Men's Cross Country Championships - Row Sterne '25

Men's Cross Country Takes 30th at Nationals

11/18/2023 2:00:00 PM

NEWVILLE, Pa. - The Washington and Lee University men's cross country team finished the 2023 season by placing 30th at the NCAA DIII Cross Country National Championships on Saturday afternoon. 

Hosted by Dickinson College on the campus of Big Spring High School, the Generals took the starting line as a team for the fourth time in program history and for the first time since 2016. 

The Generals bested No. 26 University of Chicago and No. 15 SUNY Geneseo with a score of 681 (53-139-141-167-181(188)(196)) to cap the historic W&L harriers' season.

Junior Row Sterne led the Generals with a 70th place finish in a time of 25:31.0. Sterne tallied 53 points for the Blue and White with the 6th best finish in program history on the national stage.
 

GENERALS LINEUP

  • Row Sterne ran a time of 25:31.0 and placed 70th overall (53 team points).
  • Robert Cooper was the second General to cross the finish line in a time of 26:13.6 (185th place).
  • Keaton Rush came in behind Cooper one second later and recorded a time of 26:14.5 (188th place).
  • Josh Fingerhut finished in 26:29.2 (221st place).
  • Jackson Jacobs was the fifth runner and final scorer for W&L in 26:35.3 (240th place).
  • First-year Jackson Kodenski finished in 26:42.8 for 251st place.
  • Chris Ruiz rounded out W&L's lineup in 26:49.2 (261st place).

THE CHAMPIONSHIP FIELD

  • Ethan Gregg from Wisconsin La Crosse won the individual title in a time of 24:02.4 and helped lead La Crosse to a runner-up position in team scoring with 159 points. 
  • Pomona-Pitzer, the 8th-ranked team coming into Saturday's race, won the team title with a score of 158 (9-10-22-24-93).  
  • The championship field consisted of 32 teams of seven runners and 70 individual qualifiers for a total of 294 student-athletes. 
  • Representing the south region and the ODAC, the 10th-ranked University of Lynchburg placed 9th (14-31-40-63-138). 
  • Frank Csorba from LYN was the top-finisher (14th place) in individual standings for the South. 
  • W&L posted notable wins over No. 15 SUNY Geneseo and No. 26 University of Chicago.

W&L NOTES

  • W&L has appeared three times as a team previously. 
    • 2016 (27th/ 32 teams), 1995 (21st/21), and 1975 (34th/39)
  • 15 individuals have represented W&L at the National Championships.
    • The highest finish in program history is Angus McBryde '84 who earned All-America status in 1983 after placing tenth overall. 
    • Last year, Charles Scharf '25L, was the fifth individual to qualify for nationals under Coach Spalding; Scharf's 52nd place showing is a Generals' best since Bo Hannah finished 40th in 1991 and third best in program history. 
    • Sterne's 70th place is sixth-best for the program. 
  • The Generals recorded an average time of 26:12.8 in the largest field the Blue and White have raced against this season. 

UP NEXT

The national championship meet concludes the cross country competition schedule; the distance runners will join the track and field roster following a rest and recovery period in their training schedules.

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Nestled in the mountains of Virginia, Washington and Lee University is a proud member of NCAA Division III and the Old Dominion Athletic Conference. Founded in 1749, W&L is the ninth-oldest college in the United States and a top-ranked liberal arts university. With over 500 student-athletes in 24 varsity sports, the Generals have celebrated over 265 conference championships. Learn more about the Blue and White by visiting www.generalssports.com or on social media at @WLUGenerals.
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