Mile posts: Items on Joe Anderson, Peter Shippy and Dordt men, Hillary Bor, Betsy Saina, Mohammed Kowa, Rivaldo Marshall

The Dordt University men's track and field team is on a historic run in the Defenders' history.

Just four months after winning the school's first NAIA cross country championship, Craig Heynen's team finished third nationally at indoor nationals in Brookings, S.D., and lead off this edition of the WEEKEND UPDATE of the best performances by Iowa-based collegiate and postcollegiate distance runners and triathletes. The Defenders' third-place finish is their second-best effort in program history.

The Defenders were buoyed by former Central Lyon/GLR prep Joe Anderson's national runner-up finish in the 3,000 final, junior Peter Shippy's runner-up finish in the 5,000 and senior Payton Mauldin's third place in the 600 final Saturday. Shippy is a former Sioux Center athlete while Mauldin also ran for Central Lyon-GLR.

Competing close to their backyard of Sioux Center, the Defenders gave themselves a chance to seize their first NAIA indoor title going down to the final race, the 4x400-meter relay. Dordt was sitting in fourth place in the standings with 33.6 points, just 3.4 behind leader Indiana Wesleyan, 1.4 behind Southeastern (Fla.) and .4 behind Life. Indiana Wesleyan was the only team without an entry in the 4x400.

The Defenders, with Mauldin running anchor, held off Marian (Ind.) by .15 of a second and Indiana Tech by .24 to wrap up fourth place and five points. Southeastern dominated the race to soar to the team championship with 45 points, five ahead of Life, which placed third in the relay. The Defenders grabbed third place and a team trophy with 38.6 points at the Sanford-Jackrabbit Athletic Complex.

Anderson continued his stellar senior season by claiming his first All-American honor in an individual event. Joe Anderson ran 8:21.35 in the 3,000 final to finish 2.26 seconds behind champion Bryn Woodall of Milligan. Anderson had qualified for the final by winning the first heat Friday in 8:37.57, the third-fastest time in prelims. Anderson set the indoor school record in the 3,000 earlier this winter after leading Dordt to the national cross country title with a 13th-place finish in Florida.

"I am so happy to see Joe run such an incredible race in the 3K," Dordt coach Craig Heynen said on the team's website. "He just missed out on placing in the top eight in both indoor and outdoor track last year. Joe moved up to the 3K this season and put in a ton of work in. His hard work paid off with a tremendous race."

Also making the 3,000 final field was St. Ambrose senior Nolan Rudd, who set a school-record 8:30.34 to place eighth. Rudd had qualified 11th in the prelims, when he ran 8:33.99. Former Iowa Central athlete Milos Pendic of Trinity Christian was 11th in 8:38.05. Pendic is a junior.

Shippy became an All-American in track and field for the first time after running 14:28.61, a personal-best time by nearly nine seconds. Shippy trailed only Milligan's Aaron Jones (14:26.68) to the finish line. Shippy had run the fastest time in prelims, 14:53.21, on Thursday.

His senior teammate, Davis Tebben, also the first heat in 14:58.37 to earn a spot in the final. There, Tebben finished seventh overall in a season-best 14:49.18 to become an All-American int track and field for the first time. Sophomore Aidan Vorster narrowly missed out on earning All-American honors with a ninth-place effort in 14:53.18.

Mauldin and junior Cole Zevenbergen became All-Americans indoors for the third consecutive season after repeating their nationals finishes from a season ago. Mauldin, as mentioned, was third in the 600 final after running 1:18.55. Mauldin also ran the third-best time in prelims, 1:20.22, after winning the third heat.

Zevenbergen, who ran third in the 4x400 relay, finished sixth in 1:20.29, a day after clocking the eighth-fastest time, 1:20.39, of prelims. Zevenbergen is a former Western Christian (Hull) prep from Rock Valley.

On Friday, Dordt's 4x800 relay of senior Peyton Miller, freshman Josiah Wittenberg, junior Trey Engen and Mauldin finished third nationally in 7:35.57, which is second best in school history. Mauldin was passed near the end by anchors from Grace and Indiana Wesleyan. That group ran 7:40.98, the second-best time, in prelims Thursday. Miller is from Wellman, Wittenberg ran for Pella and Engen went to Algona.

Engen also ran in the final of the mile Saturday and placed ninth in 4:16.88. Engen also posted the ninth-best time of 4:14.2 in the prelims Friday.

Will return to NAIA nationals, but it's time to move on to the professional ranks. Two-time Olympian and former Iowa State All-American Hillary Bor surged away from Teshome Asfaha Mekonen over the final two miles to cruise to victory in the USATF 15 kilometer championships in Jacksonville, Fla., on Saturday morning. Bor had time to raise his arms in victory, blow kisses to the crowd and waved his hands at the crowd on the home stretch before finishing in 43:11. Bor, a HOKA and American Distance Project athlete, won by 40 seconds.

