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Three Sentences Or Less: 2023 D2 NCAA Indoor Championship Men's 3k Preview
- Marissa Kuik
- Mar 10, 2023
- 6 min read
Written by Marissa Kuik, edits and additional commentary by John Cusick & Garrett Zatlin
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Editor's Note: Our TSR writers were asked to produce three sentences or less of analysis on every entrant in every distance event for every division. We will be slowly rolling out these previews leading up to the indoor national meets. Stay tuned!
The below list is ordered by seeding.
1. Loic Scomparin (Colorado Mines)
After running the NCAA #2 all-time Division Two mark of 7:51 over 3000 meters, Loic Scomparin easily comes in as the title favorite for this event. He also has improved turnover tremendously as seen with his recent mile PR, a raw time of 4:06 in Boulder, Colorado. Scomparin is solely competing in the 3k this weekend, so he will be the freshest of anyone else in the field and we fully expect him to make a run at the national title as a result.
2. Miguel Coca (Adams State)
Miguel Coca just finished behind Loic Scomparin in the 3k a few weeks ago in Boston where he ran a time of 7:52, settling in just behind his conference rival on the all-time 3k list. The only issue for Coca is that he will most likely be running the fourth leg in the DMR (we think) and will have mile prelims (and likely finals) to get through before he competes in the 3k. This is a heavy workload which may make it difficult for him to challenge for the title on tired legs.
3. Ryan Riddle (Missouri Southern)
Last year, Ryan Riddle decided he did not want a sit-and-kick affair in the 3k finals and went hard from the gun. Unfortunately, no one went with him, and he was eventually swallowed up by the rest of the field. Riddle has now broken 4:00 in the mile and run 7:55 for 3000 meters, making him a prime pick in any style of championship racing (in theory).
4. Hamza Chahid (Wingate)
Hamza Chahid has been a nice surprise this season after we did not see him toe the line with Wingate this past fall. He has one of the better seed times in the 3k and has also run 4:01 in the mile this year, meaning that he likely has the turnover for a tactical finish if this race comes down to that. Chahid will definitely be with the leaders and should finish in the top-five, but depending on the race scenario, what is his potential to leave with a national title?
5. Awet Beraki (Adams State)
Awet Beraki’s aerobic fitness benefits him more as the races get longer, meaning that the 3k is technically a step down in distance for him. On top of that, he will be chasing Dillon Powell in the 5k, so he will have a significant amount of fatigue in his legs. It's true, he did not finish well in this event at the RMAC Indoor Championships, but Beraki's pedigree and 7:56 (3k) conversion this winter makes it impossible for him to be counted out of title contention.
6. Tyler Nord (Western Colorado)
One of the bigger surprises of this year's indoor track season is the rise of true freshman, Tyler Nord. He bested the likes Afewerki Zeru and Awet Beraki in the 3k a couple of weeks back, only furthering the idea that he's capable of a top-eight finish (and likely better) this weekend. He is a true rookie, so his inexperience could catch up to him, but the poise that he has shown in high-pressure situations has been quite refreshing despite his youth.
7. Jan Lukas Becker (Mississippi College)
Jan Lukas Becker definitely does best in the longer distances, but he does not have the same (proven) turnover as some of the other men in this field. Luckily, there's a good chance that this race becomes aggressively paced, meaning that he could finish higher up on the podium. But if this race requires sudden surges and a heavy reliance on speed, then Becker may be more susceptible to his ongoing trend of barely missing All-American honors.
8. Charlie Dannatt (Simon Fraser)
Last year, Charlie Dannatt took on the mile/DMR double and this year, he will be taking on the even more challenging mile/DMR/3k triple. Dannatt is definitely a favorite to land on the podium after running PRs in both the mile and the 3k this winter. In terms of his skillset, he is arguably the most well-rounded, capable of handling most scenarios while employing excellent positioning and brilliant racing IQ.
9. Evan Graff (UC-Colorado Springs)
Another athlete who will likely take on the challenging mile/DMR/3k triple is Evan Graff. The main issue with Graff is that he has struggled a bit on the national stage, not yet making it out of the preliminaries of the mile or the 1500 meters. That being said, he has shown promising range this year and is at least fit enough to contend with the top names in this field if his mile and DMR efforts don't take too much out of him.
10. Cole Benoit (Mississipi College)
Cole Benoit is coming off of a huge 3k PR which got him into the national meet, sneaking under the eight-minute barrier in the process. Benoit will help Mississippi College in the DMR, but that effort likely won't have as big of an impact compared to those who have to go through preliminary rounds of the mile (or the entirety of the 5k). With a ton of recent momentum and handful of sneaky-good wins, Benoit could be a dark horse for getting on the podium.
11. Clement Duigou (Adams State)
Clement Duigou is definitely the most competitive when he has steeple barriers in front of him, although he has significantly improved this winter, running seasonal bests in pretty much every event. The Adams State standout has a lot of momentum going into this NCAA Indoor Championships and should thrive after finding so much (unexpected) success in this race at last year's indoor national meet (placing 5th).
12. Zach Kreft (Walsh)
Zach Kreft has shown that he can be competitive in a medley of different distances and you could argue that the 3k is a sweet spot for him in terms of his skillset. With a mile time of 4:03 and a 5k time of 13:51, this Walsh star has the perfect blend of speed and strength to be competitive in this race. Make no mistake, he'll be looking to cap off his winter campaign with a national title, something he could absolutely secure in the 3k despite his seed.
13. Reece Smith (NW Missouri)
For the first time in his career, Reece Smith will be competing in an individual event at the NCAA Indoor Championships. However, this Northwest Missouri star is no stranger to championship settings given that he won NCAA gold in the steeplechase last spring. Smith has rapidly improved in a short amount of time and when you look at his resume, you'll realize that he's one of the more dynamic distance talents in this field.
14. Afewerki Zeru (UC-Colorado Springs)
It's admittedly a difficult challenge to predict how Afewerki Zeru will perform in this 3000 meter final. He has only raced a couple of times this winter after sustaining an injury following the Houston Half-Marathon and although he's been good, he hasn't been great. Regardless, Zeru is a savvy veteran who knows his way around the national meet, something that should at least put him in the All-American conversation.
15. Cameron Allan (Adams State)
Cameron Allan has made some big strides throughout this indoor track season, leading us to believe that he'll be peaking at the right time. But with this being his first indoor national meet, the inexperience of working through a tactical 3k could prove to be a challenge. Conversely, this Irish distance talent will likely find some level of comfort/familiarity within this field given that he'll be racing alongside three other teammates.
16. Dillan Haviland (Northwood)
Dillan Haviland will be competing at the indoor national meet for the first time as an individual -- in not just one event, but two! With the mile finals coming before the 3k, Haviland might have a hard time responding to the fatigue that comes from this double. In theory, a tactical race that requires less strength and more of his 800/mile speed would be ideal for this Northwood runner.
17. Luke Julian (Colorado Mines)
Luke Julian’s name is usually associated with the mile and the 1500 meters, so it's exciting to see that he will also contest the 3k at this year's national meet. The positive(s) for Julian is that he obviously has the turnover to do well in a tactical race situation and that he's simply fit enough to contend with most of the men in this field. The negative, however, is that he did not respond well to this same double in the winter of 2021, faltering to a 14th place in the 3k after a 4th place mile finish.
18. Cole Nash (Alaska Anchorage)
Cole Nash was able to take the final national qualifying spot for the 3k, meaning that he will end up contesting the tough 5k/3k double. Nash does not have the same turnover like the other men in this field, so look for the Alaska Anchorage runner to follow anyone who opts to get aggressive with the pacing.
