McKenna Named Academic All-America

Verizon and the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) combined to announce that four UW-Oshkosh student-athletes received Academic All-America accolades during the 2002-03 school year. The UW-Oshkosh mentions represent the third-highest total in school history, with seven Academic All-America awards received during the 1997-98 school year and six in 1996-97.

UW-Oshkosh student-athletes cited for their academic and athletic excellence were Debra Ashenbrenner from women's tennis, Eamon McKenna from men's cross country and track and field, Justin Schneider from football and Elizabeth Woodworth from women's cross country and track and field.

McKenna and Schneider were both first team selections, with McKenna picked to the College Division Men's Cross Country and Track and Field Team and Schneider to the College Division Football Team. Woodworth was a second team selection on the College Division Women's Cross Country and Track and Field Team, while Ashenbrenner was a third team choice on the College Division Women's At-Large Team. The College Division of the Verizon Academic All-America program includes schools affiliated with the NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III or the NAIA.

McKenna, a senior from Ashippun, owns a 3.96 cumulative grade point average as a double major in elementary education and Spanish. Last fall, he placed 25th at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championship to help the Titans to the team title. McKenna also finished 13th at the WIAC Cross Country Championship to lead the Titans to the team title. In track and field, McKenna placed sixth in the 10,000 meter run and eighth in the 5,000 meter run at the NCAA Division III Outdoor Championship. He also was the 5,000 meter run champion at the WIAC Outdoor Championship. A Verizon Academic All-America second team selection a year ago, McKenna was chosen as UW-Oshkosh's top male scholar-athlete for the 2002-03 school year.

Recognized as one of the most prestigious collegiate scholar-athlete award programs in the country, the Verizon Academic All-America program cites student-athletes who have succeeded in their playing venue and in the classroom. Individuals are selected by a vote of the 1,800-member CoSIDA. To be eligible, an athlete must be a varsity starter or key reserve and maintain a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.20 on a scale of 4.00. Since the inception of the Verizon Academic All-America Program in 1952, 29 UW-Oshkosh student-athletes have combined for 38 awards, including four-time honoree Laura Nelson in women's cross country and track and field.

Titans Finish Third At NCAA Outdoor Championship

Led by Chris Jensen's (Jr. • Lake Geneva) first-place effort in the discus, UW-Oshkosh finished third at the NCAA Division III Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship held Thursday through Saturday (May 22-24) in Canton, N.Y.

UW-La Crosse scored 88 points to claim its third straight outdoor title, while Lincoln University (Pa.) finished second with 64 points and UW-Oshkosh third with 44. UW-Oshkosh's 2003 listing was the second best in school history, bettered only by a second-place ranking in 1990. The Titans finished 14th at the meet a year ago.

Rounding out the top-five finishers in the team standings were fourth-place Nebraska Wesleyan University with 37 points and fifth-place UW-Platteville with 25. A total of 71 teams scored points at this year's championship.

Individually, Jensen stole the headlines for the Titans as he became the ninth UW-Oshkosh athlete to win a NCAA Division III outdoor title. The fourth-seeded Jensen won the discus with a school-record toss of 180-3, seven inches better than top-seed and defending champion Mike Turgeon of UW-La Crosse. Jensen was a third-place finisher in the event a year ago.

UW-Oshkosh also gained valuable team points from the second-place efforts of Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) in the decathlon and Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown) in the 800 meter run. The third-seeded Deering scored 6,655 points in the decathlon to finish behind the winning 6,825 points of top-seed Peter Wagner of Central College (Iowa). Groose, who entered the 800 meter run as the top seed and two-time defending champion, led most of the final before being passed down the stretch by fourth-seed Nick Symmonds of Willamette University (Ore.). Symmonds won the race in a time of 1:49.51, while Groose finished in 1:50.13.

UW-Oshkosh's lone third-place finish belonged to Jon Wagner (Jr. • Delafield) in the pole vault. Wagner leaped to a height of 16-0 3/4 to trail the winning vault of 17-6 1/2 by Hans Schmidt of UW-La Crosse and the second-place mark of 17-0 3/4 by Brian DeLoriea of North Central College (Ill.).

