As Jeremiah Vaille and Max Bonenberger hoisted the NCAA Division II National Championship trophy above their heads, the Colorado School of Mines distance runners couldn’t have been more proud of how far they had come since logging miles together in Summit County.

The two distance runners reached a high point in their collegiate career this past fall when they helped contribute to the Colorado School of Mines’ men’s cross-country national title. At the Division II National Cross-Country Championships in Sacramento, Vaille took 37th overall to become an All-American while Bonenberger finished in 100th. 

Although the moment was one Vaille and Bonenberger had dreamed of since arriving on campus as bright-eyed freshmen, the two never grew complacent. Instead, the talented and dedicated athletes set their sights on carrying that momentum into the spring track season.

After redshirting last track season, Vaille and Bonenberger took to the track with a ferocity like no other this spring.

Vaille recently managed to bring his 10K time to 30:01.58 (4:50/mile), while Bonenberger went well under nine minutes in the 3-kilometer steeplechase with a time of 8:49.13 (4:44/mile).

“I was a little disappointed last year, redshirting and not being able to get that first team All-American because I just missed it in 2023 with that 10th-place finish,” Bonenberger said. “This year, I started off strong at Stanford by getting that PR and getting an early qualifier for nationals. That was super good for my confidence, especially coming off of cross season.”

While running fast times is part of the sport, it does not mean much if an athlete cannot back up their performance at the championship meets at the end of the season. 

With a deep love for their team, Vaille and Bonenberger entered the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) Outdoor Track and Field Championship meet from April 25-27 poised to score as many points as possible. 

Competing in Golden in front of friends and family, Vaille put on a show in the 10K. With numerous teammates helping to take the race out at an honest pace, Vaille managed to not only better his personal best in the event (30:01.58), but he also claimed his first-ever RMAC individual championship. 

“We had a lot of fans there,” Vaille said. “I knew I wanted to perform big there, earn the conference title and also secure a spot at nationals with my time. Having that opportunity in front of all my teammates, all my friends, family and fans was really cool. I worked with my teammates to get a fast time for nationals and I just felt really good. I was excited to get that win.”

With 6.25 miles already in his legs, Vaille then returned to the track two days later where his main goal was to place as high as his body would allow. Vaille ended up scoring the maximum amount of points he could, taking first overall in the 5-kilometer run with a time of 14:53.38.

“I did not expect to come back for the 5K two days later and not be absolutely exhausted,” Vaille said. “When I was in contention for the lead within the last 800 meters, I gave it my all. I raced my teammate to the line and was just ecstatic to be double champion for the conference.”

Bonenberger was also able to put together a steeple race to remember. Consisting of 28 barriers and seven water jumps, Bonenberger hung tough with the best runners in the conference, eventually crossing the finish line in 9:13.22 to finish as the RMAC runner up behind his teammate, Alex Shaw. 

“I feel like I didn’t have the greatest race at RMACs, but we got the most points that we could in steeple with a first-place and second-place finish,” Bonenberger said. 

The high finishes from Vaille and Bonenberger resulted in the Colorado School of Mines men’s track and field team placing second overall at the conference meet with a total of 195 points. University of Colorado – Colorado Springs won the men’s and women’s conference title. 

Vaille and Bonenberger allowed their standout performances at the conference meet to carry into the NCAA DII Outdoor Track and Field Championships in Pueblo from May 22-24. At the meet, both athletes were able to check off another collective dream of becoming All-Americans on the track. 

At his first outdoor national meet, Vaille ran a strong and smart 10K. Passing runners who were not used to the altitude over the second half of the race, Vaille crossed the finish line in eighth place in a time of 30:27.63.

“My goal for the past five years has been to get All-American in cross-country and track,” Vaille said. “This year, I got All-American in cross-country and then eighth place to get All-American in track. … With 3K to go I was in 16th place  and I picked off eight guys in the last 3K to get that eighth-place finish that I wanted.”

After taking 10th at the national meet in 2023, Bonenberger returned to the prestigious meet with more experience, knowledge and training under his legs. The two extra years of development paid dividends for Bonenberger, successfully qualifying for the final in the event by placing third overall in his heat. 

Bonenberger went on to run 8:58.99 in the final, placing third overall and at last capturing All-American status 

“It was a huge relief,” Bonenberger said. “Getting that first All-American under my belt is super helpful going forward into this next cross season where we are trying to go back-to-back. … Podium was mainly my large goal for nationals. You can always do better, like first or second would have been phenomenal, but I have to focus on how successful the season was.”

