By Chris Lindeke, Assistant Athletic Director, Strategic Communications and Branding, UW-W
Saturday, November 13, 2021
Warhawk Men Punch Ticket to National Meet; Women 22nd at Regional
The University of Wisconsin-Whitewater men’s and women’s cross country teams competed Saturday at the NCAA North Regional at Whitetail Golf Course in Colfax, Wis.
The Warhawk men topped the 29-team field, edging UW-La Crosse by one team point, to earn the region’s automatic bid to next week’s NCAA Championship. UW-W will compete at the national meet as a team for the first time since 2003.
The Warhawk women placed 22nd out of 32 teams.
Five UW-Whitewater men earned All-North Region honors, including event winner David Fassbender, who posted a season-best time of 24:34.05, and runner-up Christian Patzka, who trailed Fassbender by only four-tenths of a second with his result of 24:34.48, a personal record.
Fassbender is the first regional champion in program history.
Gunner Schlender placed sixth overall in the 219-runner field, crossing the finish line in a career-best 24:44.80. Justin Krause and Kyle Neuroth finished 24th and 25th, respectively, with personal record marks. Krause tallied a 25:03.98, and Neuroth registered a 25:04.36.
Christian Seagren placed 43rd overall with his career-best time of 25:35.99, and Chris Allen completed the race in 27:26.20, good for 137th place.
Ari De La Cerda led the UW-Whitewater women, placing 51st overall out of 226 competitors with her career-best time of 23:24.18. Paige Fassbender finished 75th with her personal-record mark of 23:50.68, and Roxanne Temple crossed the finish line in a career-best 24:03.38, good for 86th place.
Sarah Niehuester and Jill Cavanaugh placed 161st and 164th, respectively. Niehueser recorded a season-best 25:35.91, and Cavanaugh raced to a season-best 25:39.26.
Alyssa Dobbs clocked a season-best time of 26:32.71 to finish 190th, and Samantha Pieper broke her personal record by more than 30 seconds with her result of 26:43.43, good for 196th overall.
The NCAA Division III Championship is slated for next Saturday, Nov. 20, with the men’s 8K beginning at 10 a.m. Central Time at the Tom Sawyer Course in Louisville, Ky. Check back next week for a preview of the event.
