Edgar Kosgey '10

Williams has achieved cross country success since the team's inception in 1912. Early triumphs under Coach Charles 'Doc' Seeley (1912-1934) included New England titles in 1916 and 1924. Hal Brown '20 was New England Champion and went on to capture the Gold Medal in the 3,000 meter team race at the 1920 Olympics in Antwerp, Belgium. Tony Plansky, two-time national decathlon champion, coached 44 years at Williams (1935-78). His last nine teams of the '70s compiled an 87-19-1 dual meet record including undefeated seasons in 1970, 1975, and 1977. Pete Farwell took the helm in 1979, and the Ephs compiled a 34-meet win streak with undefeated years 1979 and 1980. Since 1970 Williams has won the traditional Little Three rivalry with Amherst and Wesleyan 35 of 37 years!

Williams cross country came into its own in 1992 with convincing victories in the 11-team NESCAC conference and the New England Division III Championship. Seth McClennen '93, freshman Marzuki Stevens '96, and Chad Kurtz '94 qualified for the NCAAs. 1993-1998 saw repeats of those victories, which secured a team berth for the NCAAs. The 1993 Ephs placed fourth to capture a coveted team trophy. Jeremie Perry '96 led the charge in a 9th place All-American finish. Perry returned in 1994 to conquer the field, emerging as individual national champion with a speedy 24:41 clocking on a challenging 8k course. The Ephs packed in three more All-Americans (Stevens 7th, Tim Billo '97 22nd, and Creaghan Trainor '96 29th) with Greg Crowther '95 wrapping up the team score of 98 to edge perennial champ North Central (Illinois)'s 110. That top five won NESCAC and the 32-team Albany Invitational (Yale in 2nd). Perry was named 1994 Runner of the Year by the U.S. Track Coaches Association.

1995 found the Ephs 3rd in the All New Englands (behind only Providence and Dartmouth), winning the Dartmouth Invite, and repeating as NCAA Champs! At the Nationals Stevens (4th), Perry (7th), Billo (13th) and Long (26th) kicked in for All American finishes, and freshman Paul Alsdorf's 52nd clinched the 83-91 margin over North Central once again. 1996's three All Americans led the team to the conference title and 5th at NCAA's: Alsdorf 10th, Billo 18th, and Matt Buck 23rd. 1997 and 1998 squads ran the streak of conference titles to 5 and regional crowns to 7. In 1998 Alsdorf challenged for the national win, finishing runner-up, while Dan McCue '99 out-kicked 9 runners to place 7th for the best 1-2 punch in Williams harrier history as the team again gained the podium with its 3rd place finish. The 2000 squad featured three All-Americans - Dusty Lopez '01 24th, Tim Campbell '01 31st, and Andy Golden '03 33rd - who led the team to a NESCAC Championship and a 5th place team finish at Nationals.

Connor Kamm '10

In 2001, despite losing all three of those All-Americans, Williams managed to qualify for NCAAs for a ninth consecutive year, thanks in part to standouts Wes Reutimann '02 and Karl Remsen ‘03. The 2002 rose to the occasion in the championship season, copping 2nd in the NESCAC conference, 3rd in the New England III region, and finally succeeding all expectations with a remarkable 7th place finish (top New England team) at the NCAA championship. Remsen led the squad all year, ran 24:41, and earned All-American honors (14th place). So did Neal Holtschulte in 22nd place, top first year finisher in the nation! Neal went on to be the top class finisher in the nation each year, taking consecutively 6th, 2nd, and finally National Champ finishes in 2003-2004-2005, to become the first Williams male 4-time cross country All American. He led the team to another 7th and a 6th place at nationals, backed up by Stephen Wills ’07 (30th place All-American in 2005). The 2005 squad showcased team depth by winning the ECAC Championship with the ‘Second Seven’, and the 2006 group repeated, with the top 7 winning the NESCAC title for the first time since 2000, and the New England III region for the first time since 1998. Another great team race garnered a national 7th place finish despite no All-American placers, as Wills, Brendan Christian ’09, Mike Davitian ’07, and Corey Levin ’08 packed in tightly.

The 2007 Ephs won the Little Three Championship (20th), NECAC Championship (2nd straight) and the ECAC Championship (3rd straight) before closing out the seasonw ith a 10th place finish at the NCAA Championships.

Sophomore Edgar Kosgey won NCAA New England qualifier and finished 36th at NCAAs, missing All-American honors by one spot.