile title, Craig Hundley is another strong distance runner and Justin Krause is a multi-time individual All-American in the middle distances even if he hasn't necessarily looked like it this winter. But given that they didn't contest this event on the national stage last year and raced it just once this season, we're not entirely sure what to expect from these Warhawks.
6. Loras Duhawks
Neither the gold nor silver medal DMR groups from last year's indoor national meet are in this year's field, leaving Loras (3rd) as the top returning team. Ryan Harvey is the only returner from that group, but that's a good thing given that he's likely the most important. This looks like an All-American lineup, but maybe not one likely to match its finish from last season considering that Harvey will be doubling back from the mile prelims and Loras finished behind both Central College and Wartburg just days ago.
7. St. Scholastica Saints
Calvin Boone should be one of the best men in this race who isn't doubling back from another event and he'll likely be St. Scholastica's anchor. Will that freshness be enough to lift the Saints to a placement that matches the lofty seeding they earned by holding their own in a loaded Wartburg Qualifier field? We admittedly don't know as much about this group as we do a few others, but it's that unknown factor that makes the Saints so dangerous.
8. Bates Bobcats
This is a group that seems to be greater than the sum of its parts. Ned Farrington is in a similar boat as the aforementioned Calvin Boone as an accomplished miler (4:08) who will be putting his national meet focus entirely on this relay. Bates finished a couple of seconds behind MIT on Saturday, but that's both understandable and encouraging for a Bobcats group that's more likely to be vying for All-American placement than a national title.
9. Lynchburg Hornets
Lynchburg is probably the most under-seeded team in this field given that they ran their qualifying mark nearly a month ago and once stood at NCAA #1 this season. What's more, the Hornets were 4th in the DMR at the 2023 NCAA Indoor Championships and individual All-Americans, Frank Csorba and Sam Llaneza, are back from that lineup. With burgeoning star Chasen Hunt joining them as an expected anchor leg, there is a good argument that the Hornets are your national title favorites...on paper.
10. UW-Stevens Point Pointers
Another beneficiary of the uber-competitive Wartburg Qualifier, this UW-Stevens Point DMR is one of the seven new teams in this national meet field who weren't here last year. There's no true standout in this group, but Braedon Gilles is an underrated half-miler. For better or worse, he appears likely to run the lead-off leg while his Pointer teammates will simply need to hold on once he hands off the baton.
11. Emory Eagles
Emory got here by finishing 4th behind a troika of Wisconsin-based programs in a loaded mid-February meet at UW-La Crosse. On paper, none of the individual components of this lineup should be particularly out of their league, but there doesn't seem to be a defining home-run hitter on this relay, either. The good news, however, is that each leg of Emory's DMR -- Marcus Cheema, Graham Greene, Dawit Dean and Spencer Watry -- will be fresh.
12. Mount Union Purple Raiders
The Purple Raiders narrowly held onto the national qualifying spot that they earned in early February, beating out Amherst by less than a quarter of a second to be the final team in this field (after an unusual UW-Eau Claire scratch). This is a group that seems to be better in practice than on paper, but the field that Mount Union will see this weekend will, structurally speaking, look very different than the field that they faced at the Boston U. Valentine Invite.