Fisher Outguns WWU Teammate Wetzel to Div 2 Championship – Updated: Photos

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BEND, ORE. – Defending collegiate champ Ryan Leech (Savannah College of Art and Design) hung tough early on, but the race quickly became a battler between Western Washington University teammates Steve Fisher and Logan Wetzel. The duo were shoulder to shoulder for much of the final lap, and it wasn’t until the top of the final climb up the stairs that Fisher had a gap of a few bike lengths and some breathing room that he’d hold to the line for the title.

Kevin Mullervy (Mesa State) exploded onto the dirt section to string out the pack, with Fisher, Leech, Wetzel, Conor Mullervy (Mesa State), Matthew Willing (Mars Hill College) and Ian Crane (Western Washington University) lined up behind him.

In the second lap, the WWU teammates found each other at the front and started to pull away. “Those guys just kind of went by me, my back jammed up. It felt like both days this weekend I just didn’t have the same feelings that I had last year,” said Leech, who raced his way to seventh in the Masters 30-34 race and is a former national champion in that division. This will be Leech’s final collegiate race, as the grad student just completed his final quarter. “No more old guy in the collegiate race,” said Leech.

Fisher managed to maneuver his way to a slight lead over the next couple of laps, and appeared to have the slight edge in the technical corners as he looked smooth and confident through those sections, but Wetzel’s chase was relentless. The two race many of the local series events in and around Seattle, and they’re well-versed in mud handling.

Just before the penultimate lap, Fisher pitted for a clean bike and the teammates were reunited. Coming into the front of the course for the final half-lap, Wetzel attacked hard to take the lead, and Fisher responded to hold him off. A second attack had Wetzel briefly take the lead, and they continued to battle for position.

“In the back field /upper section, we were throwing some little moves at each other, but really started battling back and forth right here,” said Wetzel, pointing to the drop down into the bowl.

“There’s a little tricky section over there [upper section] where it’s nice to be in front, but I wasn’t ever able to make a gap on him on the last lap, so I tried to ride as hard as I could and not make mistakes,” said Fisher. “But I think that leading in the last corner was probably the most important.”

Fisher had the slight edge as they hit the fly-over, and he fought to keep the lead and hold Wetzel off. They bounded up the stairs with Fisher clinging to a meager lead of a couple of bike lengths – but it was enough to get him onto the pavement first. At the line, he had time to celebrate the win with arms up, with his teammate waving to the crowd and conceding 10 meters back.

Two more teammates, who happen to also be twins, would round out the podium with Conor Mullervy snagging fourth and brother Kevin in fifth for Mesa State. The Mullervy brothers also race for the Clif Bar Development team for cyclocross and Team Exergy out of Boise, Idaho, on the road.

Full Results:

Place	Points	Name	City, State	Time	License	Bib	Team
1	150	Steve Fisher	Bellingham, WA	0:42:56	204225	262	Western Washington University
2	135	Logan Wetzel	Renton, WA	42:58:00	216334	253	Western Washington University
3	120	Ryan Leech	Savannah, GA	43:55:00	20753	251	Savannah College Of Art & Desig
4	105	Conor Mullervy	Boise , ID	44:26:00	237726	252	Mesa State College
5	90	Kevin Mullervy	Littleton, CO	44:44:00	237586	284	Mesa State College
6	85	Matthew Obregon	Folsom, CA	45:55:00	232613	289	California State University-Sac
7	80	Richard Geng	Grandjunction, CO	46:09:00	301115	257	Mesa State College
8	75	Ian Crane	Bellingham, WA	46:09:00	184284	269	Western Washington University
9	0	Brent Poole	Salem, OR	46:17:00	330598	279	Central Oregon Community Colleg
10	65	Matthew Willing	Weaverville, NC	46:39:00	284687	255	Mars Hill College
11	60	Patric Rostel	Grandjunction, CO	47:05:00	301113	278	Mesa State College
12	55	Adam Miller	Colorado Springs, CO	47:14:00	259059	266	Colorado College
13	50	Benjamin Dodge	San Jose, CA	47:30:00	178595	280
14	45	Kyle Knott	Virginia Beach, VA	47:35:00	274033	274	Mars Hill College
15	Exp	Brian Jorgensen	Bend, OR	47:36:00	186022	254	Central Oregon Community Colleg
16	38	Benjamin Rathkamp	Bellingham, WA	47:53:00	274079	286	Western Washington University
17	0	Alejandro Padilla	Lebanon, TN	47:55:00	269189	267	Cumberland University
18	34	Tim Janson	Troy, NY	47:56:00	260577	272	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institut
19	32	Cimarron Wortham	Cambridge, MA	48:02:00	253757	270	Massachusetts Institute Of Tech
20	30	Timothy Jenkinson	Mars Hill, NC	48:04:00	325110	263	Mars Hill College
21	28	Logan Luker	Lebanon, TN	48:13:00	226312	259	Cumberland University
22	26	Paul Webb	