The Titans fifth through eighth finishes were dominated by Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) and Jon Zweiger (Jr. • Oshkosh). Zweiger finished fifth in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 14.86 and seventh in the decathlon with 6,378 points, while McKenna placed sixth in the 10,000 meter run with a time of 30:41.82 and eighth in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:37.13. Pierre Chapman of Lincoln University won the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 14.66, while Nick Ricco of The College of New Jersey won the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:23.47 and Cory Stelljes of UW-Platteville the 10,000 meter run with a time of 30:09.44.

UW-Oshkosh also finished seventh in the 400 meter relay as Jeff Ehrike (Jr. • Stratford), Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe), Brian Pludeman (Sr. • Ashwaubenon) and Dan Kelm (Sr. • Ripon) ran to a time of 41.63. Nebraska Wesleyan University won the event with a time of 40.56.

UW-Oshkosh sent a school-record 16 athletes to the 2003 NCAA Division III Outdoor Championship and returned home with 10 All-Americans. Other competitors for the Titans in New York were David Cisewski (So. • Stevens Point) in the 5,000 meter run and 10,000 meter run, Nick Boehlke (So. • Three Lakes) in the 10,000 meter run, Dahmen in the 110 meter hurdles, John LeRoy (So. • Oshkosh) in the 3,000 meter steeplechase, Curtis Gerrits (So. • Freedom) in the long jump, Tom Roszak (So. • Greenfield) in the high jump and Steve Nowak (Fr. • Casco) in the decathlon.

Titans Finish Second At WIAC Outdoor Championship

Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) won two events and placed second in another as UW-Oshkosh finished second at the WIAC Men's Outdoor Track and Field Championship held Friday and Saturday (May 2-3) in Stevens Point. UW-La Crosse, behind eight individual titles, scored 209.5 points to claim its 28th WIAC outdoor championship in 30 years. UW-Oshkosh finished second with 204 points to make this year's team scoring the closest since UW-Stevens Point and UW-La Crosse tied for the title in 1974. UW-Stevens Point finished third in the 2003 team standings with 139.5 points, while UW-Platteville finished fourth with 111 and UW-Whitewater fifth with 73.5. UW-Oshkosh, which recorded its highest finish at the WIAC Outdoor Championship since 1991, took top honors in seven of the 22 events. Deering won the high jump with a leap of 6-5 1/2 and the decathlon with 6,550 points. He also finished second in the javelin with a throw of 185-10 to gain the meet's "Outstanding Field Performer" award. Other individual winners for UW-Oshkosh were David Cisewski (So. • Stevens Point) in the 10,000 meter run with a time of 30:28.08, Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown) in the 800 meter run with a conference record time of 1:51.25, John LeRoy (So. • Oshkosh) in the 3,000 meter steeplechase with a time of 9:16.93 and Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:40.82. Groose also won the 800 meter run in 2000 and 2002. The Titans' 400 meter relay team also was victorious as Jeff Ehrike (Jr. • Stratford), Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe), Brian Pludeman (Sr. • Ashwaubenon) and Dan Kelm (Sr. • Ripon) ran to a first-place time of 41.59. In addition to Deering's ranking in the javelin, UW-Oshkosh also received second-place finishes from Cisewski in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:43.79, Dahmen in the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 15.01, Groose in the 1,500 meter run with a time of 3:51.19 and Chris Jensen (Jr. • Lake Geneva) in the discus with a toss of 172-4. UW-Oshkosh's 3,200 meter relay team also finished second as Kirk DeWindt (Fr. • Green Bay), Sean Meehan (So. • Franklin), LeRoy and Groose ran to a time of 7:42.05. Third-place performances for the Titans featured Kelm's time of 11.01 in the 100 meter dash, Joe Schnier's (Fr. • Brookfield) leap of 46-0 3/4 in the triple jump, Tom Roszak's (So. • Greenfield) leap of 6-3 1/2 in the high jump, Steve Nowak's (Fr. • Casco) total of 6,400 points in the decathlon, McKenna's time of 30:47.87 in the 10,000 meter run, Jason Fast's (Jr. • Menasha) time of 9:19.54 in the 3,000 meter steeplechase and Curtis Gerrits' (So. • Freedom) leap of 23-0 1/2 in the long jump. UW-Oshkosh's fourth-place finishes belonged to Nick Boehlke (So. • Three Lakes) with a time of 31:26.48 in the 10,000 meter run, DeWindt with a time of 3:55.83 in the 1,500 meter run, LeRoy with a time of 14:59.82 in the 5,000 meter run and Jon Zweiger (Jr. • Oshkosh) with a time of 15.03 in the 110 meter hurdles. Other awards at the meet went to Andrew Rock of UW-La Crosse as the "Outstanding Track Performer" of the WIAC Outdoor Championship, Doug Connor of UW-La Crosse as the WIAC's Max Sparger Outdoor Scholar-Athlete and Mark Guthrie of UW-La Crosse as the WIAC's Outdoor Coach of the Year.

