Rogers and Walsh step up for Cedarville at the Indoor National Championships

By Matt Schaeckenbach

There are well over 200 Division II programs that compete in track and field. From those 200+ programs, thousands of athletes compete for a coveted spot at the National Championships hosted each year. 

18 people make it in the individual events; 12 teams make it in the relays.

As the sport continues to grow, and more athletes post blazing fast times, climbing into the top 18 can seem like an insurmountable mountain to face down. 

But Cedarville scaled that mountain, and it did it 13 times over. 

The Yellow Jackets showed up to compete this weekend at the Indoor National Championships, with athletes competing in the Pole Vault, High Jump, 60, 60 hurdles, 200, 400, 800, Mile, Distance Medley Relay (DMR), and 4×400 Relay. Included in this group of athletes were superstars Brandon Rogers, Caleb Sultan, Emily Walsh, and Summer Swartwout. 

Nine of the 13 athletes competing for the Yellow Jackets currently hold a school record in the program, marking this team as one of the best–and biggest–that Cedarville has ever sent to the National Championships. 

Lining up first for the Yellow Jackets was school record holder Calvin Speicher, ranked 10th in the country in the 60 hurdles with a time of 7.93. However, it wouldn’t be an easy road to the finals for Speicher, as he lined up against the second, fifth and eighth fastest runners in the event this season. 

In the 60 hurdles, the race is over in the blink of an eye, and one mistake can derail an entire season of success. Unfortunately for Speicher, that mistake came in the form of a poor reaction to the starting gun. 

As the other athletes raced to the first hurdle, Speicher was trailing from the start, fighting to make up ground in all too short a distance. He crossed the line in 5th for his heat, clocking a time of 8.14 to earn him 16th in the overall standings. 

Following Speicher, sprint sensation and school record holder Summer Swartwout toed the line for the 60-meter dash. Similar to Speicher, Swartwout faced down a loaded line-up, running against the No. 1 ranked runner in the field from Central Missouri, Grizell Scarlett.

While the field surged forward like a rushing wave out of the blocks, Swartwout couldn’t keep the pace, falling behind and placing 6th in her heat with a time of 7.55 seconds. She placed 15th in the overall standings in the event. 

Taking the track next was senior Emily Walsh in the Mile. A former All-American last outdoor season in the 1500, Walsh came into the race with a veteran’s experience in Championship racing strategy. 

“I was super excited to race,” Walsh said. “I saw the first heat go through, and the plan was I needed to beat fourth place from heat one.”

That fourth-place runner was Marie Garret from Adams State–a powerhouse on the national level in the women’s distance events. Walsh would need to run a 4:50 to oust Garret, and when her coach told her the goal, she responded, “I can do that.”

From the gun, however, it looked like it would be a tall task for Walsh. She instantly fell to the back of the pack, settling in with a group of runners on the inside of the railing. 

“I got a little boxed in the first half of the race,” Walsh said. “[I] was sitting comfortably and being patient for a good moment to make a move.”

But in her position, Walsh was walled in by several runners in front and behind, and with each passing lap, she was running out of time to make her move. However, on the sixth lap, a small window opened, and Walsh decided to make her move. 

“I think the Lord really opened up a gap for me to start kicking,” Walsh said. “It really shouldn’t have opened, but it did, and I am thankful for that.” 

Walsh’s surge moved her from fifth place to second, but even with her move, she couldn’t shake her competitors. They matched her move, hanging on as a group 5-wide surged towards the finish line in a wall. Crossing the line, Walsh placed second in her heat, running a time of 4:48.28, just five hundredths ahead of the fifth-place runner–a minuscule gap for this event.

Walsh qualified for the final on Saturday, earning the fifth fastest mark in the qualifying heats. 

Just minutes after Walsh punched her ticket to the final, Brandon Rogers did the same in the 400-meter dash. 

“Going into the prelim, I was pretty nervous, but also excited,” Rogers said. 

He was going up against the best competition in the nation, and for some athletes, that fact can paralyze them.

But not Rogers. 

Rogers kept his eyes locked on Colorado School of Mines’ junior, Jonah Fallon, to his outside. 

“I knew I had to give it everything I had to make the finals, and I figured that if I ran close to a PR, I would probably make it.”

As the gun fired, Rogers took off. Racing Fallon down the backstretch, Rogers pulled even with the junior as they made their way to the cut in. However, Fallon put in a surge to hold Rogers off as they both cut down to lane one. 

Keeping on Fallon’s tail, Rogers waited to strike as they came around the final turn. Swinging wide, Rogers challenged Fallon all the way to the line, crossing just a hair behind him in a time of 46.64 seconds–the second-fastest time in school history.

The time placed Rogers fourth in the preliminary rounds, sending him through to the final on Saturday. 

“I felt both happy and relieved,” Rogers said, reflecting on the race. “It felt like the heavy lifting was done, and I had accomplished the main goal of making it to the final.” 

Following Rogers’ standout race, Caleb Sultan took to the track for his specialty–the 800-meter dash. 

Sultan came into the meet with the 13th fastest qualifying time, but would have to place in the top eight to make the final. 

Tucking in towards the front of the pack, Sultan maintained his steady stride, keeping himself within striking distance of the front runners. However, as the race began to string out, Sultan started to fall off the pace. Breaking his stride in the jostling pack, Sultan tried to regain his momentum, but it was too little too late. 

He crossed the finish line in fourth place for his heat with a time of 1:51.95. He finished 16th in the overall standings for the event. 

Following Sultan, Swartwout returned to the track for the 200-meter dash. She lined up on the inside of fellow GMAC competitor Leah Smith from Findlay, and as the gun went off, she was in hot pursuit. 

The pack remained close through the first 100 meters, but on the second turn, Swartwout stumbled on the curve, breaking her stride and falling behind the others. Her competitors quickly capitalized on the mistake, pulling away in the final meters of the race. 

Swartwout closed with a time of 24.47, placing fourth in her heat and 16th in the overall standings for the event. 

The final event of the day was the women’s DMR, featuring Audrianna Enns, Mallory Gasper, Sydney Diedrich and Caroline Hamilton. The foursome struggled to find momentum during the race, as the other teams built a lead after the first leg of the relay.

Despite the Yellow Jackets’ best efforts, they couldn’t keep the pace, falling behind and placing 11th overall in the event with a time of 11:59.99.

Overall, it was a strong day for some of the Yellow Jackets, with Rogers and Walsh set to compete in day two’s finals, along with Sophia Schneider in the Pole Vault and the highly ranked men’s 4×400 meter relay.

Matt Schaeckenbach is a Junior Liberal Arts major from Iowa City, Iowa. He loves spending time with his family, running, playing board games, and encouraging others in Christ.