Preseason NSIC Men's Track and Field Coaches Poll Release

            The Wayne State College men's outdoor track and field team was picked eighth with 52 points in the Preseason NSIC Coaches' Poll announced Friday morning by the league office in Burnsville, Minnesota.  Graduate student Cole Christoffersen and senior Noah Lilly were selected as Wildcats to Watch in the NSIC this season.
            Minnesota State, the nine-time reigning NSIC Outdoor champion for men's track and field, was the unanimous selection to win the conference title again this season collecting 11 first-place votes and 121 points followed by Augustana in second with the remaining first place ballot (coaches can not vote for own team) and 110 points. 
            MSU Moorhead came in third at 92 points followed by University of Mary (88) and Concordia-St. Paul with 80 points in fifth.  Northern State was sixth at 71 points followed by Minnesota Duluth (64), Wayne State (52), Sioux Falls (40) and Minot State (36) closing out the top 10.  Southwest Minnesota State (21 pts) and Upper Iowa (17) filled out the coaches' preseason poll.
            Graduate student Cole Christoffersen (Lyons-Decatur Northeast HS) was listed as the Wildcat Field Athlete to Watch this season.  Last year, Cole placed fourth in the hammer throw and recorded marks over 185 feet in every regular season meet in the event.  He had a season-best NCAA provisional mark of 194' 3" to place fifth at the Sioux City Relays.
            Senior Noah Lilly (Creighton HS) is Wayne State's Track Athlete to Watch after earning All-NSIC accolades last season placing second in the decathlon with an NCAA provisional mark of 6,368 points while also placing fifth in the javelin at 174' 11 ¾".
            Wayne State is scheduled to open the 2022 outdoor track and field season next weekend hosting the Wildcat Classic at LeRoy Simpson Track in Wayne on Friday and Saturday, March 25 and 26.