Titans Win North Central College Invitational

Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) and Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown) won two events each as the UW-Oshkosh men's track and field team claimed the top ranking at the North Central College Invitational held Saturday (April 12) in Naperville, Ill.

UW-Oshkosh won the 11-team meet with 208.5 points, while North Central College finished second with 172.5, UW-Stevens Point third with 153.5, Wheaton College (Ill.) fourth with 77.5 and College of DuPage (Ill.) fifth with 46.

Deering took highest honors in the high jump with a leap of 6-8 and the javelin with a throw with a toss of 178-7. Groose finished first in the 800 meter run with a time of 1:52.22 and the 1,500 meter run with a time of 3:50.18. His performance in the 1,500 meter run is now the fastest in the NCAA Division III this season, while his effort in the 800 meter run currently ranks third.

UW-Oshkosh also had David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) win the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:37.7, Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe) the 110 meter hurdles with a time of 15.14, Chris Jensen (So. • Lake Geneva) the discus with a toss of 164-9, John LeRoy (So. • Oshkosh) the 3,000 meter steeplechase with a time of 9:18.51 and Jon Wagner (Jr. • Delafield) the pole vault with a leap of 15-7 1/2. The Titans' 400 meter relay team also finished first with a time of 42.17.

Finishing second for UW-Oshkosh were Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:52.1, Joe Schnier (Fr. • Brookfield) in the triple jump with a leap of 45-1 and Justin Van Allen (So. • Marion) in the long jump with a spring of 21-10 1/4.

Third-place finishes for the Titans belonged to Dan Kelm (Sr. • Ripon) in the 100 meter dash with a time of 11.14 and Eric Northwood (Sr. • Beaver Dam) in the 400 meter hurdles with a time of 56.13.

Representing UW-Oshkosh as a fourth-place finisher were Russ Austad (So. • Sturgeon Bay) in the triple jump with a leap of 42-1 1/2, Dahmen in the 200 meter dash with a time of 22.79, Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha) in the 3,000 meter steeplechase with a time of 9:34.05, Steve Pratt (So. • Waukesha) in the hammer throw with a toss of 154-9 and Pat Seger (Sr. • Oshkosh) in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 15:16.5. The Titans' 1,600 meter relay team also finished fourth with a time of 3:28.00.

Titans Finish Second At NCAA Indoor Championship

Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown) successfully defended his 800 meter run title and took part in a winning relay effort as UW-Oshkosh placed second at the NCAA Division III Men's Indoor Track and Field Championship held Friday-Saturday (March 14-15) in Greencastle, Ind.

UW-La Crosse scored 71 points to claim its third straight NCAA Division III indoor title, while UW-Oshkosh finished second among the 60 teams that scored points with 34. The Titans also placed second at the NCAA Division III Indoor Championship in 1999 and 2001.

Rounding out the top-five scoring teams were third-place Nebraska Wesleyan University with 27 points, fourth-place Gustavus Adolphus College (Minn.) with 23 and fifth-place The College of New Jersey with 22.

Groose repeated as 800 meter run champion by winning the event with a time of 1:52.01. Josh Zobenica of Lynchburg College (Va.) finished second in the race with a time of 1:53.41. Last year, Groose won the 800 meter run with a time of 1:49.73.

Groose also anchored UW-Oshkosh's distance medley relay team that finished first with a time of 10:10.07. Other members on that winning relay squad for the Titans were Paul Brown (So. • West Allis), Kevin Klueger (Jr. • Mayville) and Pat Seger (Sr. • Oshkosh). UW-La Crosse finished second in the distance medley relay with a time of 10:13.15.

