WINSTON SALEM, N.C. -- Katrina Krebasch and Carson Eipers of Augustana indoor track and field will both be competing at the NCAA DIII Indoor National Championships on Friday down at the JDL Fast Track in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, with Visit Winston-Salem and Guilford College serving as hosts. Both Krebasch and Eipers were recently named All-Region recipients by the USTFCCA

For each men's individual event contested, including the heptathlon, the top 20 declared student-athletes were accepted into the competition.  For each women's individual event conte.sted, including the pentathlon, the top 20 declared student-athletes were accepted into the competition. 

Krebasch enters the national meet with the fourth-best pole vault mark in DIII at 3.86m, which she accomplished in one of the first indoor meets of the season back in January at St. Ambrose. Friday will be the first-ever appearance at the indoor national championships for the senior.

"I have been to outdoor nationals, but never indoors," she noted. "I am excited to experience that. Being a pole vaulter, and maintaining the "crazy" aspect, I am looking forward to the rush as well."

Since obtaining her 3.86m earlier this season, Krebasch has maintained her focus all season, leading to several event winners and a conference title in late February. For her, preparing for nationals is both a physical and mental challenge.

"With COVID, I feel like I have been training for this for a while at the indoor level," she said. "I have qualified for nationals three times now, but will only compete in two of those three times. My indoor  nationals competition, my junior year was canceled."

She went on to talk about her relationship with Augie coach Chad Thomas, who has helped her put in the work and get over the days where things can feel repetitive or physically draining.

"Mentally, I have been focusing on being easy on myself and Coach Thomas has been my main motivator," she added. "He lives vicariously through his athletes and wants them to succeed as much as we do. It makes the hard days worth it and the rewarding days so much more rewarding. He has really helped me get out of my head, have fun, and enjoy the ride."

While the goal is to try and win a national championships, Krebasch also knows to enjoy the moment and to approach it as just another meet.

"My mindset going into nationals is to have fun," she said. "Chad and I have proved it to ourselves time and time again that we don't see the results we are looking for if we are anxious. You have got to go into it with the same mindset and the same energy as any other meet."

Krebasch and the rest of the pole vaulters are scheduled to compete on Friday, March 11 at 2:30 p.m. CST.

Also for Augustana, Eipers will represent the men's team down in Winston Salem in the weight throw event, an event in which he has broken the all-time record a total of three times this season. In the same St. Ambrose meet Krebasch hit her top mark of the year, Eipers posted a toss of 18.42m to give him the top spot in the record books but just .04m. It was the junior's second placement in the Augie top ten following that performance.

Later in the season, Eipers w another record-breaking performance in the weight throw at the DIII Keck Select, breaking his very own school record he set a few weeks ago by the slimmest of margins, winning the event with a toss of 18.43. He then shattered that two weeks later in Dubuque with his current record of 19.32m, which sits as third-best in all of NCAA Division III.

Like Krebasch, Eipers has a similar approach heading to his first national meet.

"I really want to just enjoy the experience," he said. "It's my first national meet so I just want to go out and have fun with it and not put a ton of pressure on myself to perform any certain way. I know it's going to be a tough meet, so doing the best I can on the day is all I'm hoping for."

Eipers is coming off of a third-place finish at the CCIW Indoor Championships, earning six points in the event to help lead the Augie men to a second-place standing overall. In his most recent outing, he placed third at the competitive NCAA Qualifier Meet at Wartburg. For the junior, he's been a part of a lot of stacked weight throw fields this season and is looking forward to seeing some of the best there is around the country.

"I'm looking forward to being in a really high level competition," he added. "I can't wait to see how I perform against other top guys in the nation. Having the opportunity to compete at a national meet is something I never thought I'd have a chance to do in my athletic career, so I'm going to make the most of every second of it."

He also noted that there is nothing different or special about preparing for a national meet.

"Preparation is cumulative I think, I know I've had a good season of training in the fall and throughout this season. I've put in the work, so just trusting that I've worked hard and letting that show at the national meet is what I've been focusing on."

Eipers and the rest of the weight throw field will compete on Friday, March 11 at 4:45 p.m.

The complete list of participants is available here. This website is maintained by Delta Timing, a computer services company that provides results for track and field and cross country meets.