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Three Sentences Or Less: 2023 D2 NCAA Outdoor Championship Men's Steeplechase Preview
- Grace McLaughlin
- May 24, 2023
- 6 min read
Written by Grace McLaughlin
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. Reece Smith (Northwest Missouri)
Reece Smith enters this weekend as the top seed and the reigning national champion in the steeplechase. He recently placed 3rd at the Drake Relays in the event with a time of 8:38, five seconds shy of his PR from last year’s outdoor national meet. His other recent performances of 13:50 in the 5000 meters and 8:00 in the 3000 meters indicate that he has the fitness and firepower to win his second national title in the steeplechase, although it will be interesting to see how he fares at altitude.
2. Caleb Futter (Grand Valley State)
The Laker ace has strong momentum going into this weekend after running PRs of 14:01 in the 5k and 3:46 in the 1500 meters back in April while his 8:42 steeplechase national qualifying time from the Raleigh Relays came back in March. Futter is a top-notch competitor and his dynamic talent, aerobic fitness and consistent success should propel him to a top-five finish. But will he have enough upside to threaten Reece Smith for NCAA gold?
3. Ben Arens (Nebraska-Kearney)
Ben Arens is a returner to the outdoor national meet in the steeplechase after racing at this meet last year, but he’s returning as a top competitor rather than just a finals qualifier. The Loper ace ran a PR of 8:47 in the steeplechase in April as well as marks of 14:15 in the 5k and 3:50 in the 1500 meters. His recent improvements show us that he is fit and more than capable of bettering his 11th place finish from last spring, but the question is...by how much?
4. Isaac Prather (Concord)
Isaac Prather is an experienced steeplechase runner who has steadily improved towards his 8:47 PR in early April. While he is one of the top seeds in the steeplechase, his real firepower was displayed in the 1500 meters and the 5k this season with marks of of 13:57 and 3:49, respectively. He has showcased his aerobic endurance and turnover in aggressive races, but can he translate his new level of fitness to a tactical setting?
5. Nixon Korir (Azusa Pacific)
Nixon Korir placed 7th in the steeplechase at last year’s outdoor national meet. His increased firepower and experience indicates that he is looking at a top-five finish in the event this weekend. Korir lacks some of the aerobic endurance and the speed of his competitors, but his athletic identity as a true steeplechaser will be beneficial this weekend, especially in comparison to other guys who are somewhat new to this event (or this level).
6. Soheil Boufrizi (Wingate)
Similar to Korir, we would say that Soheil Boufrizi lacks the flashy 1500 meter and 5k times of some of his competitors. However, he has solid momentum right now and focusing solely on the steeplechase rather than doubling in events will be an advantage this weekend. Boufrizi ran his steeplechase PR of 8:49 at the APU Last Chance Meet and ran sub-9:00 two other times this season, showing us that he’s not only fit, but also reliable.
7. Albert Hesse (Western Colorado)
Albert Hesse narrowly missed making it out of the steeplechase prelims at the 2022 NCAA Outdoor Championships, but his steeple PR of 8:53 from April and his RMAC title in the event suggests that he will be a finalist this year. His uptick in fitness, increased level of experience and altitude advantage will all play into his favor this weekend.
8. Clement Duigou (Adams State)
Clement Duigou is an accomplished veteran, but we are seeing a different level of fitness and firepower in comparison to what we saw from him last year. His steeplechase PR of 8:29 from last spring is pretty far off from his national qualifying time of 8:53 two weeks ago, but his consistency and general talent in the event are enough to get him to the finals. His ceiling of success, combined with the altitude factor, could make Duigou the ultimate dark horse this weekend.
9. Felix Perrier (Azusa Pacific)
Felix Perrier has steadily improved throughout the season across several events and ran his steeplechase national qualifying time of 8:54 at the PacWest Outdoor Championships a few weeks ago. His recent trajectory is promising, but he’ll be right on the cusp of qualifying for finals, especially with altitude playing a factor. Luckily, he has put together a very complete spring campaign and just looks solid across the board.