Also receiving All-America status, an honor awarded to the top-eight finishers in each event, for UW-Oshkosh were Ryan Dahmen Sr. • Monroe) in the 55 meter hurdles, Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) in the high jump and Jon Wagner (Jr. • Delafield) in the pole vault.

Deering finished third in the high jump with a leap of 6-9 3/4, while Wagner placed fourth in the pole vault with a spring of 16-1 1/4 and Dahmen sixth in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.65. Winners of those events were Dan Olson of Wheaton College (Mass.) in the high jump with a hop of 7-1 3/4, Hans Schmidt of UW-La Crosse in the pole vault with a leap of 17-1 and Basile Steele of the University of Dubuque (Iowa) in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.50.

Also competing at this year's NCAA Division III Indoor Championship for UW-Oshkosh were David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) and Kirk DeWindt (So. • Green Bay), competitors in the 5,000 meter run and 1,500 meter run events, respectively. Cisewski finished ninth in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:45.66, while DeWindt placed fifth in his heat of the 1,500 meter run with a time of 4:01.41. DeWindt missed at qualifying for the finals in the 1,500 meter run by less than two seconds.

Prior to his performance in Indiana, Groose was named the NCAA Division III Midwest Region Indoor Athlete of the Year by the United States Track Coaches Association.

Titans Finish Second At WIAC Indoor Championship

Winning seven of 18 events, including a pair by Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown), the UW-Oshkosh men's track and field team finished second at the WIAC Indoor Championship held Friday and Saturday (March 7-8) in Kolf Sports Center. UW-La Crosse compiled 189 points to win its second straight WIAC indoor title and the 22nd in the past 25 years. UW-Oshkosh, which last won the meet in 2001, finished second with 168 points. UW-La Crosse and UW-Oshkosh were tied at 139 points with three events remaining, but the Eagles pulled away by outscoring the Titans, 50-29, down the stretch. UW-Stevens Point finished third in the meet with 127 points, while UW-Platteville finished fourth with 85, UW-Whitewater fifth with 58, UW-Eau Claire and UW-Stout sixth with 26 and UW-River Falls eighth with 21. UW-Oshkosh captured seven individual crowns as Groose won both the 800 meter run and 1,500 meter run titles for the second consecutive year. Groose, who was named the championship's "Outstanding Track Performer", ran to first-place times of 1:51.58 in the 800 meter run and 3:55.70 in the 1,500 meter run. Anchoring the Titans' distance medley relay team, Groose helped the quartet post a first-place time of 10:02.12. Other members of the winning relay team were Paul Brown (So. • West Allis), Kevin Klueger (Jr. • Mayville) and Pat Seger (Sr. • Oshkosh). Also capturing event championships for UW-Oshkosh were David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:47.51, Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) in the high jump with a leap of 6-7 1/2, Curtis Gerrits (So. • Freedom) in the long jump with a spring of 22-9 1/4 and Jon Zweiger (Jr. • Oshkosh) in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.49. Deering also won the high jump title a year ago. Placing second for the Titans were Cisewski in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:26.94 and Jon Wagner (Jr. • Delafield) in the pole vault with a flight of 16-2 3/4. Cisewski was the defending champion in the 3,000 meter run. UW-Oshkosh's third-place finishes included efforts by Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:32.15 and the 5,000 meter run with a time of 15:00.04. Other third-place performances went to Brandell Lewis (Fr. • Houston, Texas) in the 55 meter dash with a time of 6.64 and Tom Roszak (So. • Greenfield) in the high jump with a leap of 6-5 1/2. The Titans also placed third in the 800 meter relay and 1,600 meter relay events with times of 1:30.52 and 3:25.11, respectively. Finishing fourth for UW-Oshkosh were Nick Boehlke (So. • Three Lakes) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:33.96, Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe) in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.68, Chris Jensen (So. • Lake Geneva) in the shot put with a heave of 52-1 3/4 and Steve Nowak (Fr. • Casco) in the heptathlon with 4,642 points. Other awards at the meet went to Noah Eschenbauch of UW-Stevens Point as the "Outstanding Field Performer" of the WIAC Indoor Championship, Dan Sutton of UW-La Crosse as the WIAC's Max Sparger Indoor Scholar-Athlete and Mark Guthrie of UW-La Crosse as the WIAC's Indoor Coach of the Year.

