Antczak to retire after 31 years with Pioneers

PLATTEVILLE, Wis. – Tom Antczak will retire after 31 seasons at the helm of the University of Wisconsin-Platteville men's and women's cross country programs. Antczak also served as the head men's and women's track and field coach from 1993 to 1996 before becoming assistant middle distance/distance coach.  

In cross country, Antczak has led the men's team to the NCAA Division III national meet eight times since 2000, with the best finish of a fourth place trophy coming in 2010. He guided the women's team to a 12th place finish at the 2007 NCAA Division III Cross Country Championships. 

Individually, on the men's side, Antczak has coached 23 cross country All-Americans. In addition to three NCAA DIII national cross country championship individual titles, since 2000 his athletes have won seven NCAA Regional cross country championship individual titles. The rest of the WIAC men's programs have won six in the same time-period. His men have won eight WIAC conference cross country championship individual titles, while the next two WIAC programs combined have won eight. Under his direction, the women's team has garnered five All-American honors and won a regional and conference individual title.  During his tenure, the Pioneers accumulated 91 All-Regional cross country team honors and 93 WIAC All-Conference honors.

The Pioneer cross country teams regularly win academic honors as well, with the women having attained USTFCCCA All-Academic Team status 26 out of the last 29 years and the men doing so 14 times.  Finally, the Pioneers have had eight cross country athletes win the prestigious WIAC Scholar-Athlete Award.   

On the track, Antczak has coached 87 All-Americans since 2000 including 18 NCAA Division III individual national champions. He also coached a national championship record setting Distance Medley Relay team on both the men's and women's side. Since the start of the new millennium, combining both men's and women's middle distance/distance track and cross country All-Americans, the Pioneers have produced over 100 All-Americans which ranks 2^nd in the WIAC conference.    

The individual honors include 18 National Champions in events ranging from the 800-meters indoors to the 10,000-meters outdoors.  He has produced six National Athletes of the Year, and three Outstanding Athletes of the National Meet. His athletes hold two all-time NCAA DIII national track records, the men's 10,000 meters at 28:38.63 and the women's 1000m at 2:47.37.  Numerous other track performances also rank in the all-time top 10 for NCAA DIII athletes.      

At the conference level in track his athletes have won 60 individual titles, nine relay titles and have set eight conference meet records as well as eight conference all-time best records.  Additionally during his tenure the distance/middle distance runners have set over 200 school records.   

Antczak has also coached two of his athletes to the Olympic Marathon Trials and one to a fourth place finish in the 1,500-meters at the 2005 USATF Indoor National Championships in 3:46.55, a time which still stands as the all-time WIAC indoor record.   

During his competitive career, Antczak reached near world-class status, qualifying for three Olympic Marathon Trials (1976, 1980, 1984), winning two Marathon National Championships (NAIA/1978/Abilene, TX & USATF/1979/Houston, TX) and placing fifth at the New York City Marathon (1978) and 12th at the Boston Marathon (1982).  Antczak ran collegiately at UW-La Crosse, where he was the 1978 NAIA national marathon champion setting a national meet record.  

In 2013, Antczak was inducted into the UW-Platteville Athletic Hall of Fame in the coaching category. He was also inducted into UW-La Crosse's Wall of Fame in 2000 for his own collegiate running achievements.  

A national search will commence December 1 for the next head cross country and assistant track and field coach.