CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) announced that Central College women’s track & field student-athlete Olivia Bohlen and Luther College men’s track & field student-athlete Owen Ford have been named American Rivers Conference Athletes of the Week for the week ending February 8, 2026. The A-R-C weekly awards are nominated and voted on by the league’s sports information departments. The conference office then selects the female and male athletes of the week based upon sport performers of the week.  Female Athlete of the Week - Women’s Track & Field - Field Performer of the Week - Olivia Bohlen (Belle Plaine, Iowa/Belle Plaine), Central College

• Bohlen broke a 47-year-old school record in the pentathlon as the only Division III entry in the meet hosted by Nebraska. 
• She finished with 3,592 points in the event. 
• She now shares the No. 1 spot in Division III this season. 

Male Athlete of the Week - Men’s Track & Field - Track Performer of the Week - Owen Ford (Eagan, Minn./Eagan), Luther College

• Ford competed at the Luther Invitational on Saturday. 
• He set a new school record, previously had stood since 1992, in the 300m race with a time of 36.40. 
• Additionally, he competed in the 4x400 relay and high jump. 

Men’s Basketball - Performer of the Week - Jackson Bowman (Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Kennedy), Coe College

• Bowman helped the Kohawks to a 2-0 week in conference action. 
• He scored a career-high 35 points at Luther to start the week, shooting 15-of-19 and 4-of-5 from deep.
• He followed with his third double-double of the year, totaling 22 points and 12 boards. 

Women’s Basketball - Performer of the Week - Caydee Kirkham (Carthage, Ill./Illini West), Coe College

• Kirkham continues her dominant season in the A-R-C with two performances that guided the Kohawks to wins over Luther and Loras. 
• She opened the week with her fifth 30-point game of the year against Luther, totaling 31 points, seven rebounds, and four assists. 
• She followed it up with a 20-point effort versus Loras, recording 25 points, eight rebounds, and six assists. 
• She officially passed head coach Kayla Waskow on the career scoring list at Coe, moving into second place all-time with 1,597 points. 

Men’s Tennis - Performer of the Week - Joao Benvenutti (Blumenau, Santa Catarina, Brazil/Colegio Saber), Luther College

• Bevenutti went 5-1 over the weekend in three matches played. His weekend was highlighted by a win over the No. 26 nationally ranked singles player from Wisconsin-Whitewater in a third-set tiebreaker. 
• He went 2-1 at No. 1 singles and 3-0 at No. 1 doubles with Abhay Chhabra as his partner. 

Men’s Track & Field - Field Performer of the Week - Kale Purcell (Holton, Kan./Holton), Central College

• Purcell competed at the Wartburg Indoor Select Meet on Saturday. 
• In triple jump, he finished first out of eight competitors. He finished with a mark of 14.95m.
• Purcell became the first Dutch student-athlete to ever triple jump over 49 feet. He is up to No. 4 in Division III this season. 

Women’s Track & Field - Track Performer of the Week - Ava Parkins (Monmouth, Ill./Burlington Notre Dame), Central College

• Parkins competed on Friday at the Wartburg Indoor Select. 
• Individually, she picked up a win in the 400m dash (56.94) and had the top time in prelims in the 60m dash (7.90). 
• The Dutch 4x400 relay stands atop Division III so far this season after posting a time of 3:49.85. 
• Parkins contributed to two school records for Central over the weekend. 

Men’s Swimming & Diving - Performer of the Week - Kamen Rangelov (Jacksonville, Fla./The Bolles School), Coe College

• Rangelov helped the Kohawks to a season-ending dual victory over Simpson. 
• He picked up three individual wins in the 200 IM, 100 freestyle, and 100 breaststroke. 

Women’s Swimming & Diving - Performer of the Week - Ren Talerico (Madison, Wis./Madison West), Luther College

• Luther defeated Loras 179-40 in a dual meet. 
• Talerico picked up an individual win in the 200 IM (2:18.53). 
• She helped lead the 200 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay teams to victory. 

Men’s Wrestling - Performer of the Week - Charlie Dojan (Mounds View, Wis./Irondale), Wartburg College

• Dojan recorded his 14th technical fall of the season as the nation’s top-ranked 157lb wrestler added to the Knights win over Coe. 
• Dojan completed the technical fall in 2:59. 
• The Knights now have extended its A-R-C winning streak to 49 duals, including 41 straight against the Kohawks. 

Women’s Wrestling - Performer of the Week - Annelise Obermark (Labadie, Mo./Washington), Wartburg College

• Obermark won the Quad Cities D3 Invite for the second straight year. 
• She picked up four technical fall victories and one fall on her way to the title. 
• The Storm finished third as a team. 

Weekly Report
The basketball season is starting to heat up with just a few weeks remaining in the conference slate. On the men’s side, the Prairie Wolves of Nebraska Wesleyan continue to pace the conference with a 12-1 record, and currently have a two-game cushion ahead of Loras. On the women’s side, Coe and Wartburg still continue to lead at the top with 12-1 records. 
 
Loras and Wartburg sit 7-0 in the men’s wrestling standings to lead the way. The two programs will meet on the mat on February 12 in Dubuque, Iowa where the winner will take home the 2025-26 A-R-C Men’s Wrestling regular season title. 
 
The American Rivers Conference nears the 2026 NCAA Division III Men’s Wrestling Championship in Cedar Rapids on March 13-14 at Alliant Energy PowerHouse. Tickets go on sale February 7. More information can be found here about the championship event.
 
Championship Central: The next championship will be cheer & dance on February 15 in Pella, Iowa. The full 2025-26 championship calendar can be found here: https://tr.ee/xwew1v
 
Winter Sport Standings: Men’s Basketball | Women’s Basketball | Men’s Wrestling 
 
Watch all A-R-C action on the American Rivers Sports Network.