UW-Oshkosh To Host NCAA Cross Country Championships

North Central College (Ill.) is back to defend its men’s title and Johns Hopkins University (Md.) seeks its record-tying fourth consecutive women’s crown at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships to be hosted Saturday (Nov. 21) by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh at the Lake Breeze Golf Club in Winneconne.

The 36th edition of the women’s 6,000-meter race begins at 11 a.m. (CST), while the 43rd version of the men’s 8,000-meter competition commences at 12 p.m. (CST). The awards ceremony will take place at 1:45 p.m. (CST) in University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh's Kolf Sports Center.

Admission of $5 per person (children under five are free) will be charged at Winneconne High School (100 Wolf Run, Winneconne 54986) for the use of the shuttle service. No parking will be available at the Lake Breeze Golf Club (6333 Ball Prairie Road, Winneconne, 54986).

The women’s race will be comprised of 280 runners from 81 institutions. The men’s event features 280 competitors from 79 institutions.

Last season, North Central College claimed its fourth men’s championship in six years and division-leading 16th overall when it bested the 32-team field with 130 points. St. Olaf College (Minn.) was the runner-up with 143 points. The Cardinals, who qualified automatically by finishing second at the Midwest Regional, also won titles in 1975-76, 1978-79, 1981-82, 1987, 1992-93, 1997-99, 2009 and 2011-12.

Johns Hopkins University won its third consecutive women’s title convincingly, scoring 87 points to runner-up Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s 112. The Blue Jays, who gained automatic entry into this year’s national meet by winning the Mideast Regional, secured the 2013 championship by 52 points over second-place finisher Williams College (Mass.) and the 2012 crown by 63 points over Wartburg College (Iowa). With a win today, Johns Hopkins University would match the women’s record of four straight championships accomplished by State University of New York at Cortland from 1992-95.

A total of 19 institutions are represented at this year’s championship by both their men’s and women’s programs, including three schools that won both men’s and women’s regional titles. Emory University (Ga.) swept the South/Southeast Region races to join double winners State University of New York at Geneseo in the Atlantic Region and Williams College in the New England Region.

The top four teams from last year’s men’s championship are back, including third-place University of Wisconsin-La Crosse and fourth-place Washington University (Mo.).

The men’s teams qualifying automatically for the championship also include regional winners Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges (Calif.) from the West Region, St. Olaf College from the Central Region, University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire from the Midwest Region and Wabash College (Ind.) from the Great Lakes Region.

Men’s squads earning automatic berths by finishing second at the regional also include Allegheny College (Pa.) from the Great Lakes Region, Amherst College (Mass.) from the New England Region, Central College (Iowa) from the Central Region, Christopher Newport University (Va.) from the South/Southeast Region, Elizabethtown College (Pa.) from the Mideast Region, Pomona-Pitzer Colleges (Calif.) from the West Region, and St. Lawrence University (N.Y.) from the Atlantic Region.

The top five men’s teams in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) poll are all vying for the championship. Second-ranked Williams College, third-ranked North Central College, fourth-ranked Amherst College and fifth ranked St. Olaf College follow top-ranked University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

Winning individual men’s regional titles this season were Geno Arthur from Oberlin College (Ohio) in the Great Lakes Region, Cole Decker from Central College in the Central Region, Isaac Garcia-Cassani from State University of New York at Geneseo in the Atlantic Region, Mohamed Hussein from Amherst College in the New England Region, Ian LaMere from University of Wisconsin-Platteville in the Midwest Region, Charlie Marquardt from Haverford College (Pa.) in the Mideast Region, Lukas Mees from Emory University in the South/Southeast Region and Tyler Shipley from University of Puget Sound (Wash.) in the West Region.

University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire’s Josh Thorson leads the returning runners with a third-place showing last year. Also back are last year’s fifth-place finisher LaMere, ninth-place Jake Campbell from St. Olaf College and 10th-place Ryan Mugan from University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire.

The top six teams from the 2014 women’s championship return, including third-place St. Lawrence University, fourth-place Washington University, fifth-place State University of New York at Geneseo and sixth-place Middlebury College (Vt.).

The women’s teams qualifying automatically for the championship also include regional winners Hope College (Mich.) from the Great Lakes Region, University of St. Thomas (Minn.) from the Central Region, Washington University from the Midwest Region and Willamette University (Ore.) from the West Region.

Women’s teams earning automatic berths by finishing second at the regional are Calvin College (Mich.) from the Great Lakes Region, Carleton College (Minn.) from the Central Region, Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges from the West Region, Dickinson College (Pa.) from the Mideast Region, Rhodes College (Tenn.) from the South/Southeast Region, State University of New York at Oneonta from the Atlantic Region, Tufts University (Mass.) from the New England Region, and University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh from the Midwest Region.

The top five women’s teams in the USTFCCCA poll are top-ranked Johns Hopkins University, second-ranked Williams College, third-ranked Washington University, fourth-ranked Tufts University and fifth-ranked Middlebury College.

Winning individual women’s regional titles this season were Maryann Gong from Massachusetts Institute of Technology in the New England Region, Megan Kellogg from St. Lawrence University in the Atlantic Region, Sophia Meehan from Johns Hopkins University in the Mideast Region, Lucy Ramquist from University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire in the Midwest Region, Ruth Steinke from Carleton College in the Central Region, Lauren Strohbehn from Calvin College in the Great Lakes Region, Elise Viox from Emory University in the South/Southeast Region, and Maya Weigel from Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in the West Region.

The top returning runner from last year’s championship is Steinke, the fourth-place finisher. Also back are sixth-place Meehan and seventh-place Kimber Meyer from Macalester College (Minn.).

The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh is serving as host of the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships for the third time (1999 & 2011). Hanover College (Ind.) has also hosted the event three times (2003, 2008, 2013), while Augustana College (Ill.) has hosted a division-leading five times (1978-79, 1989, 1996, 2001).

The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh – men’s titlists in 1988-90 and 2002, and women’s winners in 1987-88, 1991 and 1996 – are aiming to become the first host school to finish in the top two in either the men’s or women’s race.

The University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh women will be making their 26th appearance at the NCAA Division III Championship, while the Titan men qualified for the 23rd time.

Competing for the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh women are Danica Harrison, Hannah Kuenzi, Kristen Linzmeier, Erica Munyan, Leah Rendflesh, Isabella Tremonti and Kylee Verhasselt. Harrison is the only Titan with prior experience at the championship, finishing 242nd in 2012.

Running for the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh men will be Jordan Carpenter, Charlend Howard, Wal Khat, Roberto Lara, Brian McKnight, Tyler Miletti and Joe Zack. Carpenter placed 45th at last year's championship after finishing 108th in 2013 and 264th in 2011.

For more information about the 2015 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships, visit the websites of the NCAA and the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Fans can access live video of the championships through NCAA.com.