2022 D3 XC: North Regional Preview
One year after qualifying five squads to the National Championship, led by two top-ten finishing teams in UW-La Crosse and UW-Whitewater, the 2022 North Region may be even deeper. One coach suggests we could even see an absurd seven ranked teams in the North this season. While the team competition will be extra spicy, the individual title will be just as nice. The race will feature three returning All-Americans toeing the line at St. Olaf in November and that doesn’t even include six Outdoor National Qualifiers or the national champion in the 1500m run!
This again seems to be UW-La Crosse’s race to lose. All-American Ethan Gregg (11th) returns to lead the Eagles, who bring back their entire top seven. That group notably doesn’t include 9:05 steepler Adam Loenser who should be expected to add to their impressive depth. Six men ran sub 31:11, ranking them 3rd in the USTFCCCA Event Squad rankings. On the other end of the spectrum, we wouldn’t want to be near 3:47/1:52 man Michael Madoch at the end of a race. Add in freshman twins Aidan and Grant Matthai (9:11/9:16 3200m PRs) and the Eagles will look to soar through the North this year.
While the Warhawks of UW-Whitewater will not be able to rely on the front-running of All-American David Fassbender for the first time in what feels like a decade, the superb 1-2 punch of All-Americans Christian Patzka and Gunner Schlender could lead the UW-Whitewater to a second-consecutive North Regional Title. No. 3 runner, Justin Krause improved his 1500m mark by 5 seconds to become an All-American. If he shows similar improvement over 8000m, this team will be dangerous! The Warhawks should still be in the mix after Coach Miller has labeled his new first years as “best recruiting class in school history.”
UW-Stout is another Wisconsin team that appears to return a full squad. They will rely on a young group led by national qualifier Spencer Schulz to hold off St. Olaf on their home course. After finishing 10th in the Regional Championship, Schulz had a monster spring, running 14:18 and 29:54. The 2021 Blue Devils also employed strong pack running, with their No. 2 and No. 3 running within two spots of each other and the 4/5 men finishing within a second of each other. Given Schulz’s high stick potential and a tight spread, we expect the Blue Devils to be the third WIAC squad on the line in Lansing.
St. Olaf squeaked into the National Championship on the merits of their Out-Of-Region schedule and proved the Committee correct by finishing 17th, well above their USTFCCCA and Lacctic rankings. Doubted by many for lacking a true frontrunner, the Oles return all but one scorer from that 2021 squad. Junior Logan Bocovich stepped up to finish fourth at the 2021 North Region Championship and enjoyed a fine Spring running 14:34. Five other Oles ran sub 15 and could provide the depth on their home course to upset the WIAC squads.
UW-Eau Claire graduated two mainstays in Connor Dolan and Jake Petri, but return a key performer in Tyler Osen (12th). It seems reasonable to suggest 1500m National Champion Sam Verkerke will continue his remarkable story of improvement and be another front-runner for the Blugolds. If that happens, this group has four more runners with experience at the National Championship and could punch their ticket again.
UW – Oshkosh, Carleton College, and St. John’s College headline three squads fighting for a qualifying spot.
The Titans graduated two of their top five, but mid-distance All-American Steven Potter returns to give his team hope of another national berth. They will need a 5th man to emerge to hold off the challengers from across the border.
Dave Ricks has proven time after time that his Carleton squads should never be counted out. Landing one of his better recruiting classes in recent memory will help ease the pain of graduating three of his top runners. Senior Henry Bowman eats 100-mile weeks for breakfast and should be a top ten contender. A trio of freshmen with personal bests of better than 9:28 will ensure we see the trademark Hawaiian shirts at national meets for years to come.
St. John’s returns their best squad in years and will count on Lloyd Young to repeat his top-five performance. The Johnnies return their entire top seven and are a dark-horse favorite to win the MIAC.
