EAU CLAIRE, Wis. (blugolds.com) — The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's and women's cross country teams received All-Academic honors from the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association for the 2022 season. The Blugold women posted a cumulative GPA of 3.73, and the men posted a collective 3.53 GPA. The Blugolds also had several individuals recognized.
USTFCCCA Men's Team Release | Women's Team Release | Men's Individual Release | Women's Individual Release
To qualify for All-Academic honors, teams were required to have a collective GPA of 3.1 or greater. Individually, the standard is a 3.30 cumulative GPA along with a finish in the top 25 at a regional championship meet.
Keeley Behr (Fr. - Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley), Katie Faris (Sr. - Chippewa Falls, Wis.), Ashley Kachurik (Sr. - Wadsworth, Ill./Warren Township), Naomi Long (Sr. - Medina, Minn./Wayzata) and Carolyn Shult (Jr. - Augusta, Wis.) were all named All-Academic Athletes for the UW-Eau Claire women's team. Tyler Osen (Sr. - Lakeville, Minn.), Mason Shea (Jr. - River Falls, Wis.), Sam Verkerke (So. - White Bear Township, Minn./White Bear Lake) and Zach Yengo (Sr. - Eau Claire, Wis./Regis) all earned the honor from the men's team.
Blugolds announce team awards
The Blugolds announced the winners of their team awards at an end-of-season banquet in December. Award winners were voted on by the team. Thoughts below are from head coach Dan Schwamberger.
Most Improved
Men: Jack Hesse-Withbroe (So. - Stillwater, Minn.): In 2021, Hesse-Withbroe had a season-best 8K time of 27:23 with his highest finish on the team being 17th. This year he ran a personal best 8K time of 25:11 and earned All-North Region honors by placing 34th of 214 runners with an 8K time of 25:30 at St. Olaf.
Women: Emily Kolb (Jr. - Brown Deer, Wis.): Kolb's 2021 cross country season was cut short due to an injury. A spring and summer of consistent training paid off with an 89-second 6K personal best time of 23:56. She did a great job working together with teammates, which was a major factor in this huge improvement.
Most Valuable Newcomer
Men: Trevor LaMirande (So. - Dresser, Wis./St. Croix Falls): La Mirande transferred to UWEC this fall and it was a challenging transition getting used to a new school/team and getting back into a consistent training groove following an injury over the summer. Through the ups and downs, he maintained a positive mindset and by the end of the season was enjoying racing again. He finished the season strong with an impressive seventh-place individual finish at Luther and a 4:23 indoor mile time trial in November.
Women: Keeley Behr (Fr. - Aurora, Ill./Metea Valley): Behr was in the Blugolds' top five in every race this season and posted a 6K personal best time of 22:35, which puts her sixth on the Blugold all-time freshmen list and 36th on the all-time women's 6K list. She is incredibly tough, which was on full display at nationals when she was spiked in the foot at the race start. It took her a few minutes to regain her composure but she did, moving up from 238th place at the mile to 169th by the finish.
Most Valuable Runner
Men: Mason Shea (Jr. - River Falls, Wis.): A treadmill accident last December caused Shea to take a large break from running this past indoor season. He remained patient and smart, gradually increasing his volume and intensity throughout the spring and summer. Mason was the Blugolds' top runner at every race this year except for the first meet at St. Olaf. He ran his best when it counted most, advancing to nationals where he placed 108th out of 292 competitors, a huge improvement over last year's 225th national finish.
Women: Carolyn Shult (Jr. - Augusta, Wis.): Shult was the Blugolds' No. 1 runner in every race this year except for nationals, where she was their second runner. Her 6K personal best time of 21:30 puts her eighth on the program's all-time 6K list. Shult raced smart and with confidence all season. Even at nationals when she wasn't feeling 100%, she put herself in perfect position for a great race and gave a tremendous effort. Fortunately, Shult has decided to come back for next fall's cross country season, which is great from a performance and (more importantly) a team perspective.
Blugold Award (an incredible teammate)
Men: Dan Lau (Sr. - Eau Claire, Wis./Immanuel Lutheran): Lau progressed tremendously as a runner during his time at UWEC, going from a freshman 8K PR time of 27:46 to an 8K PR of 25:10 this season. More importantly, Dan did everything in his power to make the team better. This year he was the leader of our No. 4 through No. 7 pack that was incredibly consistent and the strength of our team in every race. He was a great captain who accomplished his goal of making the team better in many ways.
Women: Naomi Long (Sr. - Medina, Minn./Wayzata): Long had an impressive cross country career at UWEC, earning all-conference recognition four times, all-region recognition three times, and competing at four cross country national meets. However, her contributions as a student and a teammate are even more impressive. This year, Long won the Conference Scholar Cross Country Runner of the Year Award. She served as team captain for the second year in a row and was the mastermind behind new team building activities at Camp Manitou. Naomi was a major reason why this year's team dynamic was exceptionally strong.
The Blugolds also recognized their 10 seniors during the banquet: Joey Barber (Sr. - Sun Prairie, Wis.), Katie Faris (Sr. - Chippewa Falls, Wis.), Sid Gross (Sr. - St. Paul, Minn./Highland Park), Ashley Kachurik (Sr. - Wadsworth, Ill./Warren Township), Julia Karls (Sr. - St. Cloud, Minn./Apollo), Dan Lau (Sr. - Eau Claire, Wis./Immanuel Lutheran), Abby Lewis (Sr. - Austin, Minn.), Naomi Long (Sr. - Medina, Minn./Wayzata), Tyler Osen (Sr. - Lakeville, Minn./North) and Zach Yengo (Sr. - Eau Claire, Wis./Regis).
