Individual Release | Team Release

NEW ORLEANS – The 2026 Saint John's University track and field team and 10 of its student-athletes earned U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) All-Academic recognition on Monday, July 20.

The USTFCCCA All-Academic Team honor is the 18th in a row for SJU, as a total of 78 Johnnies combined for a cumulative team GPA of 3.47. To qualify as an USTFCCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team, all members of the roster must combine for a cumulative GPA of 3.1 or better.

To qualify for the USTFCCCA All-Academic Track and Field Team, the student-athlete must have compiled a cumulative grade point average of 3.30 and have met either of the following athletic standards: he must have qualified for the NCAA Division III Indoor or Outdoor Championships or finished the indoor or outdoor regular season ranked in the national top 50 in an individual event or ranked in the national top 35 (collective listing) in a relay event on the official NCAA POP list provided by TFRRS.org.

The Johnnies recognized were (alphabetically, academic years are for 2025-26):

-Junior Noah Besemann (New Brighton, Minn./Irondale), a biology and environmental studies double-major in the heptathlon; 
-Senior Mitchell Degen (Brainerd, Minn.), a global business leadership major in the javelin;
-Sophomore Anthony Ferrante (Prior Lake, Minn.), an accounting and finance double-major in the 4x100-meter relay;
-Freshman Derek Guth (St. Peter, Minn.), a global business leadership major in the 4x100-meter relay;
-Freshman Aiden Jones (Pierz, Minn.), a nursing major in the 4x100-meter relay;
-Sophomore Grady Minnerath (Cold Spring, Minn./Rocori), an accounting major in the shot put;
-Senior Owen Montreuil (Jordan, Minn.), a finance major as a member of the distance medley relay;
-Junior Cooper Smith (Alvarado, Minn./East Grand Forks), an accounting major in the 400-meter hurdles and as a member of the distance medley relay;
-Senior Nick St. Peter (Maple Grove, Minn.), a data science major as a member of the distance medley relay;
-Junior Cole Stencel (Mapleton, Minn./Maple River), a physics major in the mile run, 1,500 meters, 3,000 meters, 5,000 meters and as a member of the distance medley relay.

SJU track and field finished third out of 11 teams at both the 2026 MIAC Indoor and Outdoor Championships. SJU qualified four athletes at the 2026 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championships and collected a pair of All-America second-team performances: Degen in the javelin (11th) and Stencel in the 1,500 meters (16th). Stencel was SJU's lone indoor national qualifier, where he became the first Johnnie to earn All-America honors in the mile run.