Three names to keep an eye on:
Calvin Boone – St. Scholastica. The 2021 National Qualifier dropped Nordic Ski last Spring to focus on running and responded with a 3:47 1500m.
Zeke Micheel – Wisconsin Lutheran. Micheel ran 9:24 and 3:55 this Spring, both significant PR’s. If he continues on this trend, he’ll be looking to snag an individual qualifying spot.
Muhammed Bati – Augsburg. Already a folk hero on the MIAC message boards, Bati should be on one of the top freshmen on the course with reported PR’s of a 2:17 marathon and a 14:48 5000m. Bati and Carleton’s Roy Llewelyn will have some prolific battles over the next four years.
Women’s Preview
While the North Region will feature several highly-ranked teams, the battle for the individual title will be one for the ages. St. Benedict All-American Fiona Smith will be chasing her first National Title after finishing 4th in both the 10,000m and 5,000m in Outdoor Track. MIAC rival Clara Mayfield of Carleton College will be looking to upset Smith after finishing 11th at Louisville. The duo raced each other an astounding 18 times last year. We can’t wait to see the 2022-2023 matchups!
The team chase will be equally as entertaining with the top teams returning the majority of their 2021 scorers. UW-La Crosse squad brings back a strong group that will be looking for yet another North Region championship. After finishing fourth in the Regional Championship, St. Olaf finished 13th at Nationals and return the majority of their top seven. And, of course, with Mayfield as a low stick, Carleton will certainly be in the mix along with UW- Eau Claire and UW-Oshkosh.
The Eagles of UW-La Crosse graduate their top two runners, but return the rest of their lineup including Maddie Hannan. Hannan finished 9th in the Regional championship and followed that up by qualifying for both the Indoor and Outdoor National Championships. Sophomore Maddy Vantassell will look to take a big jump after just missing qualifying in the steeplechase with an 11:05. The Eagles were able to pack five runners in the top fifteen last year and we don’t expect anything different from Coach Stanley’s squad despite no news of what we are sure is a strong recruiting class.
The Oles will host the North Region Championship this Fall and we are certain they are talking about winning the North Region Championship on their home course. The Oles only graduated No. 2 runner, Ellen Mickelson, but return seemingly everyone else on their roster. Junior Julia Everest will lead the Oles after finishing sixth at the 2021 North Region Championship. First-years Sofia Carlson and Alison Bode showed remarkable improvement throughout the Spring, running 17:16 and 17:31 on the track. Coupled with rumors of a strong recruiting class, the Oles will be a team to watch.
Crosstown rival Carleton College always seems to be a dangerous team in November. They return every runner in their top seven after finishing a mere six points out of second. Coach Donna Ricks has reason for optimism after a strong Spring from women not named Clara Mayfield, including two sub 18 women in Helen Cross and Phoebe Ward. Incoming athlete Hannah Preisser turned in high school marks of 5:03 and 10:55, which will surely add to the Carleton depth.
UW-Eau Claire returns the dynamic duo of Carolyn Shult and Katie Faris, along with four more runners from the 2021 North Region Runner-Up squad. In May, Shult qualified for her first national meet, finishing 13th in the 1500m. Classmate Ashley Kachurik seemingly PR’ed in every event she entered this Spring and will be looking for the same this Fall. It’s not a leap to say the veteran experience of this squad could lead them to the podium at St. Olaf.
While the UW-Oshkosh Titans lose the their No. 1 runner Hannah Lorenz to graduation, they return the core of their team. Senior Zanzie Demco medaled in both the 800 and 1500 in Geneva and has the range to cover 6K after finishing 10th in the North Region in 2021.
While the individual battle seems to be a clear race between Smith and Mayfield, UW-Stevens Point first-year Rachel Krouse turned heads with a 17:04 5000m and 35:21 10,00m over a six day period this Spring. Expect Krouse and UW-Eau Claire teammates Faris and Shult to be hot on the heels of the MIAC duo.