The UW Oshkosh men’s and women’s cross-country teams kicked off their season last Saturday, Sept. 8 at the UW-Parkside Vic Godfrey Open in Somers, Wisconsin. The men’s and women’s teams both took eighth place.

The men’s team made great advances as sophomore Lucas Weber and junior Cody Chadwick both had personal course records. Weber led the Titans with a 17th-place finish time of 26:21, improving from 30th place last year on this 8,000-meter course.

Chadwick, who finished with a time of 26:38, placed 30th at this year’s meet, improving from 110th at the Vic Godfrey Open in 2016 and 67th in 2017.

Chadwick said the team used this meet to get back into the flow of running and keep the rest of the season in mind.
“The main goal for us this season is qualifying for the national meet. Oshkosh hosts the national meet this year, so it would be a big deal to run at nationals on our home course, and it is really the goal we are rallying around this year as a team,” Chadwick said. “Ultimately, we see this past meet as a tool to sharpen our teeth as we look forward to the road to the national meet.”

Freshman Andrew Muskevitsch made his mark on the course by finishing 54th with a time of 27:17. Junior Fabian Salinas finished in 67th place with a time of 27:37, and senior Justin Skinkis placed in 84th with a time of 28:04.

UWO’s other top 100 efforts include an 88th-place time of 28:07 from Brian Mcknight, 91st-place time of 28:21 from Steven Potter, a 98th-place time of 28:34 from Bennett Krueger and a 100th-place time of 28:48 from Henry Laste.

The Titans contributed to six of the next 12 runners as Robert Szymanski placed 103rd with a time of 28:49, Collin Borazo placed 106th with a time of 29:03 and Skyler Yunk placed in 107th place with a time of 29:05. UWO’s Parker Scheld came in 108th place with a time of 29:06, Kiernan Koepke in 111th with a time of 29:29 and Zachary Molland in 112th with a time of 29:41.

The men’s team was one point away from seventh place, which was taken by UW-Parkside, who scored 193-194 team points.
In the women’s event, UW Oshkosh took eighth place out of eleven teams. Freshman Evlyn Noone finished her first collegiate race with a team-best seventh place finish time of 18:50 on this 5,000-meter course.

Noone said she recognizes she is new to the team, but is excited to be part of a group that shares her same passion for running.

“I have the opportunity to be a part of a group of women [and men] that all have a similar interest: running,” Noone said. “I love talking about running and everything surrounding running, so it’s pretty neat to be a part of a group where that’s the main focus.”

UWO had six other top-100 finishers with Hannah Lohrenz, who crossed the finish line second for UWO in 51st place overall with a time of 20:01. Ashton Keene followed Lohrenz in 56th place with a time of 20:17.
Amanda Van Den Plas finished 60th with a time of 20:21 and Elizabeth Reddeman finished in 62nd place with a time of 20:22.
Alexis Reichardt finished with an 84th-place time of 21:00 and Breanna Van Den Plas finished with a 100th-place time of 22:03.

UWO cross-country teams have a break in meets until it hosts the Titan Fall Classic on Sept. 21 at the Lake Breeze Golf Club in Winneconne.