Bor and Mekonen separated themselves from a pack of about six men after the 4-mile mark and it appeared it would come down to those two for the win. But Bor's aggressive move was too much for Mekonen, who was caught by runner-up Leonard Korir and Brian Shrader with about a mile to go.

It was a good morning for former Cyclones at the Gate River Run, whose start was delayed by bad weather. Returning from a stress fracture in her foot, former Iowa State standout Annie Frisbie finished fifth in the women's competition in 52:24. The Minnesota Distance Elite and Puma athlete was behind teammate Dakotah Lindwurm by 21 seconds. Emily Sisson won her third consecutive USATF 15K title.

Former Iowa State NCAA cross country champion Betsy Saina made her return to the marathon Sunday a successful one 14 months after having a son. The newly announced member of the 2023 Iowa State Athletics Hall of Fame Class ran the eighth-best time in American history to place fifth in the Tokyo Marathon. Saina ran a personal-best 2:21:40 and gained the Olympic standard for the marathon in her first marathon as an American citizen. She trails only: Sisson (2:18:29), Keira D'Amato (2:19:12), Deena Kastor (2:19:36), Sara Hall (2:20:32), Jordan Hasay (2:20:57), Shalane Flanagan (2:21:14) and Joan Benoit Samuelson (2:21:21).

"We did it, got Olympics standard and run a pb 221.40, off to the next one in the fall," Saina wrote on Twitter. "… thank you everyone for all the support."

Rosemary Wanjiru was the overall champion in 2:16:28.

At the Sound Running Ten outdoor track and field event in San Juan Capistrano, Calif., former Iowa State NCAA 5,000 indoor champion Wesley Kiptoo placed 11th in a stacked men's world 10,000 field. Kiptoo, a HOKA NAZ elite athlete stationed in Flagstaff, Ariz., ran 27:45.81 in a race where Americans Woody Kincaid and Joe Klecker dueled to the finish. Kincaid (27:06.37) and Klecker (27:07.57) both went under the World Championships standard.

In the men's U.S. 10,000, recent Iowa State runner Ryan Ford finished third overall. The Zap Endurance athlete ran 28:16.04 in a race won by Takato Suzuki in 28:08.04.

Former Boone High prep Pete Kostelnick rallied to finish third at the USATF 100-Mile National Championship in Henderson, Nev., on Friday and Saturday. It was past of the Jackpot Ultras event. Kostelnick, 35, who now lives in Phoenix, was at one point in ninth place before moving up over the second half to his final placing. He covered the 100 miles in 15:47:24. The winner was San Francisco's Jonah Backstrom in 14:11:03.

"I sat down at 18 miles thinking knee pain might mean dropping, then at miles 48, 50, and 65, sitting down and thinking the sun was going to knock me out," Kostelnick wrote on Instagram. "In the end, my time wasn’t great, but it was a great confidence booster using a little experience to push through and be excited about the road ahead for races this year."

Moving now to NJCAA indoor nationals, where the Iowa Western men repeated its third-place team finish from a year ago on Saturday with the help of a national champion. Freshman Mohammed Kowa claimed the mile victory in 4:08.47 on the 200-meter track at Washburn University in Topeka, Kan. Kowa fought off Paradise Valley's Gilbert Olivas for the victory by .19 of a second. Iowa Western freshman teammate Jacinto Gaspar placed sixth, earning three valuable points for the Reivers, after clocking a 4:11.94 time.

This race was just part of a huge weekend for the freshman phenom Kowa. Kowa on Friday finished fourth in the 3,000 final in 8:17.39, in a race won by Colby sophomore Sanele Masondo in 8:11.14. Gaspar was ninth in that race in 8:35.21.

Kowa also ran to a fourth-place finish in the 1,000 final Saturday in 2:28.43. Iowa Central sophomore Yared Kidane narrowly missed scoring points for the Tritons after placing ninth in 2:30.35. Kowa had qualified for the final by running the third-best time, 2:29.92.

Kowa started his busy weekend by anchoring the Reivers' distance medley relay to fifth place. Melynson Bett (1,200), Romario Northover (400), Steve Hines (800) and Kowa (mile) ran 9:58.93. South Plains set a facility record by running 9:47.28. Iowa Western sophomore Steve Hines finished sixth in the final in 1:53.93 after recording the seventh-best time of 1:54.99 in the prelims.

The Reivers scored 61 points to edge Iowa rival Iowa Central by three points. South Plains and New Mexico tied for the team championship with 107.

