McKenna Named NACDA Scholarship Finalist

Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun), a member of the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country and track and field teams, has been named one of 40 finalists for the 10th annual NACDA Directors' Cup Postgraduate Scholarship Awards by the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics (NACDA).

There are 10 finalists each from the NCAA Division I, Division II, Division III and the NAIA. They will now be reviewed by the Finalist Committees, which will select the final winner per division (four total) who will each receive a $5,000 scholarship to be used toward postgraduate studies. In addition, a second $5,000 scholarship per division will be awarded to a student from each of the four institutions (one per division) that win the 2002-03 NACDA Directors' Cup trophies. The winners will be announced at the end of April.

Student-athletes are eligible for these prestigious scholarships. Students are required to have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 (on a 4.0 scale); have demonstrated leadership abilities within the institution or community; have been awarded athletics honors, along the lines of all-conference or all-America, in the varsity sport in which the student-athlete is nominated; and be in their final year of athletics eligibility.

McKenna is majoring in secondary education and Spanish with a minor in history and carries a 3.96 grade point average. He was named to the 2002 Verizon Academic All-America Men's Track and Field/Cross Country Second Team as well as the Cross Country Coaches Association Academic All-America Team in 2001 and 2000. McKenna is a three-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll and has made the Dean's List every semester at UW-Oshkosh, while maintaining a 4.00 grade point average in five semesters.

McKenna, a team captain this year, placed 13th at the 2002 WIAC Championship to earn All-WIAC Second Team accolades and help the Titans claim the league title. He earned All-Midwest Region honors last year after placing 12th in the regional competition. McKenna has been a member of the UW-Oshkosh squads that placed third and sixth at the NCAA Division III Championship in 2000 and 2001, respectively.

McKenna is a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Board at UW-Oshkosh as well as the University Scholars Program. He is also a graduate of the university's Leadership Program. Last fall, he was named as one of two WIAC Max Sparger Scholar-Athlete Award winners.

Other finalists for Division III were Jesse Harris of Simpson College (Iowa), Lisa Havas of St. John Fisher College (N.Y.), Christeen Hodge of Randolph-Macon College (Va.), Titus Martin of La Grange College (Ga.), Brandon Roberts of Washington University (Mo.), Laura Rosenberger of Eastern Mennonite University (Va.), Rebecca Rotello of Washington University (Mo.), Benjamin Tuck of the University of the South (Tenn.) and Megan Woodruff of Wilmington College (Ohio).

Members of the NACDA Directors' Cup Committee were responsible for selecting the finalists. The list of committee members can be found on NACDA's Web site at www.nacda.com.

Titans Crowned NCAA Champion

Recording the eighth-lowest score in the 32-year history of the event, the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team easily won the NCAA Division III Championship held Saturday (Nov. 23) in Northfield, Minn. The national title was the fourth for UW-Oshkosh, which previously claimed NCAA Division III championships in 1988 (66 points), 1989 (55 points) and 1990 (87 points). UW-Oshkosh entered the meet as the top-ranked team in the country, and proved the pollsters right by finishing first with a score of 66 points. The Titans, who finished sixth a year ago and third in 2000, had a comfortable 56-point margin over second-place Calvin College (Mich.). The Knights counted 122 points to finish second for the second straight year. North Central College (Ill.) placed third in the 24-team meet with 146 points, while Nebraska Wesleyan University finished fourth with 178 points and Willamette University (Ore.) fifth with 190. The top-10 teams were rounded out by sixth-place UW-La Crosse with 231 points, seventh-place Williams College (Mass.) with 256 points, eighth-place Bowdoin College (Maine) with 267 points, ninth-place The College of New Jersey with 289 points and 10th-place Wartburg College (Iowa) with 302. UW-Oshkosh, which was competing at the NCAA Division III Championship for the 14th time in 15 years, had all five of its scorers place in the top-45 individual finishes. David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) led UW-Oshkosh by finishing fifth with a time of 25:22 on the 8,000-meter terrain, while his teammates Nick Boehlke (So. • Eagle River) and Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) placed seventh in 25:26 and 25th in 25:40, respectively. The Titans' scoring also featured Phil Keskinen (Sr. • Oshkosh) finishing 27th with a time of 25:41 and Pat Seger (Jr. • Oshkosh) 45th in 25:55. UW-Oshkosh was the only team to have two runners in the top-seven individual finishes. Other competitors for UW-Oshkosh at this year's national meet were Matt Groose (Jr. • Watertown) and Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha). Groose finished 59th with a time of 26:01, while Fast placed 122nd in 26:36. Ryan Bak of Trinity College (Conn.) was the individual champion, posting a winning time of 25:01. A total of 213 runners completed the race. UW-Oshkosh head coach John Zupanc was named the NCAA Division III Coach of the Year.

