Wisconsin quartet leads team to victory at the Badger Classic

Friday, September 23

Madison, WI

5 PM

Wisconsin Badgers

Badger Classic

Wisconsin quartet leads team to victory at the Badger Classic

September 23, 2016 | Men's Cross Country

Pack of Badgers finish top four to lead UW to victory

Team Results
1.	Wisconsin	18
2.	DePaul	54
3.	Northern Iowa	69
4.	Illinois State	71

Individual Results
1.	Russell Sandvold	Wisconsin	19:01.7
2.	Tyson Miehe	Wisconsin	19:01.8
3.	Zack Benning	Wisconsin	19:01.8
4.	Ben Eidenschink	Wisconsin	19:01.8
5.	Chris Korabik	DePaul	19:05.1
8.	Oliver Hoare	Wisconsin	19:13.4
25.	Troy Smith	Wisconsin	19:56.4

MADISON, Wis. – A group of four Badgers crossed the line together to earn another victory for the men's cross country team at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course on Friday night.

Following a season-opening win at the Oz Memorial Invitational in Minnesota on Sept. 9, the No. 10 ranked Badgers followed it up with another team victory at the Badger Classic.

UW was led by senior Russell Sandvold, who won the six-kilometer race with a time of 19 minutes, 1.7 seconds. He was flanked by Tyson Miehe and Zack Benning most of the race, and both sophomores finished right behind Sandvold at 19:01.8. Joining the other three was freshman Benjamin Eidenschink, who placed fourth alongside Miehe and Benning at 19:01.8.

"Today was all about trying to run as a team and keep the pack together," UW Director of Track and Field and Cross Country Mick Byrne said. "We were just trying to get a good, hard tempo run in out there today."

Freshman Oliver Hoare placed eighth at the Badger Classic with a time of 19:13.4 in his first collegiate meet, while junior Troy Smith finished sixth for Wisconsin at 19:56.4.

"It was an opportunity to give some young kids who redshirted last year to get out there in uniform and have a shot and see where they are now," Byrne said.

The Badgers finished with 18 points to win the team title. DePaul finished second with 54 points, while Northern Iowa came in third at 69 points, just two points better than Illinois State.

Wisconsin will head to South Bend, Indiana, next weekend for the Joe Piane Notre Dame Cross Country Invitational on Friday, Sept. 30. The women will run a five-kilometer race at 1 p.m. followed by the men's five-mile race at 1:45 p.m.

"There's one thing running here today at the Badger Classic, but every week it just kicks up another notch," Byrne said.

"Next week we go up to Notre Dame and it's going to be a different ballgame up there, but certainly every time you get out there in uniform it gives you that opportunity to show what you are made of and contribute to the team."

UW will return home following the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational for the prestigious Nuttycombe Wisconsin Invitational presented by Under Armor on Oct. 14. The meet will be held at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Course at 11 a.m.