Men's Cross Country Team Ranked Second in Preseason Poll

For Immediate Release: Friday, Aug. 28, 2009

New Orleans, La. – The University of Wisconsin-La Crosse men's cross country squad begins its 2009 season ranked second in the United States Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) NCAA Division III Preseason Poll released Friday. The Eagles received 270 points in the preseason national rankings while North Central College (Ill.) was first with 278.

SUNY-Cortland was third (267) followed by Williams College, Mass. (256) and SUNY-Geneseo (248) to round-out the top-five. Three other Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) teams are ranked in the top-20, including UW-Platteville (8th), UW-Stevens Point (15th) and UW-Oshkosh (17th). For a complete listing of the preseason poll, click here.

UW-L returns six of seven runners from the 2008 squad that finished sixth at the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division III Championships. The Eagles have earned 21 top-six finishes in school history at the national meet, including 10 in the top-three. UW-L has captured three national titles (1996, 2001, 2005).

Seniors Paul Moran (48th), Connor Lonning (60th) and Kyle Coghlan (62nd) all competed at last year's national meet. Moran was also third at the NCAA III Midwest Regional and 14th at the WIAC Championships while Lonning was sixth at the regional and fourth at the conference meet, the Eagles' top overall finisher. Coghlan was 17th at the Midwest Regional and 12th at the WIAC Championships.

Also returning from last year's national squad are seniors Dallas Vincent and Scott Hayden along with sophomore Josh Kaul.

UW-L finished third at the WIAC Championships in 2008 and second at the NCAA III Midwest Regional.

Don Fritsch enters his 12th year at the helm of the UW-L men's cross country team in 2009. After taking over in 1998, Fritsch has led the Eagles to two NCAA Division III Championships and seven WIAC titles.

The Eagles open their season Saturday, Sept. 5 with an intra-squad/alumni meet. UW-L then competes at the All-American Invitational Saturday, Sept. 12 at Luther College (Iowa).