Titans Finish Second At Warhawk Classic

The UW-Oshkosh men's track and field team was represented in the top-three finishes in 14 events as it placed second at the Warhawk Classic held Friday (Feb. 14) in Whitewater.

UW-La Crosse won the five-team meet with 219 points, while UW-Oshkosh finished second with 155 points, host UW-Whitewater third with 98, Wartburg College (Iowa) fourth with 69.5 and Augustana College (Ill.) fifth with 59.5.

Event winners for the Titans were David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) in the mile run with a time of 4:18.09, Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) in the high jump with a leap of 6-4 3/4, Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha) in the 5,000 meter run with a time of 14:54.75 and Derek O'Connell (So. • Hartland) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:48.36. Fast's performance surpassed the provisional qualifying standard for next month's NCAA Division III Indoor Championship in Greencastle, Ind.

Finishing second for the Titans were Paul Brown (So. • West Allis) in the mile run with a time of 4:21.25, Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe) in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.79, Curtis Gerrits (So. • Freedom) in the long jump with a leap of 22-3 and Paul Otteson (So. • Hudson) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:49.84. The Titans' 800 meter relay team of George Dominiak (So. • Greenfield), Jeff Ehrike (Sr. • Stratford), Eric Northwood (Sr. • Beaver Dam) and Brian Pludeman (Sr. • Ashwaubenon) also placed second with a time of 1:33.14.

In addition to Fast, other UW-Oshkosh athletes provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division III Indoor Championship were Dahmen in the 55 meter hurdles, Jon Wagner (Jr. • Delafield) in the pole vault and Jon Zweiger (Jr. • Oshkosh) in the 55 meter hurdles. Wagner and Zweiger both finished third at the Warhawk Classic with efforts of 15-3 and 7.91, respectively.

Competing at the UW-Stevens Point Invitational on Saturday (Feb. 15), UW-Oshkosh's distance medley relay team finished second with a time of 10:08.69, also provisionally qualifying for the NCAA Division III Indoor Championship. Members of that quartet were Cisewski, Kirk DeWindt (So.• Green Bay), Ross McDowell (Sr. • Verona) and Pat Seger (Sr. • Oshkosh). The group's eight points placed UW-Oshkosh ninth in the 12-team meet, an event won by UW-Stevens Point with 237 points.

UW-Oshkosh also was represented in a third meet over the weekend as Matt Groose (Sr. • Wartertown) competed in two events at the non-scoring Iowa State University Classic on Saturday in Ames, Iowa. Groose placed fourth in the mile run wth a time of 4:06.24 and followed that up with a 22nd-place standing in the 800 meter run with a time of 1:52.40. In a meet dominated by NCAA Division I athletes, Groose set a new UW-Oshkosh record in the mile run.

Titans Take Top Spot At Seven-Team Invite

Compiling a total of 16 first and second-place finishes, the UW-Oshkosh men's track and field team cruised to the top ranking in its own invitational held Saturday (Feb. 8) in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Oshkosh won the seven-team meet with 259 points, while UW-Platteville finished second with 168 points, Loras College (Iowa) third with 123, Ripon College fourth with 43 and Lawrence University fifth with 20.

UW-Oshkosh had eight event winners, including Jeff Ehrike (Sr. • Stratford) who placed first in both the 50 meter dash and 200 meter dash with times of 6.73 and 23.14, respectively.

Other first-place finishes for the Titans went to Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) in the high jump with a leap of 6-6 3/4, Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) in the mile run with a time of 4:19.78, Pat Seger (Sr. • Oshkosh) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:38.15, Justin Van Allen (Fr. • Marion) in the long jump with a leap of 21-4 1/4 and Jon Zweiger (Jr. • Oshkosh) in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.70 (7.69 in the trials). UW-Oshkosh also won the distance medley relay as Brandon Lesky (Fr. • Cudahy), Ross McDowell (Sr. • Verona), Sean Meehan (So. • Franklin) and Derek O'Connell (So. • Hartland) ran to a time of 10:50.29.

