Final 2024 NAIA Outdoor T&F National Championship Results
SEWARD, Neb. – Courtesy of their performances at the 2024 NAIA Indoor Track & Field National Championships, 15 Bulldogs have earned All-America honors in one or more events (full list below). In order to receive an All-America plaque, a top eight placement at the national championship meet is required. The list of 2024 Concordia University Track & Field indoor All-Americans is headlined by pole vault national champion Zach Zohner and Concordia’s national championship 4x800 meter relay of Jenna Esch, Rylee Haecker, Julie McIntyre and Kylahn Freiberg. In addition, two Bulldogs were national runners up last week in Brookings: Freiberg in the mile and Chris Wren in the weight throw.
Only once before in the history of Concordia Track & Field has a relay team won a national title. History was made in 1999 when the 4x8 group of Stacey Hain, Rachel Giedel, Andrea Overstreet and Julie Reinke claimed the NAIA indoor national title in a time of 9:21.61. Twenty-five years later, Concordia has ascended back to the top of the podium in the women’s 4x8 with a school record time of 9:06.48. The 2024 4x8 national championship crew was made up of three Bulldogs who also earned All-America awards in individual events as Esch took fourth in the 800 meters, Freiberg placed second in the mile and Haecker earned third in the 1,000 meters.
The Battle Creek, Neb., native Zohner became the men’s program’s first indoor pole vault national champion since Jeb Myers in 2003. The most recent men’s pole vault national titlist overall was Lucas Wiechman at the 2017 NAIA outdoor meet. Other pole vault national champions in men’s program history are T.J Kloster (six), Gene Brooks (five) and Patrick Gellens (two). Brooks owns the school indoor pole vault record (18’ ½”) while Kloser owns the program outdoor pole vault standard (17’ 6 ¼”). Zohner’s PR of 17’ 2 ¾” places him No. 4 on the school’s all-time indoor list.
Another school record came last week via Haecker, who ran 2:52.88 in the finals of the 1,000 meters, breaking the previous record of 2:53.46 by Kim Wood in 2015. Haecker’s 10 career All-America awards are the most of any active Concordia track athlete. In the mile, Freiberg recorded a time of 4:54.09 that now ranks second all-time. Meanwhile, Rohde (4:10.63) moved up to No. 3 in the mile on the men’s all-time list and Esch stands at No. 3 on the women’s 800-meter list. Esch and her 4x4 teammates posted a time of 3:48.14 that sits No. 2 all-time. The weight throw national runner up Wren was just shy of his PR and ranks No. 3 in school history.
The first-time All-Americans that emerged from the 2024 indoor national meet were: Kayla Kirchner, Julie McIntyre, Mayson Ostermeyer, Calvin Rohde, Zoey Walker and Abi Wohlgemuth.
Head Coach Matt Beisel’s squads earned 2024 NAIA indoor national finishes of third on the women’s side and tied for eighth on the men’s side. At the conference level, the women won the GPAC title (10th in a row) and the men placed third.
2024 Indoor All-Americans
*School record
Jenna Esch
2024 Indoor Placements: 1st in *4x800m relay (9:06.48); 4th in 800 meters (2:13.54); 6th in 4x400m relay (3:48.14)
Career All-America Awards: 6
National Meet Appearances: 4
Kylahn Freiberg
2024 Indoor Placements: 1st in *4x800m relay (9:06.48); 2nd in mile (4:54.09)
Career All-America Awards: 6
National Meet Appearances: 7
Abby Gerber
2024 Indoor Placement: 5th in shot put (46’ 4”)
Career All-America Awards: 2
National Meet Appearances: 6
Rylee Haecker
2024 Indoor Placements: 1st in *4x800m relay (9:06.48); 3rd in *1,000 meters (2:52.88)
Career All-America Awards: 10
National Meet Appearances: 6
Kayla Kirchner
2024 Indoor Placement: 6th in 4x400m relay (3:48.14)
Career All-America Awards: 1
National Meet Appearances: 2
Jordan Koepke
2024 Indoor Placement: 6th in 4x400m relay (3:48.14)
Career All-America Awards: 6
National Meet Appearances: 5
Julie McIntyre
2024 Indoor Placement: 1st in *4x800m relay (9:06.48)
Career All-America Awards: 1
National Meet Appearances: 1
Mayson Ostermeyer
2024 Indoor Placement: 5th in pole vault (15’ 11”)
Career All-America Awards: 1
National Meet Appearances: 1
Josie Puelz
2024 Indoor Placement: 7th in pole vault (12’ ½”)
Career All-America Awards: 8
National Meet Appearances: 8
Calvin Rohde
2024 Indoor Placement: 6th in mile (4:10.63)
Career All-America Awards: 1
National Meet Appearances: 5
Trinity Tuls
2024 Indoor Placement: 6th in 4x400m relay (3:48.14)
Career All-America Awards: 3
National Meet Appearances: 4
Zoey Walker
2024 Indoor Placement: 8th in high jump (5’ 6”)
Career All-America Awards: 1
National Meet Appearances: 1
Abi Wohlgemuth
2024 Indoor Placement: 6th in weight throw (57’ 8 ¼”)
Career All-America Awards: 1
National Meet Appearances: 3
Chris Wren
2024 Indoor Placement: 2nd in weight throw (65’ ¾”)
Career All-America Awards: 4
National Meet Appearances: 7
Zach Zohner
2024 Indoor Placement: 1st in pole vault (17’ 2 ¾”)
Career All-America Awards: 3
National Meet Appearances: 5