MILWAUKEE – The Milwaukee cross country teams will travel to Fort Wayne, Ind., for the Horizon League Championships hosted by Purdue Fort Wayne on Saturday. The men will run the 8K at 10 a.m. (CT), followed by the women's 6K at 11 a.m. (CT).
 
The Panthers will compete once again at the Mastodon Cross Country Course, the site of the Rumble in the Fort held earlier this season on Sept. 20. In their previous appearance, the Milwaukee men earned a fourth-place finish with 109 points, while the women's squad placed third with 101 points.
 
THE HORIZON LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIPS
In the last eight seasons under head coach Andrew Basler, the Panthers have seen success at the Horizon League Championships. Since 2018, the women's team has claimed four Horizon League titles, while the men have recorded four top-four finishes. Basler has also seen two women's runners crowned individual Horizon League Champions, with Anelise Egge winning in 2024 and Meg Swietlik securing the victory in 2020.
 
Last season's Horizon League Championships held in Green Bay, Wis., the Panther women finished in fifth-place out of 11 total teams. Earning 111 points, the team was led by Egge, who took home an individual victory, clocking a time of 21:07.9 in the 6K race. In addition to her individual title, Egge also received All-Horizon First Team honors. In her prior Horizon League Championships, she finished fifth as a sophomore and a 10th place finish as a freshman.
 
The Black & Gold had another runner finish within the top 10 a year ago with Rachel Helm coming in 10th at 22:04.0. Helm picked up All-Horizon League Second Team honors for her efforts.
 
The men claimed a ninth-place finish at last year's Championships, receiving 207 points as a unit. Notable performers for the Panthers included Sam Schreiber who came in 32nd-place (25:55.0), Cullen Boyle who crossed the finish line 54th (26:24.7), and Will Whiteis who claimed a 58th-place finish (26:28.3).
 
LAST TIME OUT
At the Bradley Pink Classic hosted in Peoria, Illinois, the Panther women claimed a 17th-place finish out of 24 total teams. Milwaukee's top finisher was Egge, who took home a 10th-place finish in a loaded 205-runner field.
 
The outing marked Egge's fourth top-10 finish of her senior season, and it led to her being named Horizon League Female Runner of the Week for the second time this season.
 
The next Panthers to cross the finish line were Rachel Helm and Janiyah Taylor, who clocked times of 22:42.07 and 23:01.33, respectively.
 
Milwaukee's men's team came in 20th at the event, registering 486 points.
 
Key contributors included Sam Schriber who finished in 67th-place (25:20.73) and Will Whiteis who secured a 99th-place performance on the day. Zach Moss also stood out for the Black & Gold, setting an 8K personal best with his time of 26:49.41.
 
UP NEXT
Milwaukee will look ahead to the NCAA Great Lakes Regional hosted by Evansville on Friday, Nov. 14.