The Titans had three athletes surpass the provisional qualifying standard for next month's NCAA Division III Indoor Championship as Zweiger did it with his first-place time in the 55 meter hurdles, Chris Jensen (So. • Lake Geneva) with his third-place toss of 51-1 1/2 in the shot put and Jon Wagner (Jr. • Delafield) with his second-place leap of 15-9 in the pole vault.

In addition to Wagner, other UW-Oshkosh second-place efforts went to Paul Brown (So. • West Allis) in the mile run with a time of 4:22.15, Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe) in the 55 meter hurdles with a time of 7.74, McDowell in the 400 meter dash with a time of 52.62, Joe Schnier (Fr. • Brookfield) in the triple jump with a leap of 43-9 1/4 and Mike Wehrley (Jr. • Verona) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:47.59. The Titans' 800 meter and 1,600 meter relay teams also took second place with times of 1:35.05 and 3:27.55, respectively.

Titans Qualify Two For NCAA Indoor Championship

Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) and Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown) qualified for next month's NCAA Division III Indoor Championship as the UW-Oshkosh men's track and field team finished second in a five-team meet held Saturday (Feb. 1) in Kolf Sports Center.

Defending NCAA Division III champion UW-La Crosse won the pentangular with 189 points, while UW-Oshkosh finished second with 125 points, North Central College (Ill.) third with 122, University of Chicago (Ill.) fourth with 50 and UW-Eau Claire fifth with four.

Highlighted by Deering and Groose, UW-Oshkosh had four first place and three second-place finishers in the meet.

Deering leaped to 6-10 3/4 in winning the high jump, while Groose ran to a first-place and school-record time of 4:07.04 in the mile run (3:48.78 in the 1,500 meter run). Both performances surpassed the qualifying standard for the NCAA Division III Indoor Championship that will be held March 14-15 in Greencastle, Ind.

Also winning events for the Titans were Nick Boehlke (So. • Three Lakes) with a time of 8:48.47 in the 3,000 meter run and Curtis Gerrits (So. • Freedom) with a leap of 22-4 1/4 in the long jump.

Second-place efforts for UW-Oshkosh went to Ryan Dahmen (Sr. • Monroe) with a time of 23.40 in the 200 meter dash, Chris Jensen (Jr. • Lake Geneva) with a toss of 50-0 1/2 in the shot put and Tom Roszak (So. • Greenfield) with a leap of 6-6 1/4 in the high jump.

UW-Oshkosh's third-place finishes belonged to Deering with a leap of 21-2 3/4 in the long jump, Kirk DeWindt (So. • Green Bay) with a time of 4:17.09 in the mile run, Phil Keskinen (Sr. • Oshkosh) with a time of 8:50.81 in the 3,000 meter run, Steve Nowak (Fr. • Casco) with a leap of 6-0 1/2 in the high jump and Jon Zweiger (Jr. • Oshkosh) with a time of 7.79 in the 55 meter hurdles.

Deering, Groose Win Titles In Season Opener

Competing with just 12 members of its roster, the UW-Oshkosh men's track and field team finished seventh at the UW-Whitewater Invitational held Saturday (Jan. 25) in Whitewater. The event opened the 2003 season for the Titans, who'll compete with a full contingent next Saturday (Feb. 1) when they host North Central College (Ill.), University of Chicago (Ill.) and UW-La Crosse in Kolf Sports Center.

UW-Stevens Point won the UW-Whitewater Invitational with 152 points, while North Central College finished second with 91 points and the host Warhawks third with 71. The Titans scored 40 points for their seventh-place finish in the 12-team meet.

UW-Oshkosh took first place in two events as Kevin Deering (Jr. • East Troy) won the high jump with a leap of 6-5 1/4 and Matt Groose (Sr. • Watertown) the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:28.16. Recording third-place finishes for the Titans were David Cisewski (Jr. • Stevens Point) with a time of 14:18.22 in the one mile run, Eamon McKenna (Sr. • Ashippun) in the 3,000 meter run with a time of 8:37.66 and Chris Jensen (Jr. • Lake Geneva) in the shot put with a toss of 49-8 1/2.

Other top performances for UW-Oshkosh, both in the 3,000 meter run, included a fourth-place time of 8:38.73 by Jason Fast (Jr. • Menasha) and a sixth-place time of 8:47.29 by Nick Boehlke (So. • Three Lakes).