Contact: Emily Adlfinger, Director of Athletic Communications, 563-588-7970

GREENSBORO, N.C. (May 29, 2021) – The Loras College men's track and field team saw outstanding performances honored at the highest level over the weekend as the Duhawks celebrated junior Mike Jasa winning the national title in the 800-meter run in addition to a record-setting performance by Ryan Rogers in the decathlon and the 4-by-400-meter relay earning All-America honors at the 2021 NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field National Championship in Greensboro, N.C.

Rogers opened the first day of the decathlon with 3,693 points and in third place through five events. The senior posted the top performance in the long jump (7.18 meters) which gave him the lead after the second event. On the track, the 4-by-400-meter relay team of Josh Smith, Shamari Scott, Carter Oberfoell and Jasa advanced to Saturday's finals with the fourth-fastest time in program history and fifth overall (3:12.11). Scott competed in the 400-meter hurdles prelims, running 53.59 to finish 12^th and in his first national championship race, freshman Ryan Harvey ran in the 1,500-meter prelims, finishing 13 in 3:53.50. The 4-by-100-meter relay of De'Andre Klein, Jake Willkomm, Dayvion Foreman and Smith also posted a time of 41.78 in the prelims, finishing 13th.

Rogers headlined the Duhawks' Friday schedule as an  All-American with a fifth-place finish and school-record 6,838 points in the decathlon. Jasa punched his ticket to the finals in the 800-meter run, winning his heat and taking the second fastest time overall in 1:51.25. Smith also competed in the 100-meter dash, running 10.67 in the prelims.

On the final day of competition, Jasa made his mark on the meet, winning the national championship crown in the 800-meter run. The junior took it into the next gear in the final 200 meters to pull away and win the race in 1:51.66. He became the program's first 800-meter national champion since John Ondande in the 1989 outdoor season. Jasa then ran on the final leg of the 4-by-400-meter relay team of Scott, Smith, and Oberfoell to close the final leg in 46.83 seconds and edge Wartburg College for the runner-up finish with a final time of 3:12.40.

"I knew there was a target on my back and I knew people wanted to race me. And I appreciated that—it made me want to be better," said Jasa. "I knew throughout the season I needed to do everything I could to better myself. It didn't matter if I was number one or not—each race was another chance to get better. As I crossed the finish line, all of the emotions and remembering the hard work I did to get to this point flowed through me. To step on the podium felt so good. It's true when they say 'hard work pays off.'"

In the team race, the Duhawks placed tenth with 22 points. Wartburg won the team title with 54 points followed by the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in second (49) and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh in third (48). Rowan University was the final podium team in fourth, scoring 41 points.