For Immediate Release
Monday, April 27, 2026
NSIC Media Relations

NSIC Women's Track Athlete of the Week
Grace Hambel, Brianna Shroyer, Kenyatta Grate and Miranda Lauvstad - Minnesota State
- Finished second in the 4x400 women's relay at the 116th Drake Relays
- Ran a time of 3:41.19, which ranks 11th in Division II this season

NSIC Women's Field Athlete of the Week
McKinley Grover (Throws, So., Gordon, Neb. / Gordon-Rushville HS) - Wayne State
- Hit NCAA provisional mark in discus at Mount Marty Twilight Meet
- Winning toss of 170-7 ranks first in the NSIC and fifth in NCAA Division II this season
- Also had fifth-place finish in discus Saturday at Drake Relays (153-3)

Other Top Track Performances
Ellen Merkley (Augustana)    
- Opened her week with a new PR in the 200m at the Mount Marty Twilight 
- Finished with a time of 23.85, the second-best time in program history and third-best time in the NSIC
- Also teamed up for a 1:41.25 in the 4x200 relay, the second-best time in program history, at the Drake Relays
- At the Drake Relays, she competed in the long jump (7th, 5.75m), 100m (16th, 11.90) and the 4x100 relay (47.43)
Jayden Wodarz (Bemidji State)    
- Earned her first collegiate win at the Dan Conway Classic in the 100-meter dash
- Her time of 13.25 marked a personal best
- Also ran the 200-meter, taking fifth with a personal best time of 27.52
Renea Taylor (Northern State)    
- Took first place in the Mount Marty's 100m with a time of 11.51
- Set a program record at Drake in the 100m hurdles at 13.92
- Was a member of the shuttle hurdle and 4x100m women's relays that each broke school rec-ords at the Drake Relays
Lexi Urbick (Winona State)    
- Broke the Meet and Facility record winning the 400m in 1:01.19 at the Dick and Mary John-son Invite
- Currently ranks 2nd in the NSIC for the 400m

Other Top Field Performances
Zayda Priebe (Bemidji State)
- Took first at the Grand View Viking Classic in Discus with a distance of 44.27 meters
- Also competed in the Drake relays the same day, placing 19th with a long throw of 40.01 me-ters
- Showed an improvement of over four meters between her first meet (Drake) and the GV Clas-sic the same day
Aubri Brown (Minnesota State)
- Took third place in the hammer throw event at the Gary Wilson Invitational with a throw of 57.35m (188-2).
- Finished fourth in the discus at the Gary Wilson Invitational with a throw of 45.88m (150-6).
Kiley Kranz (MSU Moorhead)
- Claimed two shot put victories at a pair of meets last week
- Won the event at both the Viking Twilight (13.44m) and the Al Cassell Classic (12.82m)
- Finished runner-up in both the hammer throw (44.81m) and discus (37.36m) at the Viking Twilight
- Earned third-place marks in hammer throw at the Al Cassell Classic (44.38m)
Romane Maugest (Northern State)
- Finished fourth in the Drake Relays pole vault with a mark of 3.93m
Ella Schueler (Winona State)
- Broke the Meet and Facility record winning the triple jump with a jump at the Dick and Mary Johnson Invite
- Leapt of 39-10 (12.14m)
- Is currently tied for 18th in NCAA Division II and second all time at Winona State
 
Women's Outdoor Track & Field Athletes of the Week
3/24/26
T:  Renea Taylor – Northern State
F: Bekah Walz – Northern State
3/31/26
T: Kelescia Downes - University of Mary
F: Ghada Hamdani - Minnesota State
4/6/26
T: Ella Voit - Winona State
F: Olivia Schwarzrock - Wayne State
4/14/26
T:  Tamia Horton - Sioux Falls
F: Miranda Lauvstad - Minnesota State
4/20/26
T: Laila Cleare - University of Mary
F: Ghada Hamdani - Minnesota State (2)
4/27/26
T: Grace Hambel, Brianna Shroyer, Kenyatta Grate and Miranda Lauvstad (Minnesota State)  
F: McKinley Grover - Wayne State

About the NSIC
The NSIC is a 16-team, 18-sport, NCAA Division II conference with institutions located in Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, and South Dakota. The NSIC is a model Division II conference that uses high-level athletics competition to develop champions in the classroom and community while empowering student-athletes to be impactful and positive leaders. Formed in 1992 by the merger of the Northern Intercollegiate Conference (men’s league) and the Northern Sun Conference (women’s league), the NSIC has flourished over the past quarter century, maturing into a union of Upper Midwest colleges and universities. The NSIC has won 27 team national championships and crowned 126 individual national champions. For additional information, visit NorthernSun.org.

About NCAA Division II
The NCAA, the national governing body for college athletics, is a volunteer association of more than 1,000 colleges and universities that classify their athletics programs in one of three membership divisions. The 300+ institutions in NCAA Division II support a balanced approach in which student-athletes can earn scholarships based on their athletic ability, pursue their desired academic degree, and participate in all the campus and surrounding community have to offer. Division II student-athletes annually graduate at rates higher than their student body peers, and they have access to the best championships-participant ratio among the NCAA’s three divisions. Division II gives student-athletes the unique opportunity to compete in the classroom, on the field, in their career, for their causes, and on their terms. For additional information, visit NCAA.org.