Campus Connection

UWL welcomes D3 national and state track & field meets

At the end of May nearly 900 athletes from across the nation came to UWL to compete at the 2018 NCAA III Track & Field Championships. “We’ve done this before and we’re pros at putting this on,” says Josh Buchholtz, UWL Head Men’s Track & Field Coach and meet director for the WIAA competition. Buchholtz has been here for the last two times UWL hosted the collegiate meet. He was a coach in 2013 and an athlete competing for UWL in 1997. The head women’s coach, on the other hand, is brand new to the experience. “It’s really exciting to see this all come together in my first year,” says Nickolas Davis, the WIAC Women’s Coach of the Year. “I’m happy with where we’re heading and think this weekend will be a great one.” [RELATED: Views of the 2017 WIAA State Track Meet]

WIAA state track meet

The best Division III collegiate athletes warmed up the track and field for the Wisconsin State High School Track and Field Meet, June 1-2. The WIAA meet, running for the 29th consecutive time in La Crosse, set an attendance record last year with 21,007 attendees. The La Crosse County Convention & Visitors Bureau estimates the WIAA meet brings in about $4 million to the Coulee Region. Buchholtz calls hosting the meets exciting. “We get to show off everything we do here and why people love this community.”

Alumni reunion

The UWL Alumni Association celebrated the great tradition of UWL Track & Field at an alumni reception Friday, May 25, at the Student Union. A special thanks to Brian Vandenberg ’84, for creating a Matching Gift Challenge in support of the UWL Track & Field program. Vandenberg matched every gift made to the men’s or women’s track & field program up to $5,000. The Vandenberg challenge was a huge success, and more than $20,000 was raised through the generosity of alumni.