INFO | NCAA Division II XC Championship results (HTML)
 
Kenosha, Wis.----The Wingate University men's cross country team placed five runners inside the top 30, claiming its second NCAA Division II title in three years during the 2025 NCAA Division II national championship meet Saturday. The University of Wisconsin-Parkside hosted the historic event at the Wayne E. Dannehl National XC Course in Kenosha.
 
Wingate's fearless Frenchman Antonin Saint-Peyre, backwards ball cap ever ready, finished second in the 259-runner field with his 10K time of 29:41.8. The top eight runners broke the 30-minute barrier on a brisk-and-windy, 45-degree Saturday. Adams State (Colo.) senior Kidus Begashaw won the individual title, thanks to his 10K time of 29:38.8.
 
The Bulldogs defeated Adams State 62-71, the same nine-point margin they achieved over Colorado Mines when they won their first national title in 2023. In the last four NCAA championships, the '25 South Atlantic Conference and Southeast Region champions have finished second, first, second and first overall.
 
Meet Information

Top five teams: Wingate (62 points), Adams State (71), Colorado Mines (121), Grand Valley State (122) and Western Colorado (162).
Individual finishers: 259 student-athletes with 34 schools recording a team score
Location: The Wayne E. Dannehl National XC Course in Kenosha, Wisconsin
 
Quotables
 
Wingate senior student-athlete Antonin Saint-Peyre
 
"The only thing that was on my mind was to put Wingate University on the top of the scoreboard, a second time. As of Saturday, November 22, Wingate is national champions again…that's the only thing I was obsessed with during the race…to do my best for all the people who care about this team. Go Bulldogs!"

Inside the 10K Race Results

- Only 32 seconds separated Wingate's No. 2 runner from its No. 5 finisher
- SAC individual champ and WU junior Samuel Gilson took ninth (30:00.2)
- Senior stalwart Luca Poppe finished 15th (30:17.2)
- Sophomore Arthur Faroux was next, earning 20th place (30:23.3)
- Junior Joaquin Campos rounded out the WU top five in 29th (30:32.0)
- Senior Lars Laros finished 31st, thanks to his 10K time of 30:42.6
- Earlier this month, Laros was named the SER Runner of the Year
- Sophomore Alex Durant finished in 40th place with his 30:50.7 10K time
- Forty runners earn USTFCCCA Division II All-American honors
- All seven of Wingate's student-athletes received this distinction

Coaches' notes from #WUXC assistant coach Jacob Willis
 
"The starting gun goes off and the men go to the left of the tree to start the race. At the 1K mark, the entire top seven was in nice-controlled paces around 3/3:10, having the team out to a controlled third-place start. At the 2.2K barrier, the Bulldogs had three in the top 10 with the others following close behind with all seven in 48th place or better."
 
"At the 3.2K plateau, five Bulldogs were in the top 20 amongst the lead pack…led by Luca Poppe, Antonin Saint-Peyre and Joaquin Campos. At the start of the second loop going back up the hill, the Bulldogs made a commanding statement to maintain their place in the front pack. Lars Laros started to make moves into the top 40 as well."
 
"Towards the end, the Bulldogs hung tough and fought hard. The end was nail-biting…a wait-and-see scenario to view the results as it was too close to call. In the end, Ant's strong push to the line led the Bulldogs to another national championship."
 
Notables

- The South Atlantic Conference had a huge day, as Anderson (S.C.) finished eighth
- The AU Trojans were led by junior Elliot Dotson, who finished 45th (30:50.5)
- Adams State's Kidus Begashaw was in 18th place with less than 1K remaining
- WU had a strong fan base with 25 student-athletes making the journey
 
Up Next
 
The Wingate cross country teams will switch their focus to indoor track and field in December.
The Bulldogs open the 2025-26 indoor campaign on Saturday, December 6 with two meets: The Sharon Colyear-Danville Season Opener at Boston University and the JDL College Kick-Off in Winston-Salem. The Bulldogs will also send student-athletes to the JDL Early Bird Invitational on Sunday, December 7.