Young earns his second consecutive NCAA at-large bid

The SJU cross country team placed seventh out of 28 teams on Nov. 12 at the NCAA North Regional in Northfield. However, this was not enough for the team to advance to the NCAA Championships.

“In total, if we did not match our excellent conference meet effort, we were close,” head coach Tim Miles said.

Senior Lloyd Young finished first for the Johnnies and tenth out of the 209 runners with a time of 24:53. Young worked his way up the field throughout the race, moving from 58th place at the mile to 22nd at 5.1K before finishing 10th. Junior Tommy Allen finished 49th out of 209 runners (24:53), and closely behind was fifth-year senior Dillon Diekmann, who crossed the finish line five seconds later, placing 52nd. Finishing three seconds after Diekmann was junior Carter Grove placing 55th. Sophomore Eamon Cavanaugh finished 63rd (26:03), while seniors Mitch Grand and Alexei Hensel finished 97th (26:40) and 105th (26:55), respectively.

“Our guys had very much wanted to take another big step forward,” Miles said. “The track and field season will present that opportunity. For now, we are 100% behind Lloyd.”

“The weather and the atmosphere were great for regions. I felt good about my time. The goal was to qualify for the national meet,” Young said.

Young met his goal with his 10th-place finish, earning him an at-large selection to the NCAA Division III Championships when the field was announced on Nov. 13.

“It was good to receive another individual selection spot,” Young said.

This year marks Young’s second consecutive at-large bid and he received his second All-Region honor for his performance as well. The Johnnies had a successful season overall. They started the 2022 season strong with a dual-meet win against Concordia-Moorhead, 45-18, on Sept. 3 in St. Cloud at Boulder Ridge Golf Club. Seven of the first eight finishers were Johnnies, and 12 of the top 15 overall. Diekmann won the four-mile race with a time of 20:50, followed by Allen in second (21:28).

On Sept. 17, SJU finished fifth out of 23 teams in the St. Olaf Invitational in Northfield, Minn. The Johnnies placed fourth out of 26 teams in the Blugold Invitational at Wisconsin-Eau Claire at Whitetail Golf Course in Colfax, Wis. Grove moved up an impressive 28 spots from 53rd at the 5k mark to finish 25th with a time of 25:43. After not racing the two meets prior, Young finished seventh (25:03) out of the 406 runners in his debut in the 8k race.

SJU finished fourth out of 28 teams at Wisconsin-La Crosse’s Jim Drews Invitational on Oct. 15. Diekmann led the way for the Johnnies with an 18th-place (25:32) finish out of 423 runners. Allen finished in 22nd place with a time of 25:37, and following him 10 seconds behind was Grove finishing 29th. Young took part in Division I Wisconsin’s Nuttycombe Invitational B Race on the day before, Oct. 14. He finished 80th out of 136 runners with a time of 25:16 against Division I competition.

SJU finished second out of 11 teams at the 2022 MIAC Championships at Highland 9-Hole Golf Course in St. Paul on Oct. 29. Four Johnnies finished in the top 15 to earn All-MIAC honors: Young, Diekmann, Grove and Allen. The team won its two-team Fall Finale against Gustavus Adolphus, with the first seven Johnnie runners finishing for 15 points topping Gustavus’s 50 on Nov. 4 in Collegeville. SJU’s top seven runners did not compete in preparation for the NCAA North Regional. Last year, Young placed 52nd out of 293 runners in the 2021 NCAA Championships in Louisville, Ky. This year’s NCAA Division III Championships will take place in East Lansing, Mich.

“I haven’t been to the course in Michigan before, but I have looked at the map and will run it the day before the meet,” Young said.

Young plans to race smart and finish strong.

“[I want to] get out conservatively at the beginning of the race at a reasonable pace and not being sucked into something fast from the gun,” Young said.

“[Young] trains so well in every respect. He is a busy guy who crosses his t’s and dots his i’s on all fronts,” Miles said.

Young will represent SJU in the 8k race on Saturday, Nov. 19, at Forest Akers Golf Course, set to begin at 11 a.m. CT.