MEQUON — The Carthage men's cross country team opened its 2026 season with a third-place finish at the Ken Weidt Classic on Saturday morning on the campus of Concordia University Wisconsin, scoring 65 points in the men's 8,000-meter race. The Firebirds competed against seven teams, with Wis.-Whitewater taking the team title with 42 points and Wis.-Parkside finishing second with 53.
 

 
Carthage scored 65 points to finish third overall. Wis.-Whitewater won the team title with 42 points, followed by Wis.-Parkside (53), Carthage (65), Harper College (113), Concordia (Wis.) (117), Maranatha Baptist (171), and Moody Bible Institute (190).
 

 
Junior Andrew Schaer led the Firebirds in his season debut, placing third overall in 26:33.1 on the 8K course. Senior Luke Davey followed in 10th place at 27:22.9, while junior Harlan Matson finished 12th in 27:31.4. Sophomore Joe Johnston crossed the finish line 18th in 28:00.8, and sophomore AJ Ripper rounded out Carthage's scoring five with a 27th-place finish in 28:58.8.



Post-race with Head Coach Josh Henry:

Andrew Schaer led the Firebirds with a third-place finish in 26:33.1. What stood out to you about his performance in his season debut, and what does it say about his potential as the season progresses?

"Andy has put in a lot of quality work during his first two years at Carthage and I think he's in line for a year three breakout. Leading us today is just a small indicator of what I think he is capable of this year. For him to run a lifetime best in the first meet of the year in warm conditions speaks to his current fitness level and mental toughness."

Carthage put four runners in the top 20 and finished third with 65 points. How did you feel about the team's overall pack?

"I was happy with how we worked together early in the race but our packs split up after the first half. I think our intent to run as a team was there today but we didn't execute as well as we could have when things got tough."

With St. Olaf up next, what are the biggest areas you want the team to work on after today's opener, and what are you hoping to see from the Firebirds in Northfield?

"We approached today with a little more internal focus being it was the first race of the season. Heading to St Olaf we'll look to be a little more externally focused, with the goal of competing well with the other teams around us. In order to do so, a big focus will be our packs working together a little better when the race gets challenging."


 
The Firebirds return to action on Saturday, Sept. 19 at the St. Olaf Invitational in Northfield, Minn. The race begins at 11 a.m. For more information, visit athletics.carthage.edu.