Titans Win NCAA Regional Title

The UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team will compete at the NCAA Division III Championship for the 14th time in 15 years and 15th overall following a stirring performance at the Midwest Regional held Saturday (Nov. 16) in Peoria, Ill. UW-Oshkosh won the 33-team event with 51 points, while North Central College (Ill.) finished second with 81 points, UW-Stevens Point third with 91, UW-La Crosse fourth with 102 and UW-Platteville fifth with 124. The top-four teams in the Midwest Regional standings will join qualifiers from seven other regions at next Saturday's (Nov. 23) NCAA Division III Championship in Northfield, Minn. UW-Oshkosh, which counted only 13 more points than it did in winning the nine-team WIAC Championship on November 2, had all five of its scorers at the Midwest Regional place among the top-20 individual finishes. David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) led the Titans by finishing fourth with a time of 24:50, while his teammates Nick Boehlke (So. • Eagle River) and Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) placed sixth in 24:55 and seventh in 24:59, respectively. UW-Platteville's Ryan Kleimenhagen won the 8,000-meter race with a time of 24:28. UW-Oshkosh's scoring was completed by Phil Keskinen's (Sr. • Oshkosh) 14th-place time of 25:05 and Matt Groose's (Jr. • Watertown) 20th-place time of 25:11. Also running at the Midwest Regional for UW-Oshkosh, the top-ranked team in the NCAA Division III, were 25th-place Pat Seger (Jr. • Oshkosh) and 30th-place Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha). A total of 240 runners finished the race. UW-Oshkosh, which claimed NCAA Division III championships in 1988, 1989 and 1990, finished sixth in the country last year and third in 2000. UW-Oshkosh head coach John Zupanc was named the NCAA Division III Midwest Region Co-Coach of the Year, sharing the honor with Rick Witt of UW-Stevens Point.

Titans Win Eighth WIAC Championship

Placing all five of its scorers in the top-13 individual finishes, the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team won the WIAC Championship held Saturday (Nov. 2) at Memorial Park in Platteville. The league title was the second for the Titans in the past three seasons and eighth overall. Previously, UW-Oshkosh claimed WIAC championships in 1966, 1967, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995 and 2000. UW-Oshkosh totaled 38 points to capture the 2002 WIAC title, while defending champion UW-La Crosse finished second with 48 points. The remaining standings had UW-Platteville finish third with 59 points, UW-Stevens Point fourth with 75, UW-Whitewater fifth with 136, UW-Eau Claire sixth with 178, UW-Stout seventh with 240, UW-Superior eighth with 244 and UW-River Falls ninth with 273. UW-Platteville's Ryan Kleimenhagen won the individual title with an 8,000-meter time of 25:33, becoming the third Pioneer to win the league's individual crown. UW-La Crosse's Dan Sutton finished second with a time of 25:39, while UW-Oshkosh's Pat Seger (Jr. • Oshkosh) and Nick Boehlke (So. • Eagle River) finished third and fourth, respectively, with identical times of 25:46. UW-La Crosse's Nick Madsen finished fifth with a time of 25:49. UW-Oshkosh's team scoring was concluded by David Cisewski's (Jr. • Stevens Point) sixth-place time of 25:50, Matt Groose's (Jr. • Watertown) 12th-place time of 26:15 and Eamon McKenna's (Sr. • Ashippun) 13th-place time of 26:16. Other UW-Oshkosh competitors at the WIAC Championship were 18th-place Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha), 28th-place Kirk DeWindt (So. • Green Bay), 53rd-place Phil Keskinen (Sr. • Oshkosh), 58th-place Paul Otteson (So. • Hudson), 59th-place Sean Meehan (So. • Franklin) and 65th-place Mike Wehrley (Jr. • Verona). UW-Oshkosh head coach John Zupanc was named the WIAC's Coach of the Year, while UW-La Crosse's Sutton and UW-Oshkosh's McKenna were named the WIAC Max Sparger Co-Scholar-Athletes. Zupanc was also named WIAC Coach of the Year in 1984, 1987, 1988, 1989 and 1990.

