Dupage Policy Journal

North Central College's women and men track teams have taken an early lead at the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Indoor Track & Field Championships, held at Tarble Arena and Recreation Center in Kenosha, Wisconsin. The women's team accumulated 50 points on the first day, edging out pre-championship favorites Elmhurst by one point. Carthage followed with 34 points, and Wheaton had 32 points.

Gwen Berenyi led North Central's efforts by winning the pole vault with a height of 3.64 meters. Berenyi was among 13 Cardinals who achieved All-CCIW status with either a top-eight individual finish or a top-four relay finish.

Illinois Wesleyan's women's team secured multiple event wins on Friday. Annalese Chudy claimed victory in the 5,000 meters with a time of 18:28.76. Additionally, their distance medley relay team comprising Emma McGrath, Jordynn Griffin, Alexandra Reinhart, and Adriana Crabtree finished first in 12:16.98.

On the men's side, North Central maintained its position as pre-championship favorites by amassing 42 points, giving them a significant lead over Illinois Wesleyan's second-place score of 28 points. Their success was bolstered by Oscar Frontjes winning the 5,000 meters and James Ammenhauder taking first place in the long jump. The Cardinals had a total of 16 student-athletes earning All-CCIW honors.

Carthage is currently third on the men's leaderboard with 25.33 points, while Augustana trails closely with 22.33 points.

The competition will continue Saturday morning at Tarble Arena with men's events starting at 9:30 a.m., followed by women's events at noon.