As icy winds whistled across a snow-blanketed course, the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships presented not only the season’s most competitive field but its harshest conditions Saturday, but Central College’s runners seized the moment.

Junior Caroline McMartin (Pella) and senior Caleb Silver (Conrad, BCLUW HS) each gained all-America honors. McMartin was 24th in the 6,000-meter women’s race in 22:31.0 while Silver placed 25th in the 8,000-meter men’s race in 25:29.3. Central’s other men’s qualifier, Noah Jorgenson (junior, Sidney) was among the leaders much of the way, but had a difficult final kilometer, slipping to 79th in 25:59.0.

Race-time temperature at Michigan State University’s Forest Akers Golf Course was a frosty 22 degrees with a 15-mph wind. 

McMartin was making her second national meet appearance, placing 118th a year ago in Louisville, Kentucky. Her time on the frozen course Saturday was less than 17 seconds slower than the 22:14.3 time she posted in far more favorable circumstances last Saturday at the NCAA Midwest Regional in Geneva, Illinois. And it’s 14 seconds faster than the time she posted at the American Rivers meet in Indianola Oct. 29.  McMartin was in a tightly bunched pack as just 10 seconds separated the No. 16 and No. 30 finishers. She was the picture of consistency throughout the race. At the four race checkpoints before the finish, she was never higher than 21st or lower than 25th. McMartin is Central’s ninth women’s cross country all-American and the first since Beth Cunningham placed 20th in 2004. McMartin and Cunningham are the program’s only all-America finishers since 1981.

Silver is Central’s first men’s all-America runner since Mark Fairley finished 20th in 2017. He’s Central’s ninth men’s cross country all-America honoree. Silver was Central’s No. 2 runner much of the year. He was 22nd at the conference meet in 25:59.2 and 13th in the regional in 25:26.0 but saved his peak effort for Saturday. He was making his second national meet appearance after placing 89th last year in Louisville in 24:44. Silver had a steady race, as he was in 17th after 4.6 kilometers and 22nd after 6.3.

Jorgenson, who was 10th in the conference at 25:26.40 and eighth at the regional in 25:19.2, opened aggressively Saturday. He was 24th after 4.6 kilometers before slipping to 48th after 7.0 kilometers and 79th at the finish.

It was the second consecutive year that the Dutch men had multiple individual national meet qualifiers.