4x400 relay team shines for Concordia men's team on final day of NAIA National Championships for Indoor Track and Field

4x400 relay team shines for Concordia men's team on final day of NAIA National Championships for Indoor Track and Field

Equaling a feat set by the 4x800 relay team on Friday, Mar. 2, the Concordia University (Neb.) men's 4x400 relay team of sophomores Jonathon Becker (Hartington, Neb.), Benjamin Hinckfoot (Colorado Springs, Colo.), Alex Heiden (Lincoln, Neb.) and John Cartier (Las Vegas, Nev.) earned All-America honors on Saturday, Mar. 3 at the NAIA National Championships in Geneva, Ohio. 

Becker, Hinckfoot, Heiden and Carter earned an eighth place finish in the 4x400m final with a time of 3:17.31.  The quartet earned a spot in the final on Thursday with a school record time of 3:15.96 in the preliminary round. 

In field events, senior Derek Rodine (Polk, Neb.) just missed scoring points for his team and earning automatic All-America status with a 10th place finish in the shot put and an 11th place finish in the weight throw.  

Rodine's best shot put toss in the finals was 16.08m, which was .21m behind eighth place.  He had tosed 16.54m earlier this season.  Similarly in the weight toss, Rodine's best effort was 17.36m.  To reach the top eight, he would have needed a toss of at least 18.34m.