10. Noah Bundrock (West Texas A&M)
Noah Bundrock is a bit of a wild card in this field. It will be his first championship meet at the D2 level and truthfully, his performances are a little bit all over the place. While he hasn’t been the most consistent runner and we have no idea what to expect, his steeplechase national qualifying time of 8:55 from the Payton Jordan Invite tells us that he can at least post top marks in competitive fields such as this.
11. Jeret Gillingham (Western Washington)
Jeret Gillingham’s steeplechase national qualifying mark of 8:55 puts him in a tight pack of runners, but the difference is that he has run between 8:55 and 9:04 in the event five times this season. Based on his clear reliability and progression across other events, I’d place my bets on the Viking sophomore to make it out of preliminaries and potentially scratch his way into an All-American finish.
12. David Ecker (Sioux Falls)
David Ecker is a versatile runner in the midst of a breakout season, running PRs of 8:55 in the steeplechase and 3:56 in the 1500 meters. This will be his first championship appearance, so lack of experience will be factor that he has to overcome. Even so, a plethora of new personal bests suggest that this guy is on a hot streak, making him that much more dangerous.
13. Ward Ries (Edinboro)
Ward Ries is a returner to the outdoor national meet in the steeplechase and will have key experience to lean on. In his three times running the event this season, he’s run between 8:57 and 8:59, showcasing consistency that numerous men seeded above him simply have't shown. Making it to the finals will be a challenge for Ries, but in the right race setting, we wouldn’t count him out.
14. James Dunne (Adams State)
James Dunne is a multiple-time All-American for the Grizzlies, but he’s a wildcard in terms of being consistent with his strength-based talent. He just barely qualified for the outdoor national meet at the Portland Twilight Meet two weeks ago after making his debut in the steeplechase in mid-April. So far, his switch to the steeplechase has been positive and he’s translated his endurance and speed over the barriers. He could be a surprise finalist this weekend based on his previous success in the 1500 meters as well as his altitude advantage.
15. Mitchel Dunham (Walsh)
Mitchel Dunham is another steeplechase newcomer who has impressed this outdoor track season. Coming from a 5k background, he undoubtedly has solid aerobic strength and a more aggressive prelim race would theoretically be beneficial in getting him through to the finals. The Cavalier junior has run around 9:00 (steeple) three times this season which leads us to believe that he is due for a monster PR in the event.
16. Joshua Bishop (Tiffin)
It took five races and a "last chance" meet for Joshua Bishop to run 8:58 in the steeplechase and qualify for his first national meet, but he pulled it off. He also ran 9:03 in the steeplechase twice this season which, much like Dunham, suggests that he may still have some untapped upside. It's unlikely that Bishop will advance to finals this weekend, but his newfound success in the steeplechase is promising for 2024.
17. Michael Grabowski (Western Colorado)
Michael Grabowski is a solid strength-based runner who has consistently improved in the steeplechase throughout the years. He ran 8:59 at the Bryan Clay Invitational to qualify for his first individual national meet on the track. From a consistency standpoint, Grabowski could be better, but a streak of recent personal bests and exposure to altitude make it hard to ignore him when the prelims are underway.
18. Richie Johnston (Hillsdale)
Since last year, Richie Johnston has drastically improved in the steeplechase and qualified for his first national meet with his 9:00 mark from the G-MAC Outdoor Championships. He’s going into the weekend as an unlikely finalist, but his speed-oriented talent could excel in a tactical race setting.
19. Max Bonenberger (Colorado Mines)
Max Bonenberger’s 9:01 (steeple) performance at the Portland Twilight Meet was quite the outlier performance as the whopping 17-second PR earned him a national qualifying time in the steeplechase. His bronze medal at the RMAC Outdoor Championships was also a surprise and a drastic improvement. While it is unlikely that he will make it out of the prelims as the last seed, he could continue to surprise us, especially with altitude in the mix.
