North Park University Athletics

The North Park University Track & Field and Cross Country Experience

NCAA Division III, CCIW Conference

Why Choose Division III?

North Park University athletics is part of the NCAA Division III. At this level there are no athletic scholarships as exist in NCAA Division I and II. However, student athletes typically earn academic and service scholarships and qualify for other sources of financial aid to help offset the cost of their education at North Park. The full cost of education at North Park is 25% less than similar institutions in the Midwest.

North Park University is a member of the Collegiate Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW), regarded as one of, if not the, preeminent conference in all of NCAA Division III. In track and field, and cross country in particular, the CCIW has accounted for 25 national team championships and over 50 individual national champions. In 2011, North Park’s own Lars Tenglin finished 2nd in the javelin at the NCAA National Championships. In addition, North Park’s Dave Valentine was an NCAA Champion in the 10000m Run in 1983.

In track and field and cross country, unlike other sports, many top-tier high school stars will turn down lucrative scholarship offers from Division I and II universities to attend a Division III university that is simply a better fit for them - for personal, educational, social, and athletic reasons. Regardless of division, good is good, and in recent years more and more high school student-athletes are realizing that it is not the division of the school that matters but rather the overall experience provided by the school you choose to attend.

At many regular season track and field and cross country meets, schools from all divisions compete against one another, allowing for Division III athletes to compete head to head with athletes from all levels and abilities. For top Division III student-athletes in particular, this multi-level competition allows them the same competitive opportunities afforded the top athletes at the Division I and II levels.

Why North Park?

At North Park University we believe it is important to develop the whole person, and while athletics is an important component of our student-athlete experience, it comes after our emphasis upon academics, service, faith, and personal exploration. Our location in the beautiful Chicago neighborhoods of Albany Park and North Park provides our student-athletes with a unique setting to grow in each of these life-affirming areas.

North Park students, staff, faculty, and alumni are a special group. School pride is immense and there is a true passion for our University that is shared by all. North Park University is a place you will feel welcomed, appreciated, and embraced by everyone you meet. North Park is a place you can call home for your four years of college and, most importantly, for the rest of your life.

Training and Facilities

Our training environment is second to none; in particular for our distance runners. Simply put, our location on the northwest side of the city provides our distance runners with one of the best running environments in not just Chicago, but in the surrounding area and state of Illinois. Immediately outside our doorstep is River/Legion Park, which connects to the 8-mile long grass Northshore Channel trail and park. A one mile run through neighboring Gompers and Eugene Field parks takes our runners to LaBagh Woods and its 10 miles of wooded dirt running trails along the north branch of the Chicago River. Adjacent to LaBagh is the Skokie Line trail which extends for 5 miles into neighboring Lincolnwood, home to miles of impressive tree-lined neighborhoods. Local parks like Horner and Winnemac are a warm-up run away from campus and provide great grass running for workouts like hills, tempos, and fartlek sessions. The true gem for our distance runners is a short 15-minute van ride away: the Lake Michigan lakefront. Extending for 20 miles along the lake, Chicago’s lakefront is home to dirt and crushed limestone trails, wide open grass spaces, the famous Montrose Harbor cross-country course (our home facility), and the most stunning vistas of the Chicago skyline. In combination with River Park Track and the Helwig Indoor Track facility, North Park distance runners have the environment to become one of the premier distance programs in the nation.

Track and field facilities at North Park are excellent and provide our track and field athletes with a training and competition environment rivaling most schools in the Chicago area and beyond. River Park Track is one of the few track and field facilities in Chicago and is our home venue for practices and meets. It features a separate throwing area, complete with a hammer/discus cage, multiple shot put rings, a javelin runway, and a field-turf track interior. Ultra-modern Helwig Recreation Center boasts an indoor throwing ring/cage, pole vault and jumping areas, and a 200m track. Training room and weight room facilities are located mere feet from trackside in Helwig as well as classroom space for team meetings and other functions. Our track and field athletes also benefit from adjacent River/Legion Park for soft-surface running and nearby Horner Park for hill work. It is a rarity in Chicago for a university to have both indoor and outdoor track and field facilities, and North Park University is fortunate to have both of these facilities on campus.

Additional Information about Track and Field, Cross Country at North Park University

Year-Round Commitment

At the college level, track and field and cross country is a year-round sport that requires a great deal of time management. Most importantly, it requires a passion and intense desire to work hard to be the best you can be. Our cross country season begins in late August and runs directly into indoor track and field and on into the outdoor track and field season. Track practice officially begins in October for those not on the cross country team. For those highly successful Vikings who qualify for the NCAA Outdoor National Championships, their season will extend until late May.

Schedule

As with any successful college program, our competition schedule will be pieced together to satisfy the needs of our team, including our top athletes as well as our developing group. We will stay local often, given the tremendous competition in the Chicago area and multitude of meets. We will also travel away from the city to meets against different teams and fresh faces in places like Wisconsin, Indiana, and Missouri. Our top athletes will get the chance to compete in prestigious meets like the Drake Relays and have opportunities to test themselves against the nation's best.

Team Atmosphere

At North Park our emphasis is on the team and nurturing an environment that promotes team chemistry, selflessness, sacrifice, and unity. It is an exciting time to be part of a growing program whose core athlete group is committed to this mission as well as fostering an atmosphere where striving for excellence is expected and cultivated. Team success does begin with individual success as well as the combination of a group of individuals working as one for common goals.

Staff

As the newest members of the Viking family, Head Cross Country Coach Steve Imig and Head Track and Field Coach Geoff Masanet bring a wealth of successful coaching experience and enthusiasm to North Park. Coach Imig has 10 years of championship level coaching at both the high school (St. Charles North and Bartlett High Schools) and college-level (Greenville College). Most recently at St. Charles, Coach Imig led the cross country team to consecutive top 8 team finishes, coached 7 All-State cross country and track & field athletes, and guided the 2008 4 x 800 relay to a state championship and All-American honors.

A noted collegiate middle-distance coach, Coach Masanet has coached collegiately for 16 years, garnering numerous coach of the year honors while coaching as part of 21 conference championship teams. Both coaches want to cultivate the successful family environment they experienced as student-athletes themselves at North Central (Imig) and Eastern Illinois (Masanet). In combination with assistant coaches Dan Probst (throws), a 7-time NCAA National qualifier in the throwing events while at Lewis University; Dominique Jacobs (jumps), a national champion in the long jump; Amanda Lewis (vault), who competed for Ball State University; and Robert Stanley (sprints/hurdles), a former All-American in the hurdles for Frostburg State University, the track and field and cross country staff at North Park is filled with enthusiasm, optimism, and expertise.

Go Vikings!