Vaille and Bonenberger will now turn their focus to their final year of eligibility. Like previous years, both athletes will attempt to achieve individual and collective goals which include claiming back-to-back team titles in cross-country, moving higher up in their individual events and setting school records.

“I will be doing my best to work with my teammates this summer and fall to make sure that each and every one of us is ready to get a top 20 or 30 finish because that is probably what it is going to have to take to go back-to-back,” Vaille said.

By Anna Jauhola
In 2012, the Kittson County Central volleyball team had a big challenge ahead of them. A set of very tall girls on an opposing team made coach Tina Turn think outside the box. She invited juniors Darwin Kasprowicz and Caleb Christenson to help the team with hitting around tall blockers. The boys were well over 6 feet at the time – specifically Kasprowicz was 6-foot-3. He now stands 2 inches taller.
This is where Kasprowicz found his love of volleyball.
“For a couple of seasons, he came in to practice with us when we needed to simulate certain things. He was always game,” said KCC Coach Tina Turn. “I could tell he was falling in love with the sport; I recognized the signs.”
She said she named this specific blocking drill “The Darwin and Caleb,” and it left its namesakes “absolutely dripping in sweat.”
Kasprowicz, a 2014 Kittson Central graduate, assisted the team in practice through his senior year and moved on to play in intramural leagues in Grand Forks while he attended college. During that time, he also came home with a team of volleyball players for the sand volleyball tournament in Kennedy, which Turn organized.
“And his team always won!” she said. “It was fun to visit with him because he had joined several leagues and was playing almost all year long.”
Turn noted the sport brings people together, forming a tight-knit community full of connections and friendships.
“I coached one season of our Northside Knights Club team. Then I was asked to be the junior varsity coach for (Grand Forks) Central. I did that for three years,” Kasprowicz said. “This year, I interviewed for the head coach position and I got that.”
He will begin his varsity head coach career this fall, coaching girls he’s already gotten to know through coaching junior varsity. During the day, he’s an accountant for Aatrix Software in Grand Forks, a job he’s enjoyed for the last 10 years. The Northland Community and Technical College graduate said he started there as a part-time accountant during his time at UND, and accepted a full-time position.
One evening, Turn received a message from Kasprowicz’s mother, Brenda, just saying, “You get the credit for this!” and a link to an article announcing the hire. While Turn doesn’t claim credit, she said Kasprowicz’s love for the sport led him to this path.
“Darwin fell in love with a sport that’s pretty easy to fall in love with, and he put in a lot of time and effort to learn and grow in the sport as a player and coach,” she said. “Maybe Jami (Carr) and I inspired him a little to give the sport a try, but that’s about it.”
As he looks to his first season as a head coach, his biggest concern is connecting with all the players. This is also his favorite thing about coaching, connecting with each girl and helping them grow in the game.
“This will be the second year coming back to the same team, there’s a lot of returners,” he said. “Just building relationships with the girls more and more will be a goal.”
He said it’s exciting to see the girls build new skills as they continue to grow in the sport. And it is, of course, difficult to see the end of a season too, so continuing to learn how to handle emotions will be a challenge as well.
He saw this early on when he helped the KCC volleyball team. He enjoyed watching his peers and classmates play and grow, excel in their sport. While it was fun, it could be emotional too.
His biggest challenge will be public speaking.
“I’m just not comfortable with talking in front of big crowds, so that’s something I’m going to have to get over and work through,” he said.
Although he doesn’t have a ton of coaching experience, Kasprowicz said he’s honored and excited to coach the Knights varsity volleyball team.
“It’s a little crazy, not having the most coaching experience. But doing the interview process and Central still picked me, I feel like that shows the dedication I have to the program,” he said. “That the school can see I want the girls to succeed. Something I liked about Central is they see the potential in me. That’s encouraging, being 29 and the head coach for a decent-sized school. That’s cool.”

INDIANAPOLIS (WNDU) – The IHSAA held both its boys and girls track and field state final meets this weekend, and several Michiana-area athletes are coming home as state champions!

During the boys meet on Friday, Westview junior distance runner Noah Bontrager had a record-breaking night that saw him win two individual titles. He set a new state record in the 1600-meter race, winning it with a time of 4:02.60. The Notre Dame commit also claimed the 3200-meter title with a time of 8:51.22.

Meanwhile, Warsaw junior Jordan Randall won the high jump title with a leap of 7-00. The Tigers would go on to place an area-best fifth place as a team.

