National Champ! Central’s Daniels Takes NCAA Heptathlon Crown
Larry Happel '81
May 23, 2018
Will Daniels ’20 captured the NCAA Division III heptathlon crown while teammate Ryan Kruse ’18 placed third. Daniels also secured seventh in the high jump, giving the Dutch a tie for ninth in national team standings.
Adding to Central’s distinctive track and field legacy, Will Daniels ’20 captured the program’s 17th individual NCAA title, taking the heptathlon crown at the Division III indoor meet in Birmingham, Alabama, March 9-10.
Senior teammate Ryan Kruse was third in the event, while Daniels also took seventh in the high jump, vaulting Central to a share of a ninth-place team finish, the program’s fourth NCAA indoor top-10 showing.
It’s Central’s seventh NCAA title in the multi-events, and the third indoors. Daniels’ 5,287 points rank as the fifth-highest in Division III history. Kruse scored 5,124.
Mary Gray ’21
The Dutch made a spirited run at the Iowa Conference indoor team title held at H.S. Kuyper Fieldhouse Feb. 23-24, placing second, seven points behind Dubuque. Central won seven individual events.
The Central women were fifth in the conference meet, highlighted by a 1-2-3 finish by three freshmen in the pentathlon, where Mary Gray ’21 took the team’s only crown.
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