McKenna Named WIAC Scholar-Athlete

UW-Oshkosh's Eamon McKenna and UW-La Crosse's Dan Sutton have been named 2002 WIAC Max Sparger Men's Cross Country Co-Scholar-Athletes.

McKenna, a senior from Ashippun, Wis. (Oconomowoc High School), is majoring in secondary education and Spanish with a minor in history and carries a 3.96 grade point average. He was named to the 2002 Verizon Academic All-America Men's Track and Field/Cross Country Second Team as well as the Cross Country Coaches Association Academic All-America Team in 2001 and 2000. McKenna is a three-time member of the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll and has made the Dean's List every semester at UW-Oshkosh, while maintaining a 4.00 grade point average in five semesters.

McKenna, a team captain this year, placed 13th at the 2002 WIAC Championship to earn All-WIAC Second Team accolades and help the Titans claim the league title. He earned All-Midwest Region honors last year after placing 12th in the regional competition. McKenna has been a member of the UW-Oshkosh squads that placed third and sixth at the NCAA Division III Championship in 2000 and 2001, respectively.

McKenna is a member of the Student-Athlete Advisory Board at UW-Oshkosh as well as the University Scholars Program. He is also a graduate of the university's Leadership Program.

McKenna becomes the sixth men's cross country student-athlete from UW-Oshkosh to win the conference award, joining Jon Peterson (2001), Dan Kramer (1995), Dave Lambert (1990 and 1991), Jamie Pollard (1986) and Bill Niederberger (1985).

Sutton, a senior from West Bend, Wis. (East High School), is a physics major with a minor in mathematics, earning a 3.63 grade point average. He has received the Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium Scholarship and Research Grant, the UW-L International Undergraduate Research Grant and Council of Undergraduate Research Grant during his coursework at UW-La Crosse. Sutton is a member of the Dean's List at UW-La Crosse and the WIAC Scholastic Honor Roll.

Sutton, a two-time team captain, placed second individually at the WIAC Championship last weekend to earn All-WIAC First Team honors and led the Eagles to a second-place finish. He placed fourth at the 2002 league meet and also earned All-America honors that season with a 26th-place finish at the national meet. Sutton is a three-time All-Midwest Region selection placing 28th last season, ninth in 2000 and 33rd in 1999.

Sutton serves as the Vice President of the Society of Physics Students and also works as a computer lab consultant at UW-La Crosse.

Sutton becomes the sixth men's cross country student-athlete from UW-La Crosse to claim the league award, joining Jason Karls (1998), Dan Murphy (1996 and 1995), Bob Jacobs (1993), Brad Bayer (1992) and Jim Batchelor (1987).

The WIAC Scholar-Athlete Award is sponsored by Culver's. In order to be nominated for the scholar-athlete award, a student-athlete must have a minimum 3.25 grade point average, be in their last year of competition, or on schedule to graduate this academic year, and have competed for a minimum of two years.

Titans Dominate Dual Meet With Pointers

With both squads resting their top runners in preparation for the upcoming WIAC Championship, the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team still managed to sweep the top-six individual finishes in a non-scoring dual meet with UW-Stevens Point on Friday (Oct. 25) at the Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winneconne.

