.png)
Three Sentences Or Less: 2024 D3 NCAA Outdoor Championship Men's 5k Preview
- Kevin Fischer
- May 21, 2024
- 7 min read
Written by Kevin Fischer, edits and additional commentary via Garrett Zatlin & Gavin Struve
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.
The below athletes are ordered alphabetically to match the start list
Predictions coming later this week!
1. Christopher Collet (Wartburg)
Christopher Collet has struggled with the backend of doubles at past national meets, both on the indoor ova and outdoor oval, so the steeplechase final being held on Friday should benefit him. With a night in between that event and the 5k, Collet should be able to fully showcase his talent and hang with anybody in the country.
2. Derek Fearon (Pomona-Pitzer)
While he hasn’t quite reached the level that he was operating at in November and December, we have seen some highly positive results from Derek Fearon this spring. He ran a solid 14:07 (5k) mark at the Bryan Clay Invige, scored 18 points at the SCIAC Championships and recorded a 10,000-meter PR at a last chance meet. Fearon has had some ups and downs in the past, but he appears to be finding some consistency at the perfect time.
3. Lucas Florsheim (Pomona-Pitzer)
Despite already being safely qualified for the outdoor national meet, Lucas Florsheim took advantage of the opportunity to rip a fast 5000-meter effort at the Franson Last Chance Meet and broke 14 minutes for the first time. Compared to some of the other guys here, he has raced a lot of hard 5k efforts this spring. Howwever, given his light racing load during the indoor track season, it seems he could afford those efforts without too many negative effects.
4. Simon Heys (Wilmington (OH))
Five-time All-American Simon Heys is back where we expected him to be after missing out on the indoor national meet. He notched a lifetime best of 14:06 (5k) this spring and while that mark is a step behind what some of the other men in this field have produced, Heys' pedigree from the past few years tells us that he should be competitive here even after doubling back from the 10,000 meters.
5. Chasen Hunt (Lynchburg)
Despite holding the second-fastest 1500-meter time in the nation, Chasen Hunt has opted to go all-in on the 5k. That was an interesting decision, but it could pay off in a big way. Some of the men seeded ahead of him who are doubling back may not have the legs to hold a fast pace and a slow pace may also play into Hunt’s hands with his mile speed.
6. Cory Kennedy (RPI)
Cory Kennedy looks like Cory Kennedy again despite some April struggles as he's peaking at just the right time with a 14:04 (5k) win at Williams. He is only racing the 5000 meters at this outdoor national meet and he'll look to take advantage of his fresh legs to add to his streak of five-straight seasons in which he has recorded an All-American finish.
7. Adam Loenser (UW-La Crosse)
As a potential dark horse title contender in the steeplechase, it will be difficult for Adam Loenser to race at that level the next day in the 5k, especially since his best-ever non-steeplechase finish at a national meet was 12th place. Even so, he certainly won’t be the only one running on tired legs and he may have a shot at improving upon that finish this weekend if he responds better than some of the others.
8. John Lucey (Williams)
After narrowly missing out on the All-American spots at the 2024 indoor national meet, John Lucey has had an impressive and consistent outdoor track season. Of the races he finished, three of them resulted in PRs between the 1500 meters, the 5k and the 10k, and the other was a tactical win over 5000 meters at the NESCAC Championships. Lucey has become someone who you can rely on to hold his own in virtually any setting, so he should compete well this weekend.
9. Grant Matthai (UW-La Crosse)
There are some question marks surrounding Grant Matthai given that he has not raced since his season opener at the Washington U. Distance Carnival in late March. It’s hard to know exactly where his fitness is at the moment, but we know about his talent. While this could be a difficult return, his best-case scenario lands him in the top-half of this field.
10. Spencer Moon (Simpson (IA))
After earning his first track All-American honor this past winter, Spencer Moon should feel less pressure even with higher expectations heading into this weekend. His performances this spring indicate another jump taken in his overall ability and reliability and there’s little reason to think that he can’t be in the mix for a national title.
