2024 WIAC Men’s Cross Country Championship Preview

University of Wisconsin-La Crosse will strive for a seventh consecutive title at the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Men’s Cross Country Championship (presented by Culver’s). The 63rd version of the conference meet will be hosted by UW-Stevens Point at Wisconsin River Golf Club in Stevens Point, Wis., on Nov. 2. The men’s race will begin at 1:00 p.m. and be preceded by the women’s event at noon.
 
UW-La Crosse collected the 38th first-place finish in program history a year ago with 22 points to surpass UW-Whitewater’s second-place total of 41 points. UW-Stout took third with 117 points, UW-Platteville fourth with 123, UW-Oshkosh fifth with 142, UW-Eau Claire sixth with 143, UW-Stevens Point seventh with 147 and UW-River Falls eighth with 260.
 
UW-Oshkosh ranks second behind UW-La Crosse with 10 titles, while UW-Stevens Point has five, UW-Eau Claire and UW-Platteville each have four, and UW-Whitewater two.
 
Four programs are ranked among the finest in NCAA Division III based on Oct. 23 rankings distributed by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association. UW-La Crosse is the top-ranked team, while UW-Whitewater is sixth, UW-Eau Claire 15th and UW-Stevens Point 25th.
 
UW-Whitewater’s Christian Patzka is the reigning individual champion after posting a time of 24:20.5 on last year’s 8,000-meter layout. He finished second at the 2022 championship, after placing fourth in 2021.
 
Additional returning runners that secured All-WIAC recognition at the 2023 championship include: UW-Eau Claire’s Mason Shea (10th); UW-La Crosse’s Grant Matthai (third), Joe Sullivan (sixth), Adam Loenser (seventh), Corey Fairchild (11th), Luke Chaffin (13th), Jayden Zywicki (14th) and Elias Ritzke (17th); UW-Platteville’s Caden Schneider (eighth); UW-Stout’s Calvin Fiala (16th); and UW-Whitewater’s Gunner Schlender (fifth), Dan Anderson (ninth), Chris Allen (15th) and Tucker Johnson (20th).
 
Schlender (fourth), Fairchild (fifth), Matthai (12th), Ritzke (13th), Anderson (16th), Shea (17th) and Chaffin (19th) also collected all-conference honors in 2022, and were joined by UW-La Crosse’s Aidan Matthai (eighth).
 
Schlender (third), Fairchild (16th) and Ritzke (20th) claimed their third all-conference award at the 2021 championship.
 
Additional runners leading their teams this fall include: UW-Oshkosh’s Cameron Cullen; UW-River Falls’ Logan Munson; and UW-Stevens Point’s Logan Murphy.
 
The top seven runners in the 8,000-meter race will receive All-WIAC first team recognition, while runners placing eighth through 14th earn All-WIAC second team accolades. Individuals finishing 15th through 20th claim honorable mention status.
 

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