2023 Cross Country All-MVC Honorable Mention

2023 (Cross Country): Placed third overall and second among those who counted toward the team scoring in the 6K with a time of 18:04.6 at the Valparaiso Winrow Open on Sept. 1 despite racing against a competitive field that included instate foes Notre Dame and Purdue... Named the MVC Runner of the Week on Sept. 6, becoming the first Valpo runner to earn that award since the department joined the Missouri Valley Conference prior to the 2017 season. He was the first Valpo student-athlete to earn a conference weekly honor in cross country since 2014... Led the team with an 8K time of 24:45.1 at the Redbird Invite on Sept. 15... Finished 28^th in a competitive field of 130 runners, besting upward of 100 competitors including numerous from power-five institutions on Sept. 29 with a team-best five-mile time of 25:02.5 at Notre Dame’s Joe Piane Invitational... Finished sixth of 232 at the Bradley Pink Classic on Oct. 13, breaking the 8K program record that had stood since 2018 by finishing in 24:22.90 despite rainy and muddy conditions... Placed 13^th in the 8K at the MVC Championship on Oct. 27, earning All-MVC Honorable Mention with his time of 25:06.7... Finished the season by breaking the program record in the 10K at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on Nov. 10, stopping the clock in 31:13.1.

2023 (Track & Field): Shattered the program record in the indoor 5,000 with a time of 14:38.04… Posted an indoor 3,000 time of 8:27.44 that ranks fifth in program history… Turned in an outdoor 10,000 of 30:48.08 that ranks second in program lore.

2022 (Cross Country): Finished second on the team with an 18:50.4 at the Valparaiso Winrow Open on Sept. 2... Clocked a team-best 25:23.47 in the 8K on Sept. 16 at the Spartan Invite... Led the team with a five-mile time of 25:12.0 at the Joe Piane – Notre Dame Invitational on Sept. 30... Turned in an 8K time of 25:00.2 at the Bradley Pink Classic on Oct. 14, a mark that ranked seventh in program history... Led the team in the Oct. 28 MVC Championship with an 8K of 25:14.0... Closed the season with a 10K time of 32:19.2 on Nov. 11 at the NCAA Regional, the fifth-best 10K showing in program history.

2022 (Track & Field): Had the team’s best indoor mile time of the season at 4:18.76... Also owned the team’s top mark in the outdoor 5,000 at 14:56.88... His PR in the indoor mile came at the GVSU Bill Clinger Classic, while his 5,000 PR occurred at the MVC Outdoor Championships... Also clocked a personal record in the 800 of 2:01.19 at the Illini Invitational.

2021 (Cross Country): Turned in a 19:36.4 in the 6K at the Sept. 3 Valparaiso Winrow Open... Finished the 8K in 26:01.6 at the Illinois State Invite on Sept. 17... Was third on the team at 26:49.8 in the Notre Dame – Joe Piane Invitational on Oct. 1... Clocked in at 26:46.2 in the 8K at the Oct. 15 Bradley Pink Classic... Turned in an 8K time of 26:42.1 at the MVC Championship on Oct. 29... Had a 10K time of 33:51.6 at the NCAA Great Lakes Regional on Nov. 12, placing third on the team.

2021 (Track & Field): Ran the indoor mile on Jan. 29 and had Valpo’s second-best time of the season at 4:24.88… Turned in an 8:44.94 on Feb. 13 in the indoor 3000 at the GVSU Big Meet… Had a season-best 3:59.38 in the outdoor 1500 on May 14 at the MVC Championship… Raced in the outdoor 5000 on April 16 at the Gibson Invitational and finished in 15:06.45… Member of MVC Academic Honor Roll.

2020-21 (Cross Country): Raced in the MVC Championship on March 3 at Evansville and ranked third on the team (first among freshmen) with a time of 26:23.2.

Prep (Athletics): A sectional champion and three-time semistate qualifier in cross country… Earned all-conference honors three times and advanced to regional competition in all four seasons… Also a track state qualifier.

Prep (Academics/Extra Curricular): Graduated with a 4.03 grade point average… Was a member of National Honor Society and was on the honor roll… Was also an International Baccalaureate candidate, earned the Eric Wedge Leadership Award and was a member of Hoosier Boys.

Personal: He and his father once rode their bikes from Fort Wayne to Los Angeles… Hobbies include cycling and playing basketball… Majoring in biochemistry… Son of Chris and Julie Walda… Has one sister, Lauren.