ASHEVILLE, N.C. -- Bismarck State track & field will return home with its first-ever NAIA Outdoor Track & Field All-American after Nathan Mathern placed sixth in the men's 400-meter dash Friday at the NAIA Outdoor Track & Field Championships. BSC brought 12 competitors to the three-day meet Karl Straus Track, on the campus of UNC-Asheville, and will leave with an All-American and eight events that finished among the top-20 in the NAIA. 

Mathern, a junior from Legacy High School, clocked a time of 47.78 seconds in the finals to earn All-American status for the Mystics. He qualified for the finals Thursday after running a 47.08 to win his heat in the preliminary. 

Mathern's finish accounted for all three team points for the Mystic men, who tied for 55th place in the final NAIA team standings. Cayden Kraft also turned in a strong effort in the men's 400 meters, finishing 11th overall in 47.25 and narrowly missing the final.

The Mystics added another national-meet mark in the men's 4x400-meter relay, where Mathern, Xavier Bell, Timol Walters and Kraft placed 24th in 3:17.32.

On the women's side, the 4x100-meter relay team of Aisha Zaffino, Priviledge Bower, Aliya Schock and Alexia Anderson finished 21st in 47.11, and the women's 4x400-meter relay of Zaffino, Schock, Brooklyn Fuller and Tsitsi Karanda took 19th in 3:55.43. Bower posted two of Bismarck State's top women's sprint results. She placed 11th in the women's 200-meter dash in 24.21 and finished 14th in the women's 100-meter dash in 11.95.

In the jumps, Kennedy Harter led the Mystics with a 12th-place finish in the women's triple jump at 11.67 meters (38' 3.5"), hitting the mark in her second attempt. Harter also placed 20th in the women's long jump with a leap of 5.41 meters (17' 9"), while Anderson was 17th in the same event at 5.53 meters (18' 1.75"), capping off her event in style as she used her final jump to reach her top distance, leapfrogging her way into the top-20.

Jasmine Nash rounded out the Mystics' competitors with a 20th-place finish in the women's discus, tossing a mark of 36.07 meters (118' 4") on her first throw.

Across a large national field, Bismarck State produced results to build upon as they conclude their inaugural season in the NAIA, with Mathern's All-American run standing as the highlight of the meet and the signature result of the season.

With the conclusion of Friday's events, the Mystics have officially closed the book on their 2025-26 NAIA season across all sports. No longer the new kids on the block in the Frontier Conference, they'll look to continue making waves in year two just as they have in year one, overcoming the jump from the NJCAA. As a school, they finish year one in the Frontier Conference in seventh place in the George R. Bandy Memorial All-Sports Award final standings.


RESULTS: 

• Wednesday, May 20
  • Women's Long Jump
    • Alexia Anderson - 17th Place (5.53m)
    • Kennedy Harter - 20th Place (5.41m)
  • Women's 4x100-Meter Relay - Aisha Zaffino, Priviledge Bower, Aliya Schock & Alexia Anderson
    • 21st Place (47.11)
  • Women's 200-Meter Dash
    • Priviledge Bower - 11th Place (24.21)
• Thursday, May 21
  • Women's 100-Meter Dash
    • Priviledge Bower - 14th Place (11.95)
  • Men's 400-Meter Dash (Prelims)
    • Nathan Mathern - QUALIFIED FOR FINALS (47.08)
    • Cayden Kraft - 11th Place (47.25)
  • Women's Triple Jump
    • Kennedy Harter - 12th Place (11.67m)
  • Women's 4x400-Meter Relay (Prelims) - Aisha Zaffino, Aliya Schock, Brooklyn Fuller & Tsitsi Karanda
    • 19th Place (3:55.43)
  • Men's 4x400-Meter Relay (Prelims) - Nathan Mathern, Xavier Bell, Timol Walters & Cayden Kraft
    • 24th Place (3:17.32)
• Friday, May 22
  • Women's Discus
    • Jasmine Nash - 20th Place (36.07m)
  • Men's 400-Meter Dash (Finals)
    • Nathan Mathern - 6th Place (47.78)