2023 Men's Outdoor Track and FIeld Preview

Senior Zach Elmore, pictured

The Hope College outdoor men's track and field team is ready to run fast, leap, and throw far this spring.

Led by head coach Kevin Cole, the Flying Dutchmen are optimistic and excited about their prospects for the 2023 outdoor season.

2023 Roster

The Flying Dutchmen field a roster of 52, including 24 returning letterwinners. There are seven seniors, seven juniors, 14 sophomores and 24 freshmen.

Four have earned three letters apiece: senior distance runner Anders Bogard (Mattawan, Michigan / Kalamazoo Christian HS), senior pole vaulter Zach Elmore (Cadillac, Michigan / Cadillac), senior hurdler/jumper Jackson Player (San Antonio, Texas / Winston Churchill), and senior sprinter/hurdler Nathan Woolum (Mattawan, Michigan / Mattawan).

Player set a Hope school record in the 60 meters during the 2023 indoor season.

Elmore was MIAA Indoor Champion in the pole vault in 2020.

Two each have earned two letters: junior Eli Meder (Lansing, Michigan / Lansing Catholic HS) and junior distance runner Dan Campbell (Brighton, Michigan / Brighton).

Meder broke the MIAA indoor record in the 800 meters this winter en route to becoming league champion in the event and claiming All-MIAA honors.

Sophomore Connor Vachon (Jenison, Michigan / Jenison earned his first MIAA indoor title in the 1-mile run this season.

Vachon and Meder also ran on Hope's MIAA champion 4x400-meter relay along with sophomore Lucas Guidone (Chicago, Illinois / Taft) and freshman Wyatt Marsh (Grand Blanc, Michigan / Lake Fenton).

The same group also set a school record in the distance medley relay during the indoor season.

2023 Schedule

The Flying Dutchmen have nine road events on their schedule, beginning with the outdoor season-opening Emory University (Ga.) Spring Classic on Friday-Saturday, March 17-18.

Hope competes within Ottawa County on Friday-Saturday, April 21-22, at Grand Valley State University.

The MIAA Championships are Thursday-Friday, May 4-5, at Olivet College.

The NCAA Division III Outdoor Track and Field Championships are Thursday-Saturday, May 25-27, at Rochester University (N.Y.).

Coaching Staff

Kevin Cole '88 is in his 19th year as head men's and women's track and field coach. He holds the academic rank of associate professor of kinesiology.

Through the 2023 indoor season, Cole has coached 65 men's track & field MIAA event champions and 12 NCAA All-America performers. In women's track and field, Cole has coached 81 conference champions in women's track & field, 24 NCAA Division III All-American performers, five MIAA outdoor team champions and three MIAA indoor team champions.

Cole's coaching staff features assistants Mark Northuis '82, Jon Lunderberg '82, Paul Markel, Kara Winton '11, and Ben Turner '19.

Coach's Outlook

"We've got quite a few areas where we are strong. Middle distance for sure. We have Eli Meder who's coming off qualifying for indoor nationals. Connor Lucas Guidone, those guys are all national-caliber runners. We've got a couple of really good hurdlers in Jackson Player and Nate Woolum. We've got a good sprint crew this year. It's going to be exciting to see what we can do."

By The Numbers

4 — Indoor track and field all-region honorees for the Flying Dutchmen this winter: Eli Meder and Lucas Guidone in the 800 meters and the distance medley relay of Meder, Guidone, Nathan Woolum and Connor Vachon.

10 — Number of times the Flying Dutchmen have claimed MIAA Most Valuable Men's Track and Field Athlete honors. Dave Lane first accomplished the feat in 1965.

26 — Track and field All-Americans in the Flying Dutchmen's history since the first one in 1967, when Doug Formsma earned the honor in the 3-mile run.

42 — Years the Flying Dutchmen's oldest outdoor record has stood. Bill Mauren set the javelin mark at 64.9 meters (212 feet, 11 inches) in 1981. The most recent outdoor record belongs to Justin Freeman, who sprinted in 2019 to the fastest Hope times in the 100 and 200 meters.

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