University of Southern Indiana freshman Titus Winders (Mansfield, Tennessee) earns All-American status at the NCAA Division II National Championships on Saturday en route to a 19th-place team finish at Schenley Park.
Through sloppy conditions, falling runners, and a restart, the Eagles were led by Winders, the Midwest Regional champion, in 30th-place crossing the line in 33:13.5 through the 10-kilometer course out of 261 runners. Winders becomes the 23rd individual to earn All-American honors, the first since Noah Lutz and current USI assistant coach Chase Broughton in 2016.
Junior Austin Nolan (Evansville, Indiana) was close behind Winders in 75th with a total time of 34:12.6. Junior Nathan Hall (Springfield, Indiana) closed the gap in 35:08.5 as the Eagles’ third runner to cross in 143rd-place.
Rounding out the top five for USI were sophomores Grady Wilkinson (Mt. Carmel, Illinois) and Wyat Harmon (Fredricktown, Ohio) in 174th and 186th with times of 35:33.7 and 35:49.3, respectively.
Freshman Evan Sorensen (Evansville, Indiana) and junior Javan Winders (Mansfield, Tennessee) round out the top seven for the Eagles in 234th and 250th.
Grand Valley State, the Midwest Regional team champions, won their first-ever national championship with 89 points. Colorado School of Mines came in second with 99 while Western Colorado was third with 117, Adams State was fourth with 175, and Sioux Falls was fifth with 214 points.
