DECORAH, Iowa—Led by three-time Most Valuable Performer Joe Freiburger, the No. 1 Wartburg Knights men's cross country team took home their fourth consecutive American Rivers Conference Championship.
 
Freiburger defended his third straight individual title, clocking in at 25:04.3 for top honors and a new course record. Christopher Collet of the Knights took runner-up honors, trailing Freiburger by 6.6 seconds. The top-4 Knights across the line were broken up by Ryan Harvey of Loras in third place.
 
Junior Morgan Shirley-Fairbairn (25:13.7) and senior Sam Pinkowski (25:26.1) found spots in the top-5, while Alec Ille clocked in at 25:36.3 for an eighth-place finish to round out scoring for the Knights.
 
Matt Heinzman and freshman Connor Lancial landed in the top-15 for the Knights. The Knights had seven athletes received All-Conference honors, as finishing inside the top-15 earned that distinction. 
 
The Knights had a spread of 32-seconds between Freiburger and Ille as the team tallied 20 points, winning the championship by nearly 40 points.

Head coach Ryan Chapman and assistant coach Phil Spitzer were voted Coaching Staff of the Year. This is Chapman's fourth honor on the men's side. 
 
Following their fourth consecutive A-R-C title, the Knight are slated to continue action on Nov. 6 at the Saga Cup in Decorah. The men's race is slated to begin at 3:30 p.m.
 
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