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Division III

Wisconsin-Oshkosh looking to put an end to Cortland State's dominance

Overview: Since 1989, Cortland State has won every team championship with one exception. The team that ended a two-year Red Dragon winning streak in 1991 -- Wisconsin-Oshkosh -- has hopes this year of ending a four-year reign. Wisconsin-Oshkosh, runner-up in 1995, has the talent and depth to do so. With a lineup that includes seniors Joey Balsis and Amanda Dabalack, the Titans occupy the No. 1 spot in the coaches' top-25 poll. Dabalack and Balsis are the squad's top returnees. The senior duo both earned top-25 finishes last year. Also contributing are senior Nicole Iverson and juniors Tiffany Speckman and Laura Nelson .... Wisconsin-Oshkosh's bid for the team championship will not be easy. Cortland State, St. Olaf, Calvin, Williams and Wisconsin-La Crosse also have their sights set on the championship. The Red Dragons' bid for an unprecedented fifth consecutive title is led by Julie Donnelly and Cindy Lauzon, both of whom provide a wealth of championships experience -- they finished eighth and 31st, respectively, in 1995. Calvin, runner-up at three of the last four championships, still is looking for its first title. Betsy Haverkamp, fifth overall last year, leads a squad that also includes Andrea Clark and Kristie DeYoung. Williams and St. Olaf finished eighth and ninth last year, respectively. Ellen Roh and Amy MacDonald lead the way for Williams, while Jayna Mathieu and Anna Leighton are among St. Olaf's top performers.

Field: A total of 184 individual competitors will be selected. Twenty-one teams of seven individuals -- at least one team from each of eight regions -- plus 37 individuals (at least three individuals from each region) will make up the field.

Dates and sites: Regional qualifying will be November 9 at eight sites. The championships will be November 16 at Augustana (Illinois).

Information/results: The fax-on-demand telephone number is 770/399-3060 (passcode 1915); request numbers are 1290 for dates/sites/schedule and 5078 for championships results. Championship results also will be available on the World Wide Web at www.ncaa.org. Results will be published in the November 25 issue of The NCAA News.

Championships notes:Balsis, Speckman and Jennifer LaLonde each earned top-10 finishes as Wisconsin-Oshkosh outdistanced St. Olaf and Wisconsin-La Crosse, among others, at the Tori Neubauer Invitational October 12 .... Cortland State claimed its 13th consecutive State University of New York Athletic Conference title behind Lauzon, who won the individual crown.