[caption id="attachment_68182" align="aligncenter" width="600" caption="Monmouth's Trish O'Dwyer."]
The University of Wisconsin, coached by Dublin native Mick Byrne, won the NCAA Division 1 Men's Cross Country Championship in Terre Haute, Ind. last week.
The Badgers traded on their depth to snag the title; they had only one top-10 runner, but finished in 17th, 23rd, 36th and 46th places to claim the victory. Their 97 points left them well clear of runner-up Oklahoma State, with 139.
"We're national champions, you can't be anything but happy," said Byrne, who is in his fourth year in Madison, Wis. after almost two decades at the helm of Iona. "We had that target on our back all along, being ranked number one and we knew it was going to come down to a real tough battle, and that's how it played out.
"It's no secret that I left the comfort of New York to come here. I left my family behind. This win today is for my family."
Arizona's Lawi Lalang won the individual title, finishing the 10,000-meter course in 28:44.1. Providence College senior David McCarthy, from Waterford, placed 41st in 30:14.9. Florida State's Breanden O'Neill, a senior from Sandymount, Dublin, got 52nd place with a time of 30:24.1. Iona freshman Jake Byrne, from Mullingar, Co. Westmeath, was the 224th man in; he finished in 32:08.8.
Villanova, coached by Marcus O'Sullivan, finished 13th among teams. Providence, coached by Ray Treacy, placed 22nd.
Byrne also earned accolades as National Men's Coach of the Year from the United States Track & Field Cross Country Coaches Ass'n. Earlier, he was named Great Lakes Region Coach of the Year and Big Ten Coach of the Year.
"This year was truly a special season for myself and our guys on this team, but I also think back on all the athletes I've coached here and back at Iona," Byrne said. "They're the ones that kept the fire in my belly through the years to keep pursuing a championship."
FIELD HOCKEY
Richmond freshman Rebecca Barry is an All-Atlantic 10 Conference first team selection. The Limerick resident started all 23 games for the Spiders (16-7) and scored 10 goals with three assists.
Monmouth's Trish O'Dwyer earned All-Northeast Conference first team honors. The sophomore out of Dublin scored 16 goals and had a team-high eight assists for the Hawks (15-6).