Kirk DeWindt (So. • Green Bay) of UW-Oshkosh led the field of 32 runners by completing the 8,000-meter course in a time of 26:30. The Titans then took the next five places as Matt Berndt (So. • Grafton) finished second in a time of 26:44, Drew Petkus (Fr. • Antioch, Ill.) third in 26:46, Mike Wehrley (Jr. • Verona) fourth in 26:47, Sean Meehan (So. • Franklin) fifth in 26:53 and Brandon Lesky (Fr. • Cudahy) sixth in 27:01. The top UW-Stevens Point finisher was ninth-place Justin Andrews.

UW-Oshkosh, ranked third in the NCAA Division III, enters next Saturday's (Nov. 2) WIAC Championship in Platteville as a seven-time league champion. The Titans, who finished second to UW-La Crosse a year ago, won WIAC championships in 1966, 1967, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1995 and 2000.

Titans Finish Fourth At Jim Drews Invitational

The UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team failed to run on all cylinders and the result was a fourth-place finish at the Jim Drews Invitational held Saturday (Oct. 19) in West Salem.

Nationally-ranked NCAA Division I squads University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin dominated the 25-team field by finishing one-two with 30 and 62 points, respectively. The University of Minnesota entered the event ranked 13th in the country and the University of Wisconsin 10th.

Finishing behind the Gophers and the Badgers were seven consecutive nationally-ranked NCAA Division III teams, including WIAC rivals UW-Oshkosh and UW-La Crosse. Fourth-ranked UW-La Crosse finished third with 106 points, while top-ranked UW-Oshkosh finished fourth with 123 points and eighth-ranked Nebraska Wesleyan University fifth with 150.

Matt Groose (Jr. • Watertown) led UW-Oshkosh by finishing 17th with an 8,000-meter time of 25:33, while teammates Pat Seger (Jr. • Oshkosh) finished 21st in 25:36 and Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha) 25th in 25:38. The Titans' scoring ended with Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) finishing 34th and Nick Boehlke (So. • Eagle River) finishing 39th. Andrew Carlson of the University of Minnesota took individual honors in the 373-participant field with a time of 24:28.

Without Top Runners, Titans Place Second At Invite

Competing without nine runners who participated at the Notre Dame Invitational on Friday (Oct. 4), the remaining members of the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team still finished second at the UW-Platteville Invitational held Saturday (Oct. 5) in Platteville.

UW-La Crosse took nine of the top-14 individual places to win the seven-team meet with 29 points, while UW-Oshkosh finished second with 69 points and UW-Platteville third with 78. The remaining team rankings saw UW-Stevens Point finish fourth with 149 points, UW-Whitewater fifth with 163, Beloit College sixth with 195 and Lawrence University seventh with 217.

Mike Wehrley (Jr. • Verona) paced UW-Oshkosh by finishing 11th with an 8,000-meter time of 27:36. The Titans also packed six runners from places 15 through 22 with Brandon Burnett (Fr. • Beaver Dam) finishing 15th with a time of 27:46, Sean Meehan (So. • Franklin) 16th in 27:47, Brandon Lesky (Fr. • Cudahy) 17th in 27:50, Kris Borchardt (Jr. • Edgar) 19th in 27:53, Jesse Sanchez (Fr. • Lake Geneva) 21st in 27:55 and Derek O'Connell (So. • Hartland) 22nd in 27:57.

P.J. Lantzy of UW-La Crosse won the individual title in a time of 26:49.

Titans Run Well Against Strong Notre Dame Invite Field

Each year, one of the biggest highlights on the schedule for the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team is an appearance at the prestigious Notre Dame Invitational in South Bend, Ind. Friday (Oct. 4), with the top NCAA Division III ranking on its current resume, UW-Oshkosh returned to the familiar event and finished eighth in a field dominated by NCAA Division I teams.

