Track & Field | 12/5/2024 11:00:00 AM

Oberlin, Ohio - The Oberlin College track and field teams have set their blocks and are ready for the gun. After a hard summer and fall of training, the Crimson and Gold are ready to reveal their fitness for the coming indoor season. Led by first-year Head Track & Field Coach Ben Wach, the teams aim to shatter school records and best their conference rivals at the NCAC championships.
 
The men's team is at its strongest point in a generation, capped by top-end talent and sustained by enviable depth. "Winning the conference cross country title shows that our distance runners are set up for a successful season, and we return conference finalists in all of the outdoor sprints, hurdles, and horizontal jumps," Coach Wach said. "[We] have one of the most complete men's track & field teams in recent history." 
 
Star triple-jumper Namu Makatiani headlines a formidable sprints and jumps squad for the Yeomen. A two-time national qualifier in the triple jump outdoors, Makatiani looks to earn his first indoor bid this winter. The junior's versatility is stunning: Makatiani is also a consistent conference scorer in the long jump, and holds the school record in the 60m Hurdles (8.70s). Sophomore Michael Dolton will add depth in the triple jump; Dolton leapt to eighth at last year's indoor conference meet and seeks to better his placement this year. 
 
In the short sprints, sophomore Oliver Briger and senior Reese Hyatt lead the Yeomen in the 60m and 200m. At last year's NCAC championships, Briger's dizzying acceleration and Hyatt's daring race tactics propelled the 4x200m relay to a second place finish. Along with senior Sam Fechner and sophomore Armand Andry, the Yeomen aim to lower their school record of 1:30.47.

The Crimson and Gold also boast a talented 400m squad, returning three of four runners from last year's 4x400m relay. Fechner and Andry will join senior hurdler Cole Fuller to defend their NCAC title in the marquee event. The trio set a meet record of 3:20.13 at last year's conference championships, and a school record of 3:15.16 earlier in the season.
 
Bridging the sprints and middle-distance events, Treyce Wood and Ezra Taub will continue their upward momentum in the 800m. In last year's conference final, Wood and Taub placed fourth and seventh, respectively. This year, the duo will challenge for the podium, aiming for Joshua Urso's '16 indoor school record of 1:55.40.
 
In the longer races, Oberlin fields a deep distance pack. The Yeomen are fresh off of an NCAC team title in cross country, in which five runners earned all-conference honors. Senior Walter Moak looks to defend his NCAC title in the mile, though sophomore Piers Shirk will vie for the win as well. Joined by junior Liam Newman, the three will seek redemption in the Distance Medley Relay. Moak, Shirk, and Newman came up just short of an NCAC title last year, and look to crack the ten-minute mark in the relay for the first time in school history. 
 
Bookending the standard events order, the Yeomen expect strong showings in the 3000m and 5000m. After notching all-NCAC laurels on the grass this fall, seniors Jonah Barber and Danny Markey intend to back up their success on the track. Junior Charlie Endres will look to score in the NCAC 3000m for his third consecutive year.
 
Competing across the sprints, jumps, and throws, heptathlete Kit Evans aims to score his first indoor points at the conference meet. The junior scored in the NCAC decathlon last May, and hopes to better his placement this winter. 
 
As a team, the Yeomen took third at last year's indoor NCAC championships, the men's team's highest indoor conference placement since 1990. The Yeomen graduated only three of sixteen conference scorers, and aim to place top-two for the first time in program history. 
 
On the women's side, the Yeowomen will rely on depth to improve on last season's campaign. "The women's team is ready to take a step forward from last year by being a totally different kind of team." Coach Wach said. "While Abby Cannon '24 and Hayden Hill '24 leave very large shoes to fill, we're ready to fill them – and then some – by committee." At last year's indoor NCAC championships, Hill alone scored nearly half of the Yeowomen's 56 points. But with key performers returning from trips abroad, the Yeowomen look to better last year's seventh-place NCAC finish. 
 
On the jumps runway, senior Heather Benway and junior Anna Fritz threaten to score major points in the long jump. The duo took second and third at the 2023 outdoor NCAC championships, and are eyeing a return to the podium this winter. Fritz made strong gains in the triple jump last season, scoring at both the indoor and outdoor conference meets. Meanwhile, Benway carries great momentum from the fall soccer season, in which she was named NCAC Offensive Player of the Year for the third consecutive year.
 
In the short sprints, junior Ryley Steggall will bring the heat for the 60m and 200m. Last season, Steggall scared the 60m school record with a 7.93s home-track performance, just 0.04 off Imani Cook-Gist's '19 2016 mark. This year, the hometown hero aims to put her name at the top of the record board.
 
In the long sprints, Clara Smith will provide a steady presence for the Yeowomen's relays. Smith ran on every conference relay last year, including a fourth-place finish in the 4x200m along with Fritz and Steggall. This year, the trio will aim for the medals in the indoors-only event.
 
The Yeowomen's deepest event is the 800m, claiming three returners with experience in a conference final. At last year's indoor NCAC championships, junior Ella Wozek and senior Sage Serraino took fourth and fifth, respectively. In the 2023 outdoor installment, Serraino placed second while Camila Ciembroniewicz snagged fourth. The middle-distance trio will give Oberlin strong options for the Distance Medley Relay. 
 
In the 3000m and 5000m, the Yeowomen will count on their up-and-coming distance squad to follow through from a strong cross country season. Senior Caleigh Lyons was a steady leader on the grass, never finishing outside the Yeowomen's top three. Meanwhile, sophomores Charlotte Purcell and Logan Lane look to capitalize on a breakout cross country season: Lane dropped her 6k best by over two minutes, while Purcell shed over three. 
 
In the pentathlon, Celia Vaughn aims to follow up on last year's eighth-place NCAC finish. Vaughn, who placed fifth in the outdoor heptathlon, is now poised to strike for the conference medals.
 
Across both teams, the Crimson and Gold have a strong crop of freshmen ready for their collegiate debut. The Yeomen have high hopes for sprinter Raluchi Obioha, whose older brother Kambi Obioha '24 enjoyed a standout career at Oberlin. For the Yeowomen, hurdler Yrva Desormeaux will immediately buoy the women's team's relays. Most exciting are Oberlin's newest throwers: first-years Maddie Farbman, Mary Howell, Judah Moenoa, and sophomore Abraham Cromartie V will rekindle Oberlin's throws squad under the guidance of throws coach Jillian Roberts. 
 
The Crimson and Gold are led by captains Hyatt, Lyons, Lillian McFarlin, and Johnny Ragsdale. The indoor season will culminate at the NCAC indoor championships, hosted at home on February 28th and March 1st. Oberlin opens the season this weekend at the Spartan Alumni Meet, hosted by Case Western Reserve University on Saturday, December 7th. The 2024-25 season takes its mark at 10:30 a.m. 
 
Fans can keep up with their favorite teams on Instagram, Facebook, X, or TikTok, and watch all the home matches live online. The Crimson and Gold's home broadcasts can be access on TV through the official Oberlin Sports Network app on Roku, Apple TV, and Amazon Fire TV.