Athletes of the Week & Weekly Report Announced by A-R-C - March 30, 2026

3/30/2026 3:55:00 PM

By: Ali Wilson, A-R-C Assistant Commissioner

CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) announced that Wartburg College track & field student-athlete JoJo Tyynismaa and Loras College track & field student-athlete Isaac Bourne have been named American Rivers Conference Athletes of the Week for the week ending March 29, 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 Outdoor Track & Field - Track Performer of the Week - JoJo Tyynismaa (Tama, Iowa/South Tama), Wartburg College

  • Tyynismaa competed south at the WashU Invite in St. Louis over the weekend. 

  • In the 400m hurdles, she finished with a time of 1:00.24 to finish first out of 27 competitors. She ranks No. 1 in Division III so far this season. 

  • In the 100m hurdles, Tyynismaa crossed the finish line in 14.56 to finish first out of 28 competitors. This time stands No. 8 in Division III this season. 

  • She was part of the Knights 4x100m relay that finished fifth out of 11 competitors and stands 16th in the country this season. 

Male Athlete of the Week - Men's Outdoor Track & Field - Track Performer of the Week - Isaac Bourne (Chagrin Falls, Ohio/Chagrin Falls), Loras College

  • Bourne ran at the WashU Distance Carnival in St. Louis over the weekend. 

  • He finished the 10,000m race with a time of 29:10.94 to finish second out of 97 competitors. 

  • HIs finish broke a 50-year Loras program record by 36 seconds, ranks No. 1 in Division III so far this season, ranks No. 13 all-time in Division III, and broke the all-time A-R-C record.

Baseball - Pitcher of the Week - Charlie Thomas (Omaha, Neb./Gretna), Simpson College

  • Thomas tossed 8.0 scoreless innings in a 5-0 win over Coe, improving to 4-0 on the season. 

  • He struck out a career high 11 batters, while allowing just six hits and one walk. 

  • He gave up just one extra base hit and limited Coe to a .214 batting average. 

Baseball - Position Player of the Week - Brayden Sawyer (Grundy Center, Iowa/Grundy Center), Central College

  • Sawyer led the Dutch with nine hits in four games last week, driving in nine runs and scoring six more. 

  • He had the go-ahead single in both of Central's wins over Wartburg. 

  • He plated two runners in the seventh inning of Central's 5-6 win on Friday. 

  • He broke a ninth inning tie with an RBI single in the ninth inning of a 14-12 win on Saturday.

Men's Golf - Golfer of the Week - Duke Taylor (Waukee, Iowa/Waukee), Wartburg College

  • Taylor finished tied for fifth at the Wartburg Spring Invite. 

  • He fired rounds of 73 and 71 for a total of 144 in gusty, but enjoyable spring golf weather. 

Softball - Pitcher of the Week - Ashlyn Short (Monument, Colo./Palmer Ridge), University of Dubuque

  • Short went 2-0 on the week with two complete seven inning games. 

  • She allowed five hits versus Grinnell, allowing one earned run with four strikeouts on 29 faced batters. 

  • Versus Cornell, she allowed four hits, one earned run, and one strikeout on 31 batters faced. 

Softball - Position Player of the Week - Raven Allen (Birmingham, Ala./McAdory), Luther College

  • Allen went 11-for-20 over the final six games of the Luther spring break trip. 

  • She reached 100 career runs and 150 career hits during this stretch. 

  • She scored seven runs, recorded 11 RBIs, and racked up three walks over the six games. 

Men's Tennis - Performer of the Week - Juan Hernandez-Herrera (Bogota, Columbia/Colegio San Mateo Apostol), Luther College

  • Herrera went 3-0 on the week versus Huntingdon and St. Lawrence. 

  • At No. 2 doubles, he teamed up with Dikshan Chhikara to defeat Huntingdon 6-3. 

  • At No. 3 doubles, he paired up with Geoffrey Stoughton to take down St. Lawrence 6-4. 

  • At No. 2 singles, he defeated St. Lawrence 6-3, 6-1. 

Men's Outdoor Track & Field - Field Performer of the Week - Sam Clements (Elmwood, Neb./Elmwood-Murdock), Nebraska Wesleyan University

  • Clements got quick notice as the outdoor season kicked off.

  • He posted his personal best 17.74m to win the shot put and shatter a 46 year old Nebraska Wesleyan school record. The previous school record had stood since 1980 at 17.29m. 

  • He ranks second in Division III so far this season. 

Women's Outdoor Track & Field - Field Performer of the Week - Caitlyn Cox (Des Moines, Iowa/Valley), Loras College

  • Cox competed at the Central College Invitational over the weekend. 

  • She threw a new personal best, broke her own school record, and ranks No. 1 in Division III this season after posting a mark of 56.44m in the hammer throw. 

  • Additionally, she posted a mark of 12.66m in the shot put to finish fourth out of 32 competitors. 

Weekly Report

Spring sports are here. The Midwest has experienced the warmth of Monday and will experience the rainy, chilly conditions later in the week. Over the weekend, the baseball standings got tight in beautiful weather. Currently, four A-R-C baseball teams sit atop standings at 4-2 (Central, Coe, Univ. of Dubuque, and Loras). 

Championship Central: The A-R-C takes a pause now from conference championships until late April. The full 2025-26 championship calendar can be found here: https://tr.ee/xwew1v

Spring Sport Standings: Baseball | Softball | Men's Tennis

Watch all A-R-C action on the American Rivers Sports Network. 

Don't forget to become a fan of the American Rivers Conference on Facebook @AmericanRiversConference, X (Twitter) @AmerRiversConf, and Instagram @AmericanRiversConference, ??and LinkedIn @AmericanRiversConference

About the American Rivers Conference

Nationally respected for excellence in NCAA Division III athletics, the American Rivers Conference (A-R-C) has a tradition dating back to its founding in 1922 as the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Association and adopted its current name in 2018 to reflect its strong Iowa roots and growing regional footprint. The A-R-C is a collaborative community that champions the holistic development of student-athletes, uniting member institutions in a shared commitment to academic achievement, athletic distinction, and leadership.

The A-R-C is home to nine full-time member institutions: Buena Vista University, Central College, Coe College, University of Dubuque, Loras College, Luther College, Nebraska Wesleyan University, Simpson College, and Wartburg College. Luther College has announced its departure from the conference, effective at the conclusion of the 2025–26 academic year.