Results

STEVENS POINT, Wis.--University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point won the 2008 Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) men's cross country championship that was held at Wisconsin River Golf Club Nov. 1.

The league crown for the Pointers is the fourth in school history and first since the 1997 season. UW-Stevens Point totaled 52 points to outdistance UW-Oshkosh's second-place total of 55 points. The three-point victory is the closest margin at the championship since UW-La Crosse outscored the Titans 34-37 at 2001 meet.

This year, the four-time defending champion Eagles finished third with 62 points, UW-Eau Claire fourth with 117, UW-Whitewater fifth with 127, UW-River Falls sixth with 172, UW-Platteville seventh with 174, UW-Stout eighth with 180 and UW-Superior ninth with 295.

UW-Oshkosh senior Willy Kaul claimed the individual crown, finishing with a time of 24:15.84 to surpass 98 competitors on the 8,000-meter course. He becomes the fifth Titan to secure the first-place medal at the WIAC meet, joining Dan Muinde (1962), Scott Steuernagel (1989 and 1990), Dave Lambert (1991) and Andy Esten (1995).

UW-Stevens Point had five runners finish in the top 24 to guide the winning performance. Senior Cory Towle (Waukesha/South) led the charge with a second-place time of 24:37:16 and was followed by senior Dominick Meyer (Beloit/Memorial) in third at 24:42.51. Senior Phil Richert (Andover, MN/Andover) took sixth with a time of 24:58.59, senior Jason Lisowe (Chilton/Chilton) was 17th in 25:25.26 and junior Brandon Dworak (Denmark/Denmark) 24th in 25:33.14.

UW-La Crosse junior Connor Lonning finished fourth with a time of 24:48.05, UW-Oshkosh freshman Nate Stymiest fifth in 24:55.26, UW-Oshkosh senior Andrew McGuire seventh in 24:58.88, UW-River Falls senior Jason Phillippi eighth in 25:00.33, UW-Whitewater sophomore Dan Machmueller ninth in 25:02.09, UW-Eau Claire senior Jules Miller 10th in 25:03.88, UW-Eau Claire junior Chris Wirtz 11th in 25:09.33, UW-La Crosse junior Kyle Coghlan 12th in 25:14.82, UW-La Crosse senior Logan O'Grady 13th in 25:15.93 and UW-La Crosse junior Paul Moran 14th in 25:16.15.

The top seven runners received All-WIAC first team recognition, while runners placing eighth through 14th earned All-WIAC second team accolades. Individuals finishing 15th through 20th claimed honorable mention recognition.

UW-Stevens Point head coach Rick Witt was voted the Coach of the Year, while UW-Eau Claire's Kevin Hall received the Max Sparger Scholar-Athlete Award.

Named to the All-Sportsmanship Team were: UW-Eau Claire's Ben Pearson, UW-La Crosse's Logan O'Grady, UW-Oshkosh's Andrew McGuire, UW-Platteville's Greg Alleman, UW-River Falls' Chad Ernst, UW-Stevens Point's Cory Towle (Waukesha/South), UW-Stout's Matt Kennedy, UW-Superior's Ed Hirsch and UW-Whitewater's Jon Fink. The team was selected for individuals that displayed exemplary sportsmanship throughout the season. It included one member from each school as selected by that school.

All nine WIAC teams will return to action Nov. 15 at the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional in Rock Island, Ill. The regional event will be hosted by Augustana College. The NCAA Division III Championship is scheduled for Nov. 22 in Hanover, Ind., and will be hosted by Hanover College.

- release courtesy of WIAC Sports Information