Three will represent Rio at NAIA Track Nationals

Rio Grande --- The University of Rio Grande will be represented by two males and one female at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships, May 27-29. The championships will be held at Indiana Wesleyan University in Marion, Ind.

On the men's side, red-shirt freshman Nick Wilson (Fleming, OH) will be competing in the 5,000-meter run. He hit the "B" qualifying standard while running at Duke in early May. Wilson's qualifying time was 15:10.52. He is ranked 39^th out of 40 runners heading into the competition. 

This will be Wilson's first appearance at the NAIA National Meet for track and field, although he was a part of the cross country team that competed at the NAIA Nationals this past fall. 

Wilson will run in the 5,000-meter semifinals on Friday (May 28) at 7:30 p.m. If he qualifies for the finals, that race will be run on Saturday (May 29) at 5:35 p.m.

Sophomore Zane Miller (Grove City, OH) will compete in the men's marathon. He qualified for the event with a time of 1:16:17.00.  Miller ranks 45^th out of 49 runners in the event. He qualified for the event by completing the Capital City Half Marathon.

It is a first-time appearance for Miller at the national track meet. Like Wilson, Miller was also a member of the cross country team that finished 21^st at the NAIA National Cross Country Championships in the fall. 

The marathon will take place on Saturday (May 29) beginning at 6 a.m. 

Rio Grande assistant coach Matt Boyles said Wilson and Miller have some experience at the national level thanks to cross country, but it will be an adjustment for them. "It's going to be a little bit different because with cross country you have one big event and then everybody goes home, but this is going to a be prolonged event over three or four days and everybody competes at different times on different days," he said. "It's going to be a little bit different experience, but they did get a taste of nationals so they know a little bit about what it's like."

Boyles explains the game-plan for both Wilson and Miller. "With Nick, we're just trying to see if we can make it to the finals," Boyles said. "With Zane, the marathon, there is only one race, so, if we can get him through the race I think that will really be a big success."

"He's never done a marathon before, he qualified with a half-marathon as a lot of people do," Boyles added. "So, it's just going to be can he finish the 26.2 miles, and if he can, I feel pretty good about his chances of being in the top 25 and we'll see about top 10."  

A student/athlete must finish in the top six positions to earn All-American status while scoring encompasses the top eight finishers in each event.