UW-Eau Claire Men & Washington (Mo.) Women Nab NCAA DIII Program of the Year Awards

NEW ORLEANS — Two things were abundantly clear after the conclusion of the NCAA Division III Indoor Track & Field Championships in mid-March, as it pertained to race for Program of the Year: No one was going to catch UW-Eau Claire’s men and the women’s award would come down to if Washington (Mo.) or MIT had a better showing at the outdoor meet.

Well, the Blugolds kept their foot on the gas and the Bears’ third-place finish in Waverly, Iowa sent them to the front of the line.

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UW-Eau Claire and Washington (Mo.) are both first-time winners of their respective Program of the Year Awards when the final standings were released Wednesday by the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

The USTFCCCA Program of the Year Award is bestowed annually to the most outstanding cross country/track & field programs in each of the NCAA’s three divisions and for each gender. The award honors the institution that has achieved the most success in each academic year (spanning the cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field seasons) based on the institution’s finish at the NCAA Championships.

In order to be eligible for the award, teams must qualify for each of the NCAA Championships. Scoring is based on the team’s finish at each NCAA Championship in cross country, indoor track & field, and outdoor track & field (i.e. 1st = 1 point, 2nd = 2 points, 31st = 31 points) with the lowest total score for all three championships combined determining the award recipient. Ties among schools split points for positions taken.

Last year the Blugolds finished runner-up in the race for the Al Carius Program of the Year Award, but this year they left everybody else fighting for second.

Back-to-back thrilling wins in cross country and indoor track & field left UW-Eau Claire one outdoor title away from becoming the first team since North Central (Ill.) in 2010-11 to complete the Triple Crown. The Blugolds fell short of that goal with a runner-up effort in Iowa as they scored 33 points to UW-La Crosse’s 41.

UW-Eau Claire trumped its rival in the Program of the Year standings, hauling in four points compared to the Eagles’ 13. The aforementioned Cardinals took third place with 19.5 points, followed by St. Olaf (21) and Williams (28.5).

The race for the Deb Vercauteren Program of the Year Award wasn’t as clear-cut.

2014-15 winner MIT and Washington (Mo.) were tied with eight points after the indoor championships. The Engineers finished third and fifth in cross country and indoor, respectively, while the Bears had the inverse.

When the dust settled outdoors, Washington (Mo.) took third this past weekend and MIT stumbled home in a tie for 31st. The Bears were led by multiple scorers in the 800 and 400 hurdles, and a runner-up effort in the 4×400 relay.

Washington (Mo.) tallied 11 points in the Program of the Year standings, while second-place UW-La Crosse notched 22. SUNY Geneseo moved up to third (30), followed by MIT (40) and UW-Oshkosh (43).