Iowa Time Machine ⏰: On November 23, 1985, the Luther College men’s cross country team claimed the NCAA Division III national championship. The lone national championship in the school’s history, Coach Kent Finanger’s team took home the title with the help of a late surge from Craig Crandall to claim the crown.
Finanger, who also served as a professor of anatomy and as the school’s basketball coach, brought his team to Atlanta, Georgia, for the championships with realistic expectations. St. Thomas, who had bested Luther in the regional meet just a week prior, stood in the way of the Norse runners hoping to make history at the championship meet. Boasting a lineup that featured Al Livingood of Oelwein, Stephan Sandness, Eric Olson, Brian Hawes, Loran Storts, and Crandall, the team lined up in the balmy southern heat for a championship run.
The course, which featured a steep climb at the 2.25-mile mark, challenged the pack of runners as the race got underway. The Norse runners got off to a good start, hoping to place the five runners necessary to compete for a top spot on the podium. As Storts encountered the large hill, he gave way to heat exhaustion. With hopes rapidly evaporating in the heat, Finanger yelled to Crandall that his time would count as the fifth man. Crandall dug deep, climbing from roughly 105th to 57th place while outpacing other runners up the brutal final hill.
When the results came in, the Norse topped the team standings. Livingood finished 11th, Sandness finished 13th, Olson finished 18th, Hawes finished 31st, and Crandall finished 57th. Overall, Luther finished with 98 points, distantly outpacing North Central (Illinois), who put up 150. St. Thomas, the scourge of the week prior, finished a distant fifth. When the Norse returned to Decorah, the school celebrated the “miracle” championship with a campus-wide reception. #IowaOTD #IowaHistoryDaily #IowaHistoryCalendar
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