11. Charles Namiot (Williams)
The best chance for Charles Namiot to record a high-end outdoor national meet finish likely comes in the 10,000 meters. Still, he has proven himself to be a borderline top-tier distance runner and is carrying some nice momentum after dipping under 14:10 (5k) for the first time in his most recent outing. Ultimately, he has given himself two great opportunities to compete in the postseason and will look to make the most of both.
12. Braden Nicholson (North Central)
At last year’s outdoor national meet, Braden Nicholson was one of the best examples of fresh legs making a difference as he finished 3rd place overall in the 5k. This year, he will be looking to take advantage of a similar scenario. The fastest of his four 5000-meter efforts this season came in his opener, so he doesn’t have the most momentum, but his track record as a proven national-level competitor should help.
13. Christian Patzka (UW-Whitewater)
Nobody should be happier about the 3000-meter steeplechase final being held Friday night instead of Saturday morning than Christian Patzka. In 2022 and 2023, he finished 12th and 14th in the 5000 meters, respectively, after doubling back from the steeplechase on the same day. But this year, a night of rest before the 5k should be plenty for the UW-Whitewater ace to recover and take a serious stab at winning the national title.
14. Connor Riss (North Central)
Connor Riss has struggled a bit to find consistent success in the past year since his 8th place finish in this event in 2023. Still, he did enough this spring to squeeze into the outdoor national meet and has several things going for him: He only has the 5k to focus on, he's a three-time All-American with a level of national meet experience that many others in the field lack and he has two teammates to work with.
15. Enrique Salazar (Manchester)
Enrique Salazar is another guy who has taken a jump this year as evidenced by a 13:54 (5k) mark at the Bryan Clay Invite in his only all-out effort over that distance. At the 2024 indoor national meet, he finished 11th place in the 5k and 9th place in the 3k, but he goes into this weekend with a great chance to make significant improvements on those finishes.
16. Tyler Schermerhorn (Wartburg)
Among the athletes in this field, Tyler Schermerhorn has enjoyed one of the biggest breakthroughs this year. He held his own in his first national meet appearance with a 12th place finish over 5000 meters this past winter and a then-PR of 14:14. But now he has found himself operating on a completely different level, most notably recording a 13:57 (5k) mark at UW-Platteville -- and with that success comes higher expectations on this stage.
17. Gunner Schlender (UW-Whitewater)
Over the years, we've come to expect a lot from Gunner Schlender, and he routinely delivers on those expectations. His 14:01 (5k) seasonal best puts him in a position to contend for All-American billing. And even though he'll be coming back from the 10k, his 4th place finish in the 3k at the 2024 indoor national meet gives us a lot of confidence in his ability to double effectively.
18. James Settles (Colorado College)
James Settles is only contesting the 5000 meters this weekend despite also qualifying in the 10k. And we anticipate that he may be able to use that single-mindedness to his advantage. But what gives us even more confidence in Settles is his history, including finishing 4th in both this event at last year’s outdoor national meet and at the cross country national meet this past fall.
19. Vince Simonetti (RPI)
One of the best clutch performers in the country, Vince Simonetti recorded significant personal bests at the last two track national meets sandwiched around a top-10 cross country national meet showing. On paper, it seems like it will be difficult for him to slide into the top-eight here, especially two days removed from a 10k race, but one thing that we’ve learned by now is to not count Simonetti out.
20. Max Svienty (North Central)
A tough indoor track season is in the rearview mirror for Max Svienty who has been truly back at his best this spring. While he hasn’t had any performances that stood out in the past month or so, he hasn’t needed to. His legs should have plenty of run left in them this weekend in order to contend for two titles as he contests the 10k/5k double.
21. Nathan Tassey (Roger Williams)
Nathan Tassey's big day at Williams last week guaranteed his safe passage into this field. Although he also held a national qualifying mark over 10,000 meters, he opted to scratch that event in favor of a fresh 5k. That may end up being a wise decision as there could be some carnage from which he could pick up the scraps and outperform his seeding here.
22. Ryan Tobin (NYU)
Up until his most recent 14:08 (5k) effort at Williams, Ryan Tobin’s lifetime best over 5000 meters was 14:20 and he has never competed at a national meet on the track. However, he performed at his best yet when the pressure was on and left no doubt that he belongs here competing against the best in the country.
