By: Evan O'Kelly, Associate Commissioner for Communications

EMPORIA, Kan. – An NCAA Division II national title in the men’s javelin by Northwest Nazarene’s Laurenz Waldbauer highlighted the final day of the 2026 collegiate track & field season on Saturday at Welch Stadium.
 
Waldbauer’s winning throw came on his third attempt, as he cleared 241-3 feet (73.53 meters) to top the field of 22 competitors. That was enough for a sizeable victory margin ahead of runner-up Tevz Podlipnik of Fresno Pacific, who threw 236-6 feet (72.09 meters). Waldbauer’s personal-best performance stands as the second-best javelin throw in GNAC history, as he topped his previous personal-best mark of 237-6 feet (72.38 meters) that he set in 2022.
 
Waldbauer made history on Saturday, becoming just the second man since the GNAC was formed in 2001 to win a national title in the javelin. The only other to achieve the feat was GNAC record-holder Cody Parker of Alaska Anchorage, who took home the NCAA gold medal in 2013. He is also just the 11th man in GNAC history to win an outdoor national title in any event, and the first to do so since David Ribich won back-to-back 1,500-meter NCAA titles in 2017 and 2018. He joined 2017 NCAA pole vault champion Payton Lewis as the second man in school history to claim an outdoor NCAA gold medal.
 
Also making the awards podium to garner All-America status in the men’s javelin was Western Washington’s Jakob Braunstein. The senior threw 224-2 feet (68-34 meters), finishing in eighth place on Saturday. He became the fifth man in school history to earn All-American in the event, joining Alex Harrison (2010), John Haskin (2014 & 2016), Slater Hirst (2014 & 2015) and Alex Barry (2018). Prior to Waldbauer and Braunstein on Saturday, there were 21 All-Americans in the javelin from GNAC schools.
 
The Western Washington women’s and men’s 4x400-meter relay teams were on fine display Saturday, each with impressive showings in the final races of the meet. The WWU women took home the national bronze medal, breaking their own GNAC record for the second day in-a-row. Casie Kleine, Jayda Darroch, Kennedy Cook and Bec Bennett teamed up to run 3:35.65 minutes, which bested Friday’s GNAC-record preliminary time of 3:35.92 minutes. It was the highest-ever finish by a GNAC women’s relay team at the outdoor championships, including both the 4x400-meters and 4x100-meters competitions. It was the first-ever podium finish for Western Washington in the event, and the first by a GNAC team since Simon Fraser took eighth in 2022. Central Washington also earned All-America status, finishing in eighth place in Saturday’s finals. The quartet of Ellie DeGroot, Carley Huber, Donna Marie Harris and Elise Hopper clocked in at 3:40.81 minutes. West Texas A&M crushed the competition for the national title, breaking the NCAA Division II record with a time of 3:32.18 minutes – far ahead of runner-up Northwest Missouri State (3:35.21 minutes).
 
On the men’s side in the 4x400-meter relay, WWU finished in seventh place to also make the All-American podium. Jackson Moffitt, Sam Foust, Evin Ford and Lucas Brenek capped their GNAC-record breaking season with a time of 3:07.94 to finish right in the mix with the other seven teams competing. It was just the second time in GNAC history that a men’s outdoor relay unit of any kind earned All-America, as WWU joined the fourth-place finishing Alaska Anchorage men’s 4x400-meter relay squad from 2017. Angelo State claimed the NCAA title, posting a time of 3:04.46 minutes in the final race of the season.
 
WWU’s Bennett also shined in the 400-meters, where she clocked a time of 53.12 seconds to finish in fourth place to earn All-America. Simon Fraser’s Charlotte Bosma meanwhile ran 53.80 seconds, taking seventh place to also make the All-America podium. It was the first outdoor All-American for each athlete, as they became the fifth and sixth sprinters in GNAC history to earn that status in the 400-meters. Bennett also tied Alaska Anchorage’s Mary Pearce (2007) for the highest finish in GNAC history in the event. She became the second WWU runner in the GNAC era to earn All-American, joining 2009 fifth-place finisher Ellie Siler. Bosma meanwhile became the first-ever Red Leaf to garner outdoor All-America in the 400-meters. Melanie Roland of Northwest Missouri State ran 52.25 seconds to win the national title.
 
Western Washington’s Maurice Woodring came a whisker away from a national title in the men’s 400-meter hurdles with another record-breaking performance in Saturday’s finals. He ran 50.50 seconds to once again break his own GNAC and school record, which stood at 50.69 seconds entering the meet. That left him just 0.25 seconds behind NCAA champion Rinaldo Moore of Minnesota State, who edged a pair of runners with a final lean to claim the gold medal. Woodring furthered his resume as the best 400-meter hurdler in GNAC history, matching the highest-ever national finish along side Northwest Nazarene’s Dallas Beaty (third in 2009). He became the first-ever Viking to earn All-America and just the fourth man all-time in the GNAC to finish in the top-eight nationally.
 