The Indian Hills men's team matched their best finish in school history, seventh, by gaining a national championship from sophomore Rivaldo Marshall in the 800 meters. The native of Kingston, Jamaica, won Saturday's final in 1:50.56, .42 ahead of South Plains' Kimar Kimar Farquharson. Marshall, the reigning NJCAA outdoor 800 champion, improved on his runner-up finish at indoor nationals from a year ago. Marshall joins Olympian Kenny Bednarek as the only two-time NJCAA champions in school history. Marshall also produced the third-best time in qualifying, 1:55.44, and ran on the Warriors' third-place 4x400 relay.

The Warriors also racked up big points in the 800 event with freshman teammate Tyrice Taylor, also from Jamaica, finishing third and scoring six points after a 1:51.27 effort. Taylor qualified for the final with the second-best time, 1:54.22.

Indian Hills also scored six of its 39 total points when the 4x800 relay finished sixth. The group of Cole Reinders, Roneldo Rock, Jorge Becerra and Mohammed Al-Yafaee ran a school-record time of 7:39.74, which was an improvement on the previous mark by 10 seconds. South Plains set a new meet record of 7:28.38.

The Warriors came close to scoring points in the 1,000 and 600. Freshman Cole Reinders ran the ninth-best time in qualifying for the 1,000, 2:30.42, but didn't make the final. Freshman Mohammed Al-Yafaeealso was 11th in 2:31.16. In the 600, sophomore Roneldo Rock had the 10th-best time in qualifying, a 1:20.10 effort.

Iowa Central's effort was led in the distance races by sophomore Yared Kidane, who ended up third in the 600 final in 1:18.70. Kidane had run 1:19.17 in the prelims. Sophomore teammate Tafari Bishop ran 1:20.40, but didn't qualify for the final. The national champion was South Plains' Hossam Hatib in 1:17.69.

Kidane also made the final of the 1,000, placing ninth in that race Saturday in 2:30.35. He had run the seventh-best time of 2:29.51 in the prelims.

Also running well for the Tritons was sophomore Zander Cobb, who finished fourth in the 5,000 Friday in 14:25.73. Freshman teammate Will Sacay also ran well in his first nationals appearance, placing 13th in 14:58.58. Cobb followed with a 20th-place effort in the mile final Saturday in 4:17.10.

Iowa Western also topped its rivals from Iowa Central in the women's team race, with the Reivers scoring 48 points to finish fifth nationally while the Tritons were sixth with 43. Iowa Western sophomore standout Mercy Biwott continued to rack up more All-American recognition by placing third in the 5,000 final Friday in Mercy Biwott in 18:10.02. Biwott came back the next day grab an eighth-place finish in the mile in 5:16.24.

Sophomore Chloe Garcia Grafing led a strong effort in the 1,000 and mile events for Iowa Central. Garcia Grafing placed third in the 1,000 final Saturday in 3:04.12, a day after qualifying with the best time of 2:58.44.

Then in the mile, Garcia Grafing edged fellow sophomore and former Atlantic High standout Taylor McCreedy across the finish line to take third in 5:04.11. McCreedy was another .32 back in fourth place.

Sophomore Zinash Valen also scored three points for the Tritons with a sixth place All-American performance in the 5,000. Valen ran 18:34.64 in a race won by New Mexico JC sophomore Damaris Chewon in 17:41.54.

Returning to the NAIA nationals, where the Dordt women produced a national runner-up finish in the 4x800 on Friday. The Defenders ran a season-best time by 11 seconds and dueled Grace (Ind.) for the win. Freshman Shelby Buwalda, senior Anmarie Stuit, senior Mika Kooistra and sophomore Emilee Heynen ran 9:11.47, which is fourth best in school history. That relay had won the third heat Thursday in 9:23.12, which trailed only Grace among the finalists. Bethany Ten Haken subbed in for Stuit in the prelims. Heynen is a former Western Christian (Hull) athlete from Sioux Center. Stuit is a graduate student and former Unity Christian (Orange City) athlete.

Kooistra also earned All-American honors in the 600 Saturday with a sixth-place finish after running 1:35.35. Kooistra had run a career-best 1:34.07 in the prelims that gave her second in the second heat and the fifth-best time overall. Huntington (Ind.) freshman Addy Wiley set a new meet record of 1:29.47 in taking the national title.

Senior teammates Jessica Kampman and Kristine Honomichl competed in the 3,000 prelims, finishing 15th and 16th. Kampman ran 10:18.9 and Honomichl, a graduate student and former Morningside College runner, 10:24.1.

Morningside's 4x800 ran the 10th-best time, a season-best 9:32.10, in prelims Friday, but narrowly missed qualifying for the finals. The quartet included freshmen Courtney Sporrer, junior Michelle Sanchez, junior Taylor Sporrer and junior Emily Chicoine. The Sporrers are former Logan-Magnolia athletes. Sanchez attended Sioux City North. Chicoine is a former Graettinger-Terril-Ruthven-Ayrshire prep. Courtney Sporrer also finished with the 14th-best time in the 1,000 Friday after running 3:05.21.