Following Friday’s meet, Bremen senior Luke Kincaid was named the winner of the Robert S. Hinshaw Mental Attitude Award, which recognizes a senior who excels in mental attitude, scholarship, leadership and athletic ability.

At the girls meet on Saturday, South Bend Washington junior track star Adriana Swanson won the 100-meter hurdles title with a personal best time of 13.83.

Additionally, Whitko senior Gwen Howard won the state title in shot put with a throw of 46-11.

There were a lot of other athletes who represented Michiana and that state finals this weekend. For a look at the full results from the boys meet, click here. For the girls meet, click here.

Michiana also had a very successful day at the Unified track and field state finals on Saturday, as Elkhart won its second state championship in a row and Penn finished as state runner-up.

Copyright 2025 WNDU. All rights reserved.

Nationals. One final meet. For it all.

Beginning Wednesday, the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field National Championships will convene in historic Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon. college track and field is a weird sport. What you do in the regular season seldomly matters come June. Rankings are thrown out the window when that first gun goes off. This is a team sport that has seen overwhelmingly favorites crumble as it’s seen teams with an outside chance rise to the top. 21 events, some championship teams need scoring in 10+ events, some need about 5. There is no perfect formula to win this meet. It may be pretty, it may be ugly, it may take collegiate records, a team of multiple Bowerman watchlist athletes, it may take a plethora of 5th-8th place finishes. All that matters is who has the most points when all the events are tallied up.

How The Meet Is Scored
21 events. Each event awards points to places 1st-8th. 1st receives 10 points, then 8, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. The scores are then rallied for each school to determine the national champion.

How The Meet Is Structured.
Every race aside from the 5000 and the 10000 has a semifinal and a final. Races 800 and below (including the hurdles and relays) will have 3 heats of 8 runners each. To make the 9 person final. Getting to the final is most of the battle, it’s almost guaranteed points. For the 1500 and 3000 meter steeplechase. There are 2 heats of 12. The top 5 from each heat and the next 2 fastest times advance to a 12 person final. For the 5k and 10k, field events, and multis there’s no semis, just one final.

Field events such as the throws and horizontal jumps will have a prelims, then a subsequent final where the top 9 marks will advance to the final and be given 3 more attempts. The high jump and pole vault will have all 24 competing at once, there is an opening height for all athletes, but an athlete may open at a higher height. An athlete has 3 attempts to clear said height, but you will see take 2 and use their third attempt at a higher height.

The meet is spread across 4 days. Aside from the multi eventers. Each gender will have their own day to shine. The men will kick things off Wednesday with the semi final races and a few field events and have their final on Friday. For the women it’s on Thursday and Saturday. The Heptathlon and Decathlon are each two days. The Decathlon will take place the first two days and the Heptathlon the next two days.

Men’s Preview
Our men’s team has a very solid chance of contending for the national championship. Our men’s team has some versatility across multiple events. We have an entry in the 100, 400, 800, 1500, Steeplechase, 110 hurdles, and 400 hurdles. They also qualified both relays. However, they only have 1 field event athlete competing, which is Aleksandr Solovev in the men’s pole vault. This is a very senior laden team and if there’s ever been a close chance of winning it all, this group has as great of a chance as ever.

Our strength lies in some big hitters. We are 4th in entries for this meet. We will be relying on some big performances from Aleksandr Solovev who’s ranked 1st in the pole vault. Sam Whitmarsh who has the best PB in the 800 field, Auhmad Robinson who’s ranked 3rd in the 400 and has the capability to podium or win it all. As well as the versatility of Ja’Qualon Scott who in my opinion is the most valuable piece to this team. He’s ranked 4th in both of the 110 hurdles and 400 hurdles but has the capability to easily medal in both; and he is also the first leg of our 4×100 relay.

We also expect to score big in the 4×400 and the meet may come down to that final race. The question is who runs on that relay. The prelim should be easy but we can’t let up whatsoever with Florida and Alabama in the prelim heat. We have so many options to run the 400. We could place Auhmad Robinson, Kimar Farquharson, Cutler Zamzow, Hossam Hatib, Antonie Nortje, Eric Hemphill, or even Ja’Qualon Scott. The challenge will be picking the fastest 4. If it were me I’d go Cutler Zamzow – Auhmad Robinson – Hossam Hatib – Kimar Farquharson. Nortje hasn’t been running his best lately but if completely healthy he can easily step in. The meet may come down to this race and to win it’ll probably take a sub 3 minute race. We need these 10 points badly. All the other contenders will be in this race as well. For our men’s 4×100, it’ll take a huge huge race to get into the final. We don’t have the strong anchor that other teams have. Ernest Campbell has been running well, but in 2nd leg sk we shouldn’t move him. Last week we went Scott-Campbell-Mason Mangum-Robinson. Robinson doesn’t have the straight line speed to keep up with other anchors. We’ll be in a tough heat with Auburn, tu, and LSU. Beating one of these 3 would get us into the final probably. Anything can happen in a 4×100.

