BROOKINGS, S.D. - Grace's track and field team concluded the indoor portion of its schedule at the 2024 NAIA Indoor National Championships.

Follow along below for Grace's performances during each of the three days of the championship meet.

DAY THREE

Grace wrapped up its week at the 2024 NAIA Indoor National Championships on Saturday. The Lancers had three events in the finals, earning All-American status in two of those events.

Kylie Sauder earned third place in the 800-meter run, crossing the finish line in a time of 2:13.03.

Dimitri Margaritidis also collected All-American status in the mile. He placed fourth with his race of 4:09.11.

Brandon Kleber also raced in the 5,000 finals. He finished 11th in the country with a time of 15:01.51.

Overall, Grace had four events pick up NAIA All-American honors, including the men's and women's 4x800 relays on Friday.

Grace finished the meet in 21st place for the women and 33rd place for the men.

The outdoor track season kicks off on March 23 for the Polar Bear Invitational.

DAY TWO RECAP

Grace's performance on Friday was highlighted by a pair of All-American performances in the 4x800-meter relays.

The women's 4x800 squad of Morgan Welch, Tara Friesen, Anna Hulstedt and Kylie Sauder raced to a fourth-place finish at 9:15.27.

The men's 4x800 foursome of Luis Loera, Brady Hunsberger, Dimitri Margaritidis and Logan Rufenacht earned sixth place in the country to also grab All-American recognition (7:40.86).

Earlier in the day, Sauder ran a strong race in the 800 preliminaries. She finished with the third-fastest time at 2:16.34, qualifying for Saturday's championship race.

Two other ladies also ran in the 800 prelim. Anna Hulstedt and Tara Friesen finished back-to-back; Hulstedt was 11th at 2:17.15, and Friesen was 12th at 12:17.48.

Sauder also ran in the mile, finishing 15th in the prelims at 5:08.89.

Margaritidis qualified for the mile finals. He ran a 4:14.44 during Friday's heat and will compete on Saturday.

Rufenacht finished 15th in the nation in the men's 800 at 1:55.77, and Esther Cameron was 15th in the 3,000 (10:36.80).

Noah Zimmerman also competed in the long jump. He placed 22nd with a leap of 21-feet-2.75.

Grace will end the meet on Saturday with three more finals, including the men's 5,000 (B. Kleber), women's 800 (K. Sauder), men's mile (D. Margaritidis).

 

DAY ONE RECAP

Grace began its national championship experience on a strong note thanks to Brandon Kleber in the 5,000-meter run.

Kleber, who had the 31st-fastest time during the regular season, erupted with a time of 14:41.96 in Thursday's preliminary race. It beat Grace's two-year-old school record (B. Hernandez-Rios) by a second, finishing 11th in the prelims.

Kleber will race in the finals on Saturday at 5 p.m. (ET).

Grace also shined during the 4x800 relays.

The women's relay team finished with the fastest race during the preliminaries. Morgan Welch, Tara Friesen, Anna Hulstedt and Kylie Sauder produced an impressive time of 9:08.94.

The men'x 4x800 squad of Luis Loera, Brady Hunsberger, Dimitri Margaritidis and Logan Rufenacht posted a race of 7:41.45. It marked the fifth-fastest time in the prelims.

Both of Grace's 4x800 advanced to Friday's championship races, which begin at 6:20 p.m.

The Lancers will have another full day of competition on Friday with five preliminary events and three championship events.

MEET RESULTS