Stanford University (Calif.) won the 21-team meet with 33 points, while the University of Michigan finished second with 80 points, the University of Notre Dame third with 118, Utah State University fourth with 137 and the University of Washington fifth with 150. All five schools are NCAA Division I members, with Stanford University currently ranked first nationally, University of Michigan 23rd and the University of Washington 26th.

UW-Oshkosh scored 275 points for its eighth-place finish, solidifying its position as the top-ranked NCAA Division III team in the country. The Titans finished ahead of 12th-place North Central College (Ill.) and 17th-place Calvin College (Mich.), currently the second and fifth-ranked teams in the NCAA Division III, respectively.

Individually, David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) led UW-Oshkosh by finishing 30th with an 8,000-meter time of 25:23. The Titans' scoring also had Nick Boehlke (So. • Eagle River) finish 48th with a time of 25:38, Matt Groose (Jr. • Watertown) 52nd in 25:43, Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) 65th in 25:55 and Pat Seger (Jr. • Oshkosh) 89th in 26:12. With the exception of Stanford University, Cisewski and Boehlke would have scored for any school represented at the meet. Ryan Hall of Stanford University won the race of 174 runners with a time of 24:10.

Titans Easily Outdistance Field At 32-Team Invite

The UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team registered its second lofty performance in as many meets when it won the Midwest Collegiate Championship held Saturday (Sept. 21) in Kenosha.

UW-Oshkosh, which won its own six-team invitational by 22 points last Friday (Sept. 13), scored 43 points at the Midwest Collegiate Championship to easily outdistance its 31 competitors. Calvin College (Mich.) finished second to the Titans with 86 points, while UW-La Crosse finished third with 95, Kenyon College (Ohio) fourth with 134 and Wayne State University (Mich.) fifth with 136. UW-Oshkosh entered the event ranked second in the NCAA Division III, while Calvin College, the 2000 national champion, was eighth and UW-La Crosse, the 2001 national champion, 10th.

UW-Oshkosh dominated the top individual rankings by placing all five of its scorers in the top-17 finishes. David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point), who was competing in his second meet for UW-Oshkosh after transferring from UW-La Crosse last fall, led the Titans by finishing third with an 8,000-meter time of 25:44. Sergio Reyes of Cedarville University (Ohio) won the race with a time of 25:21.

Scoring for the Titans was rounded out by Nick Boehlke's (So. • Eagle River) 10th-place time of 26:03, Pat Seger's (Jr. • Oshkosh) 11th-place time of 26:13, Eamon McKenna's (Sr. • Ashippun) 14th-place time of 26:16 and Phil Keskinen's (Sr. • Oshkosh) 17th-place time of 26:19. UW-Oshkosh also received a 28th-place (26:35) finish from Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha) and a 45th-place (26:59) from Paul Otteson (So. • Hudson). In all, 364 runners finished the race.

Titans Impressive In Season Debut

With all five scorers in the top-seven overall finishes, the UW-Oshkosh men's cross country team opened its 2002 season in striking fashion by winning its own invitational held Friday (Sept. 13) at the Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winneconne.

UW-Oshkosh, ranked third in the NCAA Division III, won the six-team meet with 18 points, while UW-Stevens Point, ranked 23rd in the NCAA Division III, finished second with 40 points. UW-Eau Claire placed third in the event with 82 points.

UW-Oshkosh's Nick Boehlke (So. • Eagle River) won the 8,000-meter race with a time of 24:57, finishing ahead of teammates Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) and Paul Brown (So. • West Allis), who finished second and third with times of 25:15 and 25:22, respectively. The Titans also received scoring from Jason Fast's (Jr. • Menasha) fifth-place time of 25:27 and Pat Seger's (Jr. • Oshkosh) seventh-place time of 25:35.

Concluding UW-Oshkosh's finishes in the overall top-25 were 11th-place Matt Groose (Jr. • Watertown), 14th-place Phil Keskinen (Sr. • Oshkosh), 17th-place Paul Otteson (So. • Hudson), 18th-place John LeRoy (Jr. • Oshkosh) and 23rd-place Kirk DeWindt (So. • Green Bay).