BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (naccsports.org) --- Four Northern Athletics Collegiate Conference (NACC) men's competitors secured all-America honors with their finishes Friday as the 2026 NCAA Division III Indoor Track and Field Championships opened at the Birmingham CrossPlex.

The top eight finishers in each individual event and relay receive First Team All-America honors from the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA), while those placing ninth through 16th in individual events and ninth and tenth in relays earn second-team honors.

St. Norbert College's Ezra Schermacher finished just one step off the podium with a ninth-place finish in the pole vault. After clearing his first two bars on the first try, Schermacher needed three tries to clear the bar at 4.93 meters (16-2) and another two at 5.03 meters (16-6) to remain in the competition. He bowed out, however, after three misses with the bar at 5.08 meters (16-8) but was classified ninth due to his total of missed jumps.

Milwaukee School of Engineering's Austin Springer (800) and Daniel Geerts (60 hurdles) failed to advance out of the qualifying heats in their respective events but would end up earning Second Team All-America honors with top-16 finishes. Springer took third in his qualifying heat with a time of 1:53.27 but missed the final transfer spot by .38 seconds and finished 11th. Geerts took fifth in his heat with a time of 8.15 seconds, but had to settle for 14th place overall.

Benedictine University's Temitope Osobamiro recorded just one legal jump in his three preliminary attempts, clearing 6.53 meters (21-5 1/4) on his final attempt to finish 15th overall and earn Second Team All-America honors.

Illinois Institute of Technology's Carson Owens finished off the pace in his qualifying heat of the 400, placing fourth with a time of 48.96 seconds. He placed 19th overall.

St. Norbert's Eden Maranell was the only NACC women's competitor Friday. A stumble over the first hurdle in the 60-meter hurdles - the first of day's five events in the pentathlon - left Maranell bruised and behind the eight ball in the competition, trailing her nearest competitor by 565 points and the leader by 715 points. She rebounded with solid efforts in the high jump (1.58m; 5-2 1/4) and shot put (10.53m; 34-6 3/4), and posted the third-best long jump of the competition (5.42m; 17-9 1/2), but Maranell was unable to complete the final event - the 800-meter run - and finished 20th overall with 2,218 points.

Schermacher and Maranell will have another shot at a national title Saturday as Schermacher will compete in the high jump (3:45 p.m.) and Maranell will contest the triple jump (2 p.m.). Three others will compete in the shot put. St. Norbert's Jacob Klitzke enters the circle first for the men's competition at 11 a.m., while MSOE's Jessa Alderman and Josephine Jacklin will compete in the women's event beginning at 2 p.m.

Of those entries, Alderman may be the best-positioned for a title. She brings the second-highest seed mark into the competition (14.55m; 47-9).

MEN
Event	Competitor	School	Seed Mark	Schedule / Result
400	Carson Owens	Illinois Tech	48.01# (19th)	Prelims: 48.96 (4th in heat, 19th overall; DNQ for final)
800	Austin Springer	MSOE	1:51.35# (12th)	Prelims: 1:53.27 (3rd in heat, 11th overall; DNQ for final), Second Team All-American
60 hurdles	Daniel Geerts	MSOE	8.10 (T15th)	Prelims: 8.15 (5th in heat, 14th overall; DNQ for final), Second Team All-American
High Jump	Ezra Schermacher	St. Norbert	2.06m; 6-9 (T10th)	Saturday, 3:45 p.m.
Pole Vault	Ezra Schermacher	St. Norbert	5.01m; 16-5 1/4 (T10th)	5.03m; 16-6 (9th), Second Team All-American
Long Jump	Temitope Osobamiro	Benedictine	7.18m; 23-6 3/4 (19th)	6.53m; 21-5 1/4 (15th), Second Team All-American
Shot Put	Jacob Klitzke	St. Norbert	17.30m; 56-9 1/4 (13th)	Saturday, 11 a.m.
WOMEN
Event	Competitor	School	Seed Mark	Schedule / Result
Shot Put	Jessa Alderman	MSOE	14.55m; 47-9 (2nd)	Saturday, 2 p.m.
Shot Put	Josephine Jacklin	MSOE	13.89m; 45-7 (12th)	Saturday, 2 p.m.
Triple Jump	Eden Maranell	St. Norbert	11.72m; 38-5 1/2 (20th)	Saturday, 2 p.m.
Pentathlon	Eden Maranell	St. Norbert	3,508 points# (T12th)	2,218 points (20th)

# - Mark converted due to track size (200 flat to 200 banked)