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Contact: Mark Albanese, Assistant Sports Information Director, 630-637-5324

NCAA Division III Indoor Championships

Mar. 10, 2011-- Leading the nation with 14 entries in the 2011 NCAA Division III Indoor Championships, the North Central College men's track & field team looks to capture its second consecutive indoor national crown in Columbus, Ohio on Friday and Saturday at Capital University.

Little has changed for the top-ranked Cardinals since last season, despite having a coaching change as longtime associate head coach Frank Gramarosso replaced Al Carius at the helm with Carius staying on as an assistant. North Central dominated the College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Indoor Championships, earning its 11-consecutive crown and head into Columbus with 14 entrants with the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh bringing the next largest entourages to Ohio with 11 and nine entrants, respectively.

The Cardinals head to Ohio with a balanced attack with six entries on the track and eight in the field, including four competitors in the pole vault, an event North Central has won the past two years.

Peter Geraghty leads the Cardinal vaulting crew, heading into Friday's competition with the nation's best mark after clearing 17 feet 1 1/2 inch to win the CCIW Indoor Championships on Feb. 25. This is Geraghty's second appearance at indoor nationals, earning All-America accolades in 2010 after finishing eighth in Greencastle, Ind.

Teammates Josh Winder and John Wood come in tied for fifth after both clearing 16' 8 3/4". Both athletes achieved their mark at the Al B. Carius Track, Winder cleared his at the NCC Last Chance Qualifier on Mar. 4 while Wood cleared the height on Jan. 28 at the NCC Quadrangular. This is Winder's first appearance at the national meet while Wood is making his third straight appearance at the indoor championships. Wood is a three-time All-American tied for third at the 2009 Championships as a freshman while placing fifth last season. The junior additionally earned All-American honors at the outdoor championships in 2010, placing sixth.

Thomas Stacey is the fourth Cardinal in the 12-athlete pole vault field, coming in with the seventh best vault in Division III. Stacey, a two-time All-American, cleared 16' 6" at the NCC Last Chance Qualifier to earn a return trip to nationals. Stacey finished tied for third as a freshman in 2010 while also placing third at the outdoor championships.

Robert Kapustka is making his second trip to indoor nationals, qualifying in both the shot put and weight throw. Kapustka comes in with the ninth best toss in Division III in the weight throw after breaking his own school record in the event at the NCC Last Chance Qualifier with a heave of 62' 1". The junior comes in ranked 11th in the shot put after throwing 53' 11 3/4" at the Chicagoland Indoor Championships on Feb. 12. At last year's indoor championships, Kapustka placed 11th in the shot put and 13th in the weight throw. Nebraska Wesleyan University's Elliott Bulling holds the nation's top throw in the shot put (58' 4") while Keene State University's Bryan Kolacz has the best mark in the weight throw (65' 9").

Making his debut appearance is Zachariah Heerspink after qualifying in the high jump. The sophomore comes in tied for fifth nationally after clearing 6' 9" on Feb. 25 to win the high jump at the CCIW Indoor Championships. The nation's top performance is currently shared by Wartburg College's Jonas Elusme and Monmouth College teammates Tyler Hannam and Nick Byom as all three have cleared 6' 10 3/4".

Matt Borchardt returns to nationals in the pentathlon after earning All-American accolades in 2010, finishing sixth. The senior comes in with the nation's eighth best point total after amassing 3,538 points at the season opening Private College Invitational on Jan. 14. Central College's Ethan Miller heads into Saturday with the nation's best point total at 3,876 points.

On the track, Daniel Benton and Jon Howard will both represent the Cardinals in the 400-meter dash and as part of the 4x400-meter relay team. Benton, who finished runner-up in 2010 in the 400, comes in with the seventh fastest time, having clocked a 48.85 at the Chicagoland Championships. Howard enters with the sixth fastest time after hitting the automatic qualifying mark at the NCC Last Chance Qualifier, clocking a 48.72.

Both Benton and Howard are joined by Jonathan Caron and Bai Kabba in the 4x400-meter relay where the team is ranked third but comes in with the fastest time achieved on a non-banked or oversize track after clocking a 3:17.73 at the NCC Last Chance Qualifier. Benton, Howard and Caron are all holdovers from last year's 4x4 squad that surprised the field at the Indoor Championships to win the national title. This is Kabba's first appearance at Indoor Nationals but the sophomore is no stranger to the big stage having qualified for the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships in 2010 as a member of the University of Illinois' 4x100-meter relay team. McMurry University comes into Saturday with the nation's fastest time, having clocked a 3:15.17 (converted to 3:17.17) at the banked track of the University of Arkansas.

Three Cardinals will be competing in the 5,000-meters led by four-time track All-American Michael Spain. Spain is making his second appearance at the indoor championships, finishing sixth in 2009 in the 5K. Spain, who placed third at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in November, currently holds the nation's third fastest time after clocking a 14:30.53 at the Cardinal Opener on Jan. 21. State University of New York-Plattsburgh's Mike Heymann currently leads the nation after clocking a converted time of 14:16.65.

Joining Spain in the 5,000-meters is Neal Klein and Daniel Kerley, both making their debut at the indoor championships. Klein enters with the fifth-best time after clocking a 14:31.36 at the Squig Converse Invitational on Feb. 4 while Kerley claims the 12th fastest effort after winning the CCIW Indoor Championship with a 14:34.94. While making their first appearance at the indoor championships, Klein and Kerley are no strangers to the big stage having both been members of the North Central cross country squad that finished second at nationals.

Projected team scores based on the current national performance list having the Cardinals repeating as national champions, scoring 43.5 points. Amherst College is projected to place second with 37 points followed by Central College in third (28 points) and McMurry (23.3 points).

North Central's defense of its national title begins on Friday at 2:30 p.m. (Eastern Time) in the high jump.