A ninth-place finish was predicted for the Wayne State College men’s indoor track and field team while the Wildcat women are picked 11th in the Preseason NSIC Coaches Poll.
Minnesota State, the eight-time defending indoor champions, were a unanimous selection to win the men’s title with 11 first-place votes and 121 points (coaches can not vote for their own team). The University of Mary was second at 105 points with Augustana third with 101 points and the remaining first-place tally.
Listed as Wildcat Athletes to Watch were senior runner Nathan Pearson and junior thrower Cade Kalkowski.
Pearson, from Aurelia, Iowa, recorded a sixth-place finish last season in the 800-meter run with a time of 1:58.29.
Kalkowski, from Niobrara, is the returning NSIC indoor champion in the weight throw and earned All-American honors with a seventh place finish at last spring’s NCAA Division II Indoor Championships.
On the women’s side, The University of Mary, two-time defending NSIC indoor champions, were selected as the team to beat this season with 190 points and 10 first-place votes. Minnesota State was second at 183 points and four first-place votes followed by Augustana in third with 172 points.
Mikayla Marvin, a sophomore from O’Neill, was listed as Wayne State’s Field Athlete to Watch. She is the returning NSIC indoor champion in the pole vault after breaking the school record five times last season as a freshman. She won four meets last year during the indoor season.
Jordyn Pester, a sophomore from Charter Oak, Iowa, is mentioned as the Wildcat Track Athlete to Watch after placing fourth last season in the 400-meter dash during the indoor season.
