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One Sentence Previews: 2022 NCAA Indoor Championships Men's 5000 Meters (D3)

  • Brett Haffner
  • Mar 10, 2022
  • 4 min read

Additional contributions by Garrett Zatlin


1. Alex Phillip (John Carroll)

Phillip’s dominance over the D3 distance events makes him the obvious favorite in this one and his mile speed backs him up even for a sit-and-kick scenario.


2. Graham Tuohy-Gaydos (Williams)

This true freshman has exploded to D3 superstardom and is certainly a contender to fight for an upset win given that he has not lost a race when running outside of Boston University this season.


3. David Fassbender (UW-Whitewater)

All of Fassbender’s top marks this season have come from wins on 200 meter flat-tracks, meaning that this venue may play right into his strengths, possibly enough so that he pulls off a stunning upset win.


4. Tyler Morris (Colby)

Morris has plenty of experience taking 5000 meters races by the horns and winning, but will we see a similar strategy to sap the energy out of the other guys who are doubling/tripling?


5. Joe Freiburger (Wartburg)

Out of everyone in the field, Freiburger is the most savvy when it counts in the postseason given his plethora of experience, making him a strong dark horse pick to consider.


6. Christopher Scharf (Dickinson)

A potent steeplechaser on the outdoor oval, Scharf is coming off of a handful of promising performances at the Centennial Conference Championships, leading us to believe that his steeplechase fitness could translate to the 5k this weekend.


7. Michael Obroin (Carnegie Mellon)

Hailing as the UAA champion in the 5000 meters, Obroin clearly made a huge jump at the end of February and while he did struggle at the national meet during cross country, the Carnegie Mellon standout can likely learn from that experience.


8. Sam Craig (U. of Chicago)

Finishing closely behind Obroin and ahead of Begley at the UAA Championships in the 5000 meters, Craig’s past experience at last year's outdoor national meet (where he placed 16th in the 5k) should allow him to rebound this year, especially after placing 9th at the cross country national meet this past fall.


9. Nick Andrews (SUNY Geneseo)

The breakout star from SUNY Geneseo will start off his weekend with the 5k and given how wildly consistent he has been this winter, it's hard to see Andrews not being an All-American this winter.


10. Elias Lindgren (Williams)

Lindgren hasn’t raced since mid-January when he posted a lackluster 4:17 mile result, leaving us with many questions about this impending nationals performance despite his clear and obvious elite-level fitness.


11. Jack Begley (Case Western)

Taking the next leap into the national scene at the UAA Championships, Begley has inserted himself into an incredible field, many of whom are conference rivals who Begley is plenty familiar with.


12. John Reed (RPI)

One of the faces pushing RPI towards becoming a powerhouse program, Reed was very strong in the middle portion of this, and although his last few meets haven't been bad, he wasn't able to get the edge on a few top names.


13. Christian Patzka (UW-Whitewater)

Running his national qualifying time completely solo on a 200 meter flat track from the slow heat of the WIAC Championships was absurd, so how will Patzka fare on the national stage when he's running alongside fellow Warhawks Fassbender and Schlender?


14. Gunner Schlender (UW-Whitewater)

Completing the only same-team trio in the men’s distance event, Schlender is a legitimate distance talent in his own right, tagging along with Fassbender in many of their shared races this season and effectively giving him plenty of experience racing a top-tier name.


15. Ethan Gregg (UW-La Crosse)

Gregg has been solid all season long, never having a poor performance, and after an 8th place finish at last year’s outdoor national meet in the 10,000 meters, it seems unlikely that he'll have a poor race this weekend.


16. Jeffrey Love (Connecticut College)

Love has garnered some serious momentum heading into his first national meet and although he had a not-so-great showing at the New England D3 Indoor Championships, the rest of his season has been good enough to believe that he'll hold his own this weekend.


17. Cullen Capuano (Washington U.)

Campuano was the 4th place finisher in the 5000 meters at the UAA Championships and much like we mentioned with Begley, that familiarity with his competition may put him at ease in his first national meet appearance.


18. Jamie Dailey (John Carroll)

The other half of John Carroll’s powerhouse duo, Dailey is an established threat in this race, regardless of his seed, so might see some team tactics with Alex Phillip arise?


19. Henry Meyers (U. of Chicago)

Meyers and teammate Sam Craig make one of the better duos in D3 and with Meyers showing off extensive range this season, we're led to believe that he’s a serious sleeper pick to be on the podium.


20. Stephen Lavey (Carleton)

Winning the MIAC Championships in a time of 14:31 was just enough for Lavey to sneak into the national meet, but don't let his seed position fool you, with how close the qualifying times are, Lavey is just as ready to compete for an All-American honor as the other 19 seeds in this field.


Final Predictions:

  1. Alex Phillip (John Carroll)

  2. David Fassbender (UW-Whitewater)

  3. Joe Freiburger (Wartburg)

  4. Tyler Morris (Colby)

  5. Graham Tuohy-Gaydos (Williams)

  6. Nick Andrews (SUNY Geneseo)

  7. Gunner Schlender (UW-Whitewater)

  8. Sam Craig (U. of Chicago)

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