Men's Cross Country | 11/1/2014 6:00:00 PM

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Clark Teuscher, Sports Information Director, 630-637-5302

DECATUR, Ill. (Nov. 1, 2014) - Putting forth an impressive display of pack running for the second straight meet, the North Central College men's cross country team extended the longest conference championship streak in the sport to a 41st year on Saturday, winning the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin (CCIW) Championship for the 48th time with a dominant first-place effort at Hickory Point Golf Course.

The top-ranked Cardinals had seven of the top eight finishers and finished with a near-perfect 17 points, well ahead of runner-up Augustana College's total of 70. Wheaton College placed third with 80, followed by Carthage College (120), Elmhurst College (124), Illinois Wesleyan University (165), North Park University (212) and Millikin University (228).

The 69-man field was paced by North Central senior Ryan Root, who claimed the individual championship by completing the 8,000-meter (five-mile) course in 24 minutes, 5.90 seconds. The Cardinals have now won the last five CCIW individual titles and 34 overall.

Teammate Aron Sebhat was close behind in second place in 24:06.28), while Troy Kelleher placed third in 24:13.16. Elmhurst's Will Cross crossed the line fourth in 24:14.45 and North Central claimed the next four spots with Ben Dickshinski in fifth (24:17.63), Zach Plank in sixth (24:20.08), TIm Vazquez in seventh (24:23.05) and Kevin McMahon in eighth (24:35.48). North Central's five scoring runners were separated by just 14.18 seconds, a spread similar to the one the Cardinals posted in their win at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh AAE Invitational on Oct. 18.

North Central next competes in the NCAA Division III Midwest Regional Championships at Lake Breeze Golf Course in Winnecone, Wisconsin, on Saturday, Nov. 15. The Cardinals will be seeking their seventh consecutive regional title.