Raiya Matonovich of Simon Fraser capped her stellar freshman season with All-American status in the women’s 1,500-meters with a third-place finish in Saturday’s finals. Matonovich ran 4:20.15 minutes, finishing less than a second behind national champion Aria Hawkins of Lee who ran 4:19.30 minutes. She joined a long list of GNAC All-Americans in the event, becoming the 13th all-time and the first since fellow Red Leaf Megan Roxby took sixth place in 2024. Matonovich’s third-place finish was the highest by a GNAC competitor since SFU’s Addy Townsend took second place at the 2018 NCAA Championships. She joined the aforementioned two to become the third woman in SFU history to be a 1,500-meter All-American. Emmy Kroontje of Western Washington also competed in the 12-runner finals, finishing 12th with a time of 4:33.98 minutes.
 
In the men’s 800-meters, Colton Plummer of Simon Fraser shined in the finals as he ran 1:48.37 minutes to take fourth place for All-American honors. Finishing just off the GNAC second-best all-time mark of 1:48.03 minutes he ran earlier this year, Plummer became the first runner in SFU history to claim All-America in the event and the sixth in GNAC history to do so. Josue Le Cadre of Indianapolis clocked in at 1:46.02 minutes to win the NCAA gold medal.
 
Another SFU All-American followed in the women’s 800-meters, where Veronica Dee also landed in fourth place. Dee finished the race in 2:07.29 minutes to make her way onto the NCAA award podium for the first time in her career. She joined a long tradition of success among GNAC competitors, becoming the 18th woman all-time to grab All-America in the outdoor 800-meters. Other SFU All-Americans include Sophie Dodd (eighth in 2019), Alana Mussatto (sixth in 2019), Sarah Sawatzky (sixth in 2013), Lindsey Butterworth (fourth in 2013 and first in 2015), Alison Andrews-Paul (second in 2022) and Helen Crofts (first in 2013). The national title went to Abigail Abugire of West Texas A&M, who ran a time of 2:02.56 minutes on Saturday.
 
The GNAC featured three competitors each from a different school in the women’s shot put finals on Saturday. Central Washington’s Maliyah Gordon was the league’s top finisher, taking 15th place with a toss of 46-11 feet (14.30 meters). Jessica Polkinghorn of Western Washington placed 18th at 46-1.25 feet (14.05 meters), and Rae Smart of Montana State Billings finished in 22nd place with a toss of 44-8 feet (13.61 meters). Dailynn VanDeren of Missouri Southern won the national title in the event, throwing 55-6.5 feet (16.93 meters).
 
Polkinghorn and Smart each also competed in the women’s javelin finals, finishing in 11th and 16th, respectively. Polkinghorn had a javelin throw of 148-10 feet (45.37 meters) while Smart followed at 144-3 feet (43.96 meters). Madeline Gebers of Northwest Nazarene also competed in the event, finishing in 12th place at 148-8 feet (45.32 meters). Adrianne Casey of Missouri Southern took home the javelin national title with a toss of 172-11 feet (52.71 meters) on her final attempt.
 
Representing Northwest Nazarene and the GNAC in the men’s 5,000-meters finals on Saturday was senior Grady Mylander. He posted a time of 14:39.35 minutes, finishing in 19th place among the field of 22 runners. Mylander qualified for the national meet after running the sixth-fastest time in GNAC history at 14:02.29 minutes earlier this spring. Wingate’s Luca Poppe won the national title, running 14:06.27 minutes to beat runner-up Dawson Gunn of Colorado Mines (14:07.41 minutes) by just over a second.

Jacob Behrman of Western Oregon competed in the finals of the men's shot put on Saturday, wrapping up his season in 20th place among a field of 22 throwers. Behrman's best attempt of the afternoon came on his second throw, which carried 53-8.5 feet (16.37 meters). Cedric Pearson of Missouri Southern claimed the NCAA title in the event with a winning toss of 61-10.25 feet (18.85 meters) on his third attempt.
 
Grand Valley State won the men’s team national title, totaling 66 points to surpass runner-up Pittsburg State (61 points). Northwest Nazarene was the top-finishing men’s team from the GNAC, with all 10 of its points coming from Waldbauer’s triumph to land the Nighthawks in a tie for 21st on the leaderboard. Western Washington tied for 24th with nine points, Simon Fraser was 36th with five points, Alaska Anchorage was 49th with two points and Central Washington earned one for 57th.
 
On the women’s side, West Texas A&M racked up 64 points to squeak past Pittsburg State (63.2 points) for the national title. Simon Fraser landed in 20th place with 13 points, marking the top team finish by a GNAC program. Western Washington tied for 27th with 11 points and Central Washington took 59th with one point.