An Olympic gold medalist’s record broken, but UW-La Crosse men’s T&F falls 1 point short of national title

March 14, 2026|In La Crosse, UW La Crosse

An Olympic gold medalist’s record broken, but UW-La Crosse men’s T&F falls 1 point short of national title

March 14, 2026|In La Crosse, UW La Crosse

An Olympic gold medalist’s record broken, but UW-La Crosse men’s T&F falls 1 point short of national title

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. — It was a weekend of incredible highs and a heartbreaking finish for the UW-La Crosse men’s track and field team at the Division III National Championships.

Despite winning three individual national titles on the final day and shattering a 23-year-old record held by Olympic gold medalist Andrew Rock, the Eagles finished just one point shy of the championship.

UW-L finished as the national runner-up Saturday at the NCAA Division III Indoor Championships with 74 points, falling to Rowan University (75).

The one-point margin snapped the Eagles’ bid for a third consecutive indoor crown and what would have been their fifth consecutive national title across the men’s cross country, indoor, and outdoor seasons.

The UW-L record-breaking 1,600-relay team.
The UW-L record-breaking 1,600-relay team.

National Champions

The Eagles crowned three national champions on Saturday:

  • 1,600-Meter Relay: The team of Collin Conzemius, Chase Doornink, Devin Williams, and Andrew Hackbarth won in 3:10.90. The performance set a new NCAA Division III Championship meet record and obliterated the previous UW-L school record of 3:13.68 held since 2003 by a team that included Olympic gold medalist Andrew Rock. It also surpassed the 2004 mark of 3:11.75 set by Rock’s squad, making this the fastest indoor 4×400 in program history.
  • 400-Meter Dash: Collin Conzemius won his first individual national title with a time of 46.76.
  • Triple Jump: Carter Pearson became the first Eagle since 2013 to win the triple jump national title with a mark of 49-3.

Other Top Three Finishes

The Eagles leaned heavily on their distance and middle-distance runners to stay in the hunt:

  • 5,000-Meter Run: Aidan Matthai took second on Friday with a time of 14:03.55.
  • 800-Meter Run: Cael Schoemann finished second on Saturday (1:49.29).
  • 3,000-Meter Run: Owen Clark placed third on Saturday (8:06.97).
  • Mile: Jayden Zywicki took third on Saturday (4:14.51).

School Records

In addition to the 1,600 relay record, the Distance Medley Relay team of Aidan Manning, Finn Patenaude, Tyler Heiman, and Joey Sullivan set a new school mark on Friday, finishing fifth in 9:46.98.

Related Posts