Three Runners to Compete in NCAA Division III Championship
Junior Sarah Fowler (Mount Vernon/Fredericktown), Sophomore John Sotos (Dublin/Coffman) and senior Zak Geiger (New Concord/John Glenn) will represent Ohio Wesleyan at the NCAA Division III championship meets this weekend.
The women’s and men’s races are to be held Saturday at Lake Breeze Golf Club in Winneconne, Wisconsin, and hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. The women's race is scheduled for noon Eastern time. The men's race is scheduled for 1:30 p.m. Eastern time.
Fowler will be making her third consecutive appearance at the NCAA Division III championship meet. Last year, she competed as an individual in the meet held at Mason, Ohio, and finished 94th.
Fowler finished sixth among individuals in the NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional championship meet on Saturday in Terre Haute, Ind. She covered the 6000-meter course in 22:06.7 to win all-region honors for the third consecutive season. The sixth-place finish was her best in a regional championship meet, improving on her ninth-place finish in 2014 and her 26th-place showing in 2013.
On Oct. 17, Fowler ran on the national championship course when Ohio Wesleyan competed at the AAE Invitational, hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. She finished eighth among individuals, completing the 6000-meter course in 21:31.85, as Ohio Wesleyan finished 17th of 46 in a field containing numerous nationally ranked teams.
Fowler followed that race by winning North Coast Athletic Conference Runner of the Year honors at the NCAC championship meet on Oct. 31. Fowler won the race in 22:32.4 for the 6000-meter course. It was her third consecutive first-team All-NCAC citation, following a fourth-place finish in 2014 and a sixth-place showing and NCAC Newcomer of the Year laurels in 2013.
In Saturday's NCAA Division III Great Lakes Regional championship meet on Saturday in Terre Haute, Ind., Sotos and Geiger each claimed all-region honors. Sotos placed seventh among individuals, finishing the 8000-meter course in 25:33.4, to take all-region laurels for the second straight season. In last year's regional meet, Sotos finished fourth.
Geiger finished 11th in 25:39.2, also repeating as an all-region selection. He finished 27th in the 2014 regional meet, missed all-region honors by a single place with a 36th-place finish in 2013, and was 90th at the 2012 regional meet.
On Oct. 17, Sotos and Geiger ran on the national championship course when Ohio Wesleyan competed at the AAE Invitational, hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh. Sotos finished 13th among individuals, covering the 8000-meter course in 25:00.0, and Geiger finished 48th in 25:26.8 as Ohio Wesleyan finished 17th of 45 teams in a field containing numerous nationally ranked teams.
At the North Coast Athletic Conference championship meet on Oct. 31, Sotos finished sixth among individuals in 25:29.8 to earn first-team All-NCAC laurels, moving up from second-team All-NCAC status last year. Geiger finished 15th in 26:05.4 to receive honorable mention All-NCAC recognition for the third consecutive season.
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