Top Stories of 2023 in Ole Athletics

The 2023 calendar year was a notable one for St. Olaf College Athletics, as the Oles won national and conference championships, set numerous school records, earned conference, regional, and national accolades, and so much more. From a year's worth of memorable moments, games, meets, races, tournaments, and matches, here are a handful that stood out from a banner year on the Hill!

Hubanks sweeps individual titles at USCSA National Championships

7.5K Classic Recap | Skate Sprint Recap | 15K Skate Recap

In early March, Lily Hubanks swept the three individual titles at the 2023 U.S. Collegiate Ski and Snowboard Association (USCSA) National Championships to lead the St. Olaf College women's Nordic skiing team to the combined team title. By winning the 7.5K Classic, Skate Sprint, and 15K Skate events, Hubanks became just the third competitor - and the first Ole - to complete a sweep of the three individual events since at least 2011.

The three individual national championships brought Hubanks' total to four for her career after seh won the 15K Classic as a first year in 2022. As a team, St. Olaf posted first-place finishes in the 7.5K Classic and Skate Sprint, and was the runner-up in the 15K Skate, to finish atop the combined standings for the second season in a row and the sixth time since 2011.

Morgan called up to U-23 Costa Rica National Team

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In early October, senior forward Hakeem Morgan of the St. Olaf College men's soccer team was called up to the Costa Rica U-23 National Team for a pair of international friendlies in his home country. Morgan was one of just two NCAA student-athletes - along with one from Division I - on the 23-player roster for the Oct. 14 and Oct. 17 friendlies against Colombia.

Morgan appeared in both games as a substitute, coming on in the 83rd minute of a 2-2 tie in the first game before entering in the 63rd minute of a 3-2 victory three days later.

Volleyball appears in NCAA Tournament for first time since 2019

Match Recap

The St. Olaf College volleyball team put together a strong run late in the season to earn a spot in the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2019. Starting in mid-October, the Oles went 12-1 over a 13-match stretch that included a reverse road sweep of fourth-ranked Northwestern and a five-set win over UW-Stevens Point before falling in a five-set thriller at Gustavus in the championship match of the MIAC Playoffs.

The late-season surge helped head coach Emily Foster's team land an at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament, where St. Olaf pushed No. 14-ranked WashU over the final two sets of a three-set defeat in the opening round in Mount Vernon, Iowa. The Oles finished the season with 21 victories, which was the program's highest total since 2019 and its fourth 20-win season under Foster.

Women's cross country logs third-straight top-20 national finish

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For the third season in a row, the St. Olaf College women's cross country team finished in the top 20 at the NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships by placing 16th in Newville, Pa. The Oles outperformed their national rakning by four spots in the 19th top-20 finish in program history.

Head coach Erica Maker's program competed in the national meet for the 13th time in the last 16 seasons and the 28th time in program history. 

Men's cross country wins MIAC title, 13th at NCAA Championships

MIAC Championships Recap | NCAA Championships Recap

The St. Olaf College men's cross country team put together another highly-successful season that included a second consecutive MIAC team title and a 13th-place finish at the NCAA Championships.

Head coach Brian Power's team repeated as the MIAC champion by placing six runners in the top 11 to finished 31 points ahead of crosstown-rival Carleton at the Knights' home course. The back-to-back titles were the first for the Oles since a run of five in a row from 2012-16.

After earning an at-large bid into the NCAA Championships, St. Olaf recorded its highest finish at the national meet since 2015 by placing 13th. Senior Will Kelly led the way by earning his second All-America accolade in a row, as the Oles posted their 15th top-15 national finish.

Men's soccer wins first national title in treble-winning season

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The St. Olaf College men's soccer team won the NCAA Division III national title for the first time with a 2-1 come-from-behind overtime victory over Amherst in Salem, Va., completing a season that saw the Oles also claim the MIAC regular-season and playoff titles.

After falling behind early in the second half, St. Olaf got a goal from Hakeem Morgan to tie the game and a goal from Casey McCloskey just 1:08 into overtime to top the Mammoths in the national championship game. The national title was the first for a MIAC men's soccer program, as well as the second NCAA team title in school history, and made St. Olaf the western-most program to win the title since Trinity (Texas) in 2003.

Led by first-year head coach Justin Oliver, the Oles finished the season on a program-record 22-game unbeaten streak (19-0-3) following a 1-3-0 start and earned their first No. 1 ranking in the year-end United Soccer Coaches Top 25.

Lundin inducted into USTFCCCA Coaches Hall of Fame

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Former St. Olaf College head men's cross country and track and field coach Phil Lundin was inducted into the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA) Coaches Hall of Fame in mid-December.

Lundin, who spent a combined 34 seasons at St. Olaf from 2008-20 and led men's cross country to the 2013 national title, was one of six decorated coaches enshrined in the Class of 2023. Lundin was the second St. Olaf coach (Chris Daymont) and the third MIAC coach to be inducted into the USTFCCCA Coaches Hall of Fame.

St. Olaf registers best-ever fall in LEARFIELD Directors' Cup

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After recording its highest-ever fall point total, St. Olaf College was 16th out of over 430 NCAA Division III institutions in the LEARFIELD Directors' Cup following the fall season.

Highlighted by the men's soccer national championship, St. Olaf earned 246.5 points from four fall sports to surpass the 200-point mark in the fall for the first time ever. The 246.5-point total gave the Oles the highest total among MIAC members for the third fall in a row.

The LEARFIELD Directors' Cup honors institutions maintaing a broad-based program by awarding points based on each institution's national finish in the NCAA Championships.