This team is strong and has some outstanding athletes, however, national championship teams cannot solely rely on a few big performers. It’s usually the team with more bullets to score that comes out on top. Rankings are important for the fans to follow, but once the gun goes off, they are of little importance. This statement is heightened in the distance events. In a championship meet, a distance race rarely comes down to who ran the fastest time (with pacers in a meet where that one event was your sole focus). It comes down to racing, strategy, and most importantly guts. In the 800, but more so in the 1500 and Steeplechase, what matters is getting to the final, then racing smartly and strategically. This is why having two strong races like Cooper Cawthra (1500) and Victor Kibiego (steeple) is great to have. I mentioned the big hitters, but points here can be the difference between standing under the confetti at the end or coming up just oh so close. I really think Cooper Cawthra can surprise the country here and have a huge performance. 2 years ago Victor Kibiego placed 3rd at this meet. He dropped out of the race last season due to health. He looked strong last week and I hope he has a huge race left in him.

The competition is fierce. We are going in ranked 2nd based on PR’s. USC is a much larger favorite thanks to their 17 entries and 8 entries between the 100 and 200. They are a speed factory with dominant sprinters and strong relays. They also have 4 field event entires. Having that many bullets who could score is scary and why they’re the favorites. They have more room to slip up while also having more room for someone to step up and have a big day. They can add some points in the high jump, long jump, and discus. Arkansas will be a factor as well. They are led by sprinting phenom Jordan Anthony (a former Aggie receiver, who never got to step foot on the track for us). He has the capability for winning both events. They also have 2 more entires than we do at 15 with all kinds of depth. They have a strong 800 duo, two strong relays, a solid distance group, a strong high jumper and even a Decathlete. Georgia has one more entry than us, and 4 other schools have more than 11 entries: Texas Tech, Ole Miss, Tennessee, and Alabama. Auburn New Mexico, and Minnesota also have a chance to score big points from a few individuals.

Our men’s team is solid. Pat Henry and staff have put together a strong squad for a moment like this. His famous saying goes, “it’s all about everybody having a great day on the same day.” We certainly have the potential to win the entire thing. It’ll take some really great performances, multiple podium finishes, and some athletes to step up big time. It’s going to be an interesting race to follow, I like our chances and I really hope we’re the ones who come out on top.

Women’s Preview
Our women sit in a similar situation as the men. One school is the favorite with us being ranked 2nd ahead of many other schools fighting along with us. Our women’s team doesn’t have the depth spread across as many events as our guys do. Our women’s team is composed of the dynamic sprinting duo of Camryn Dickson and Jasmine Montgomery, a spectacular heptathlete in Sofia Iakushina, a spectacular triple jumper in Winny Bii, and a spectacular high hurdler in Jaiya Covington. We also have a strong steeple duo in Debora Cherono and Kennady Fontenot, a 400 runner in Jaydan Wood and two strong relays that can play a factor.

This women’s team relies on the strength and versatility of Camryn Dickson and Jasmine Montgomery (and the trainers who keep them going after many races lol). They will both compete in Eugene, hopefully 8 times. They qualified in 4 events, the 100, 200, 4×100, and 4×400. They are so versatile and our staff asks a lot of them, and they always deliver. These sprinters have always been a vital part to a teams success, especially on the women’s side. Sprinters like Abby Steiner, Rhasidat Adeleke, and others. We can do a lot of damage with these two girls. Their strongest event is the 200 and they have a better shot at scoring there. I’ll break it down more in the event previews, but their 100 heat is insane lol.

As the meet will begin for the women with our runners taking center stage Thursday, Saturday will be huge for our women. Saturday we see the conclusion of the Heptathlon and the Triple Jump. Two events where we are expected to score big. Sofia is ranked first, with two amazing athletes ranked right behind her. It’s very clearly a 3 way race between Sofia, Pippi Lotta Enock of Oklahoma and Jadin O’Brien of Notre Dame. When I mean every inch or second counts in this event I mean it! Winny Bii is tied for first with the best mark in the triple jump with a 45’11.75. She is tied with Agur Dwol of Oklahoma and Shante Foreman of Clemson who all have the same best jump this season. This will be an intense back and forth battle! It’ll be on ESPN+.

