UW-La Crosse Makes It Two Al Carius Division III Men's Program of the Year Awards in a Row

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UW-La Crosse Makes It Two Al Carius Division III Men's Program of the Year Awards in a Row
May 30, 2014

NEW ORLEANS – Though the UW-La Crosse men may have been unsuccessful in their defense of their NCAA Division III Outdoor Track & Field title in 2014, the Eagles men were successful in claiming their second consecutive Al Carius Division III Men's Program of the Year Award, presented by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

DIII Men's Program of the Year Standings - Top 5
Rank Team Score
1 UW-La Crosse 6
2 North Central (Ill.) 12
3 UW-Oshkosh 19
4 UW-Eau Claire 21
5 Haverford 33
FULL STANDINGS

Top three national finishes in cross country and both indoor and outdoor track & field – including a second consecutive national team crown indoors – boosted the Eagles to a comfortable victory over three-time Program of the Year winner North Central (Ill.).

MORE INFO: Award History

The USTFCCCA Program of the Year Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding cross country/track & field programs in each of the NCAA’s three divisions for each gender.

In order to be eligible for the award, teams must qualify for each of the NCAA Championships. Scoring is based on the team’s finish at each NCAA Championship in cross country and both indoor and outdoor track & field (i.e. 1st = 1 point, 2nd = 2 points, etc.) with the lowest total score for all three championships combined determining the award recipient. Ties among schools split points for positions taken.

When considering the cross country and outdoor track & field seasons, both UW-La Crosse and North Central were on even ground, but the indoor season set the two apart as UW-La Crosse finished with six points to North Central's 12.

UW-La Crosse finished runner-up to first-time champ Mount Union at the Division III Outdoor Championships this past weekend in Delaware, Ohio, and was third in cross country in the fall behind runner-up North Central; while NCC was runner-up in the fall to first-time champ St. Olaf and third behind UWL outdoors.

Indoors, however, the UWL men won the national title while NCC settled for a seventh-place finish.

Rounding out the top five were inaugural 2008-09 Program of the Year winner UW-Oshkosh (19), UW-Eau Claire (21) and Haverford (33).

The Al Carius Program of the Year Award is named after USTFCCCA Hall of Famer and long-time North Central College head coach Al Carius. Carius is in his 49th year of service at North Central, still as head coach of the Cardinals’ cross country squad, and has won 23 NCAA Division III National Championships. Carius’ program last won a "triple crown" of NCAA titles during the 2009-2010 academic year.




U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association
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New Orleans, LA 70163

Contact: Kyle Terwillegar
Communications Assistant
kyle@ustfccca.org
(504) 599-8905