North Central races to national championship
For the second time in three seasons, the North Central men’s cross country team is the best in the NCAA Division III.
North Central captured its 14th national title at Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winneconne, Wis., on Saturday, easily outpacing Haverford College (Pa.) 110-172. Not even a near-disaster at the start of the race that saw juniors Dan Kerley and Matt Brinkmeier fall in the first turn could derail the Cardinals, who captured the 28th national title in the history of North Central athletics.
Junior Matt Perez followed up his Midwest Region victory with a fifth-place finish, completing the 8,000-meter course in 24 minutes, 15.17 seconds. He was the first Cardinal to hit the tape, coming in about 31 seconds behind race winner Ben Sathre of St. Thomas (Minn.).
Perez earned All-America recognition for the second consecutive season.
North Central senior Neal Klein earned All-America accolades for the third time, finishing 15th in 24:33.10 to place second among the Cardinals.
But it was the rallying performances of Kerley and Brinkmeier that sealed the national title bid. After falling among a crowd of runners in the chaotic first turn, Kerley picked his way through the field, passing enough runners to finish 37th in 24:50.56. Sparks wasn’t far behind, finishing 41st in 24:52.98.
Official race statistics showed that Kerley was in 148th place after 1 mile, 86th after 2, and 49th after 3, while Sparks completed the first mile in 138th place.
With the national title, North Central put a fitting cap on another fantastic season. The Cardinals finished the regular season as the unanimous No. 1 in the United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association poll. North Central won its fourth consecutive — and 24th all-time — NCAA Division III region championship and picked up regional coach and athlete of the year honors for head coach Al Carius and Perez, respectively.
Football: North Central will hit the road for the second round of the NCAA Division III Football Championship.
The Cardinals — who rolled to a 59-13 home win over Dubuque in Saturday’s opening round — found out Sunday that their second round game against Wabash (11-0) on Saturday will be played at Hollett Little Giant Stadium in Crawfordsville, Ind.
Wabash — the North Coast Athletic Conference champion — is 6-0 at home this season and is among the Division III leaders in rushing defense and scoring defense. The Little Giants advanced to the second round of the playoffs by beating Illinois College 38-20.
North Central’s 46-point romp over Dubuque allowed the Cardinals to set new single-season records for points, rushing yards, and rushing touchdowns.
Previous games between the two teams won’t provide much of a clue for Saturday’s outcome — the only times North Central and Wabash have met were in 1915 and 1914, both Wabash wins.
Wheaton:Four years after its last appearance in the NCAA Division III semifinals, the Wheaton women#146;s soccer team is headed to San Antonio, Texas, for a shot at a national championship.After rallying from a two-goal deficit to beat Washington (Mo.) 4-2 in Saturday#146;s sectional final, Wheaton will play Ithaca (15-3-3) on Dec. 2 for a spot in the national final. It will be the Thunder#146;s first appearance among the final four since 2008.For Wheaton#146;s senior class, the trip offers a chance for redemption. That 2008 Wheaton team advanced to the championship match before losing a lopsided 5-0 decision to Messiah.That loss broke Wheaton#146;s string of back-to-back national titles.#147;Given the result the last time they were there, I think they#146;re just happy to get another chance,#148; coach Pete Felske said of his senior class.Wheaton almost missed its chance Saturday.The Thunder easily outplayed Wisconsin-Whitewater in a 4-1 sectional semifinal win Friday, but it trailed 1-0 at halftime and 2-0 in the 58th minute against Washington. An unconcerned Felske went over potential late-game strategies #8212; should Wheaton be trailing #8212; at halftime, but the Thunder exploded for four second-half goals to render those plans obsolete.Senior midfielder Kaitlyn Le Baudour scored a pair of goals, and junior midfielder Keri Shannon scored the eventual game-winner in the 74th minute. Senior forward Jaime Orewiler (Wheaton North) added the final goal.#147;I thought we were playing well, regardless of the score,#148; Felske said. #147;I never thought for a second that we weren#146;t in the game.#148;Wheaton (22-1-2) will be making its sixth semifinal appearance. The Thunder will have another 10 days to prepare for Ithaca, including Thursday#146;s Thanksgiving holiday.#147;I#146;m not real excited about that,#148; Felske said. #147;When you#146;re playing well, you want to keep going.#148;Messiah (21-0-1) and William Smith (20-0-1) round out the final four.