Also on the track will be Jaiya Covington, the indoor 60 hurdle champion. With 40 more meters and a few more hurdles, she also has a chance of winning outdoors, but the competition will be even more intense! She is .15 behind the nation’s leader in Harris of Florida, but like I’ve said many times, it’s what happens when the gun goes off! Anything can happen, and Jaiya showed indoors she knows how to race when it matters most. Another surprise opportunity we could see some points is from the steeple. The two heats to me are really lopsided. Kennady Fontenot got placed in an extremely strong heat and I believe Cherono is in a much more manageable. Cherono has been improving each time she runs the steeple as it’s her first year doing so. So I expect her to get into the final and fight for some points!

A big piece for our women will be the relays! Our women looked great in the 4×100 even after a sluggish start. They’ve changed the first leg multiple times this season. Last time out it was Jasmine Harmon, usually it had been Latasha Smith but she had a rough meet last week and didn’t even run the relay. Jaiya Covington is also an option here. Legs 2-4 have remain the same with Dickson handing off to Bria Bullard and Montgomery closing out. I like our heat assignment and love having South Carolina and Baylor to our right to tag off of! I think this relay gets into the final with clean handoffs. Our 4×400 features Dickson and Montgomery, then usually it’s been Jaydan Wood and Latasha Smith. Who knows is Smith is healthy, if she is she’d make a huge difference. We’ll really need Wade to step up. This relay could easily get into the final with a great race, however there’s not much room to slip up. Getting both relays into the final would be huge for us and very important to add some points.

As for the competition, the overwhelming favorite is Georgia. The dawgs have put together a really strong and balanced team. What separates them from the rest of the field is their string group of lady throwers. Something we are lacking. Georgia has the two best javelin throwers in the country. They have two PB’s that are far ahead of the field. One of them is former Aggie Lianna Davidson who finished 2nd for us twice the past two years but she then transferred to UGA. I called it a devastating loss then and hoped it wouldn’t come back to bite us and now here we are UGA expects to score 18 here, they have a top hammer thrower who could win it, and a really strong shot putter. They can score 30 alone in the throws, with 3 transfers from last fall. Their 3 throwers can podium as an entire team. They also have two of the best 400 runners in the country and two strong relays and a 400 hurdler who will score. UCLA has 13 entires, one less than Georgia, we have 12 as does Arkansas, LSU, and USC. Don’t sleep on South Carolina or TCU.

On the women’s side, we have very little room to slip up. If any. One bad event for us and we might not have a chance to win it all. Losing Davidson hurts, as does losing Katelyn Fairchild for the season. Georgia is stacked, but the throws can always be tricky. We’ll have to follow what they do there. However we can still provide plenty of fight and still finish strong as a team. We have a strong group and can score big, let’s hope they all have a great day on the same day! It will be fun to follow!

Having both sides in contention will make this a great meet. I’m the first to admit that I’m the problem when it comes to this sport. We feel as if this sport is national championship or bust and I’ll be the first one upset if it doesn’t go our way, but we (ESPECIALLY I) need to understand just being in contention and finishing as a top team in the country is such an amazing feat. Like I said at the beginning of this, this sport is so fragile and delicate. Just one bad race can take you out of contention. It really takes an entire team firing all at once to win a meet like this. Pat Henry has done his best to field an amazing team on both sides. This will also be the last time we see some of these guys in an Aggie uniform. It’s felt like some of these guys have been part of the Aggie track family for so long, it’s surreal thinking about how well never get to see Auhmad Robinson, Ja’Qualon Scott, Sam Whitmarsh, Kimar Farquharson, and others in the maroon and white. I really hope they can go out on top. I’ll save the emotional stuff for later lol.

I’ll be trying to provide as much insight as I possibly can the next week or so. I’ll provide a preview for every single event, a daily preview and recap, as well as give you my predictions sometime time throughout the week. Then we can laugh at how wrong I’ll be. It’s going to be my favorite week of the year so buckle in and let’s talk and watch Aggie Track and Field! If any of you have any questions about this meet or anything about track, remember there is no dumb questions. I want to grow this fan base, all are welcome!! Let’s enjoy this championship meet, let’s cheer like crazy, and let’s BTHO Everyone!