Grand View University senior Carter Huyser placed fifth nationally in the 800 final Saturday in 1:53.49 to earn All-American status. Huyser had run the seventh-best time, 1:53.97, in the prelims the day before. Huyser is a former Oskaloosa High standout. The winner was Oklahoma City senior Milan Todorovic in 1:52.03.

Senior teammate Isaiah Wittrock qualified for the 1,000 final, where he ended up eighth in 2:31.55. The reigning 1,500 outdoor champion had run the seventh-best time in the prelims, 2:26.06, which broke the school record. Wittrock is a former Pekin prep from Richland.

Grand View also showed its strength in the 3,000 racewalk events. True freshman Nathan Limas, a former Roland-Story prep, was sixth in the final in 14:22.38. Sophomore Cole Bennett, a former Ogden prep, was next in seventh in 14:31.04. Junior Seth Diser rounded out the trio of All-Americans in eighth place in 14:45.15. Diser is a former Marshalltown athlete. The winner was Missouri Baptist's Jordan Crawford in 12:54.85.

Clarke narrowly missed two All-Americans when sophomore Noah Church was eighth in 15:06.38 and sophomore Ben Vasquez took 10th in 15:08.18. Church is a former North Polk runner.

In the women's 3,000, former Sigourney-Keota prep Paige Thompson earned her first All-American honor after placing seventh in 16:37.04. Thompson is a Grand View junior.

Competing in her last indoor nationals, former Ottumwa High prep Morgan Lawson placed 10th in the 5,000 final in 18:08.76 Saturday. The Grand View senior had qualified with the sixth-best time, 17:39.89, in the prelims Thursday. The winner was Milligan's Alyssa Bearzi in 17:11.36.

Grand View appeared to be in good shape to earn points in the distance medley relay after the squad of senior Ahren Davis (1,200), junior Leo Desequira (400), Huyser (800) and Wittrock (mile) had run a school-record 10:02.16 time in the first round Thursday. That was good for second best in the prelims. That squad finished eighth in the final, however, in 10:26.95. For Wittrock, it was his 11th career All-American honor and the seventh for Huyser. It was the first for Davis, who is from Ankeny, and for Desequeira, a Davenport native.

Several runners competed in a last-chance qualifying meet for the NCAA Division III nationals at Wartburg on Saturday.

In the women's 3,000, Central College sophomore Caroline McMartin took runner-up honors in 9:50.39. McMartin is headed to nationals after running a best time of 9:45.38 this season. Wartburg junior Natalie Paulson, a former Dallas Center-Grimes prep, was fourth in 10:14.62. The winner was U. of Chicago's Caitlin Jorgensen in 9:48.55.

Knights junior Lily Campbell, a former Waukee High standout, finished third in the 800 meters in 2:13.08. It was not an improvement on her best time this season, a 2:11.57, that earned her a ticket to nationals this weekend and is the fifth-best time among qualifiers. But the 2:13.08 was good for fifth best in program history for Campbell. The winning time was 2:09.77 by Emma Kelley of Washington U.

Central junior Megan Johnson, a former Aplington-Parkersburg prep, finished fifth in the women's mile in 4:59.92 in a race won in 4:56.97.

Loras sophomore Ryan Harvey finished runner-up in the men's mile in 4:10.28. Harvey was seeking to improve on his season best of 4:06.73. But he made the indoor nationals field as the 14th-best qualifier. Central junior Adam Sylvia was next across the line in 4:10.36. He also qualified for nationals with the 16th-best time. Loras junior Carlo Dannenfelser (fifth, 4:11.84) and Wartburg freshman Lance Sobaski (seventh, 4:12.64) and Cornell College freshman Thomas Coble (13th, 4:18.65) all broke 4:20. Dannenfelser is a former Cedar Rapids Prairie prep. Sobaski is a former Washington High prep. The winner was Carleton's Gabe Nichols in 4:09.45.

Wartburg sophomore and former Cedar Rapids Kennedy prep Jacob Green finished third in a competitive 5,000. Green ran 14:41.72. The winner was North Central's Andrew Guimond in 14:31.80.

Dubuque junior Andrew Hutchinson was the winner of the 800 in 1:53.19. Knights junior Christopher Collet already has booked his ticket to nationals in the mile (fourth best) and 3,000 (eighth best), but decided to move down to the 800. He finished seventh in a respectable 1:54.52.

MISSING A TOP DISTANCE RUNNER OR TRIATHLETE?: Let me know at bergeson@registermedia.com.

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This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Mile posts: Items on Joe Anderson, Peter Shippy and Dordt men, Hillary Bor, Betsy Saina, Mohammed Kowa, Rivaldo Marshall