Folkestad, Goss And Hayes Earn All-Region Honors

MOORHEAD, Minn. (5/21/26)---Cooper Folkestad (Sr., Wadena, Minn./Wadena-Deer Creek HS), Tyler Goss (Jr. Devils Lake, N.D.) and Eli Hayes (Jr., Fargo, N.D./Fargo Davies HS) all earned United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) North All-Region honors.

The trio of Cobber athletes received the honor by finishing in the Top 8 of the region in a specific event. Folkestad claimed All-Region accolades in the shot put and discus while Goss earned the award in the 3,000-meter steeplechase and Hayes recorded his honor in the javelin.

The Top 8 individuals in each event from each region on the year-end Athletic.net Descending Order Lists earned All-Region distinction, in addition to each member of the region's Top 8 relay teams. The regions used for this award – Great Lakes, Metro, Mid-Atlantic, Mideast, Midwest, Niagara, North, Northeast, South, and West – match those used during the cross country season.  

This is the first season that the Top 8 receives All-Regions honors, prior to 2026 it has always been the Top 5 in each event.

Folkestad continued his dominance in the throwing events by leading the region in the shot put and finishing second in the discus. His top mark in the shot put came at the NDSU Spring Classic when he posted a school-record mark of 63-02.25. Folkestad garnered All-Region honors in the discus when he recorded a distance of 181-03 in Florida at the Embry-Riddle Classic.

It's the second straight year for Folkestad to earn All-Region accolades in both the shot put and discus and he is now a 7-time All-Region award winner and third straight for the outdoor season.

Goss claims his very first All-Region award. He recorded the No.7 mark in the region in the steeplechase when he clocked a 9:02.17 at the UW-La Crosse NCAA Outdoor Qualifier meet.

Hayes walks away with his second All-Region honor in the past three seasons. He earned the also the award in the javelin in 2024, and this season posted the fifth farthest distance in the same event. Hayes' All-Region performance came at the MIAC Outdoor Championship Meet when he came away with a mark of 180-08.  

Past Cobber USTFCCCA Outdoor All-Region Award Winners (started in 2016 (Top 5) and was expanded to Top 8 in 2026)
2025 - Cooper Folkestad (shot put & discus), Brady Goss (3000-meter steeplechase)
2024 - Cooper Folkestad (shot put), Eli Hayes (javelin)
2023 – Cal Wright (400 meters & 200 meters)
2022 – Cal Wright (400 meters)
2021 – Jesse Middendorf (800 meters), Cal Wright (400 meters)
2020 – Jesse Middendorf (800 meters), Cal Wright (400 meters)
2019 – Will Berning (Javelin), Matt Bye (Decathlon & Javelin), Willie Julkes (110-meter hurdles)
2018 – Eli Beachy (Pole Vault), Matt Bye (Decathlon), Patrick Griffin (Javelin)
2017 – Joe Hendrickson (Decathlon), Jackson Schepp (High Jump & Decathlon)
2016 – Jackson Schepp (High Jump)