UW-W's Christian Patzka Named National Athlete of the Year; Three are All-America

UW-W’s Christian Patzka Named National Athlete of the Year; Three are All-America

Posted on: November 26, 2024

*Christian Patzka crosses the finish line at the 2024 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in Terra Haute, Indiana (Ryan Coleman, D3photo)*

By Angela Kelm
Asst. Athletic Director for Sports Information

UW-Whitewater’s Christian Patzka has been named the Men’s Cross Country National Athlete of the Year by the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association.

Patzka secured the individual national title at the 2024 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships in Terra Haute, Indiana on Saturday, November 23. The Warhawk phenom traversed the 8k at the LaVern Gibson Championship Cross Country Course in 24:01.6, more than two seconds faster than the rest of the field.

The senior is the first Warhawk to win the national title and the first USTFCCCA Athlete of the Year for cross country in program history.

Over the course of his illustrious career at UW-Whitewater Patzka has accumulated numerous accolades in both cross country and track and field. In cross country, Patzka is a four-time All-WIAC honoree, four-time All-Region selection, four-time All-American, the 2023 WIAC individual champion, a two-time NCAA North Region champion (2022, 2023), a two-time North Region Athlete of the Year (2022, 2023) and the 2022 WIAC Cross Country Athlete of the Year.

On the track, Patzka has stood atop the podium five times earning the national title three times in the 5,000 (2023 and 2024 indoors, 2024 outdoors) and twice in the 3,000 steeplechase (2023, 2024). In total, Patzka holds six individual national titles and is now a 14-time All-American with five honors both indoors and outdoors and four in cross country.

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Schlender, Patzka & Anderson earn All-America for UW-Whitewater men’s cross country

Left to right: All-Americans Gunner Schlender, Christian Patzka and Dan Anderson of the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater pose with their individual plaques and the team’s fourth-place trophy following the 2024 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships on Nov. 23 in Terre Haute, Indiana. (Photo by d3photography.com):

Gunner Schlender, a Physical Education major at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, is one of three members of the Warhawk men’s cross country team who garnered All-America accolades by finishing among the top 40 in the field at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships on Saturday, Nov. 23, in Terre Haute, Indiana.

The Warhawks finished fourth overall with 219 points with three runners in the top 20 for team scoring. The fourth place finish is the highest finish in Warhawk men’s cross country history.

Christian Patzka (Black Earth, Wis./Wisconsin Heights) became the program’s first-ever national champion. The national runner-up in both 2022 and 2023, Patzka crossed the line with a time of 24:01.6. In the last 200 meters, the 2024 North Regional Champion, Augsburg’s Mohammed Bati, led the pack of runners. Patzka made his move to pass on the final stretch, quickly gaining the lead he needed to finish with a national title. Patzka is the first Warhawk Cross Country runner to win the national title.

Gunner Schlender (Brillion, Wis./Brillion) kept pace with Patzka, as they were sitting just a second a part after the 5.6K mark. Schlender finished 12th overall, scoring 10 team points, with a time of 24:22.1.

Both Patzka and Schlender finish their careers as four-time All-Americans in cross country.

Dan Anderson (Eau Claire, Wis./McDonell) was the next Warhawk to cross, finishing 22nd overall with a time of 24:32.9. In the last 1.5K, Anderson jumped up 9 spots to secure 19 team points for the Warhawks and claim his first career All-America medal.