Tipping Completes Quest as Nation's Best in Weight Throw on Day 2 of NAIA Championships
Brookings, S.D. - For the first time since the 2022 season, the Marian men's track and field team as earned an NAIA National Championship, as the nation's best thrower in the weight throw, Isaiah Tipping, captured his first NAIA National Championship to highlight the Knights' second day at the NAIA Championships. Tipping, along with the 4x800m relay team earned NAIA All-American honors, putting Marian in fourth place after two days of competition.
Marian's day opened with Isaiah Tipping leading the weight throw, as the senior entered the competition as the top-ranked thrower in the nation. Tipping's first throw in the prelims would be his best in his first three attempts, as he hit a distance of 20.99m. Tipping was the only athlete to hit the distance in the prelims, and in the finals doubled-down on his efforts by hitting a mark of 21.11m and 21.25m on his fourth and fifth throws. Tipping's first throw of the day would be the only one in the field to reach 20 meters, as the senior won by a commanding 1.42m over the runner-up Chris Wren of Concordia.
Tipping's championship is the first for Marian in indoor track and field since Bryce Carmack won the national championship for pole vault in that season. Tipping's championship is just Marian's fourth-ever NAIA Championship in indoor track and field, as he joins Carmack, Presley Martin, and Taylor Killings as indoor national champions.
Also competing in the weight throw with Tipping were teammates Christian Rios, Marco Keys, and Jacob Netral. Rios finished 10th with a distance of 17.83m, and Keys finished 14th with 17.59m. Netral rounded out Marian's lineup with a distance of 17.38m to finish 17th.
On the track, Marian's first-ever race walk competitor Owen Myers opened the day with a 14th place finish, completing the 3000m race in 14:56.47. In the 400m later in the day, Olivier Lifrange finished seventh overall in prelims, as his time of 47.986 earned him the seven-seed in Saturday's final where he will have a chance to earn NAIA All-American.
Marian flooded the 600m field with four Knights, and were led by Matthew Riehle, who posted the eighth-best time to earn his first-ever individual ticket to the finals. Riehle clocked a time of 1:20.06, and will seed eighth on Saturday. Raif Miller finished 16th overall in the 600m with a 1:20.91 time, Andrew McDade paced a 1:21.54 time, and Richard Dube finished 21st with a time of 1:21.59.
Manny Manneh finished 34th overall in the 60m with a time of 6.96 seconds, and Armani Glass finished 16th in the long jump with a distance of 6.90m. Lifrange would later finish 22nd in the 200m with a time of 21.78 seconds.
In the 1000m, Marian had another ticket punched to the All-American race on Saturday, as Tristan Trevino earned his first career individual spot in the finals. Trevino clocked a time of 2:27.35, winning his heat to earn a spot in the finals on Saturday. Trevino will be one of 10 competitors in the finals on Saturday, needing to finish eighth or better to earn All-American honors.
Marian ended the day with an All-American honor in the 4x800m relay, as the Knights team finished fourth overall. Marian's team consisted of Riehle, McDade, Trevino, and Howard Hendricks, as the group along with Thursday's qualifier Benjamin Moster, took fourth place with a finals time of 7:39.62. The Knights were the top Crossroads League school in the field.
Marian ended the day with 15 team points, trailing Cumberlands, Midland, and Dakota State.
Marian will end their time at the NAIA Championships competing in multiple events on Saturday, with Jacob Netral leading the field in the shot put, while teammates Kevaughn Dawn and Christian Rios will also join him. Keagan La Belle and Brenden Endres will compete in the pole vault, and Lifrange, Trevino, and Riehle will run for All-American honors along with the 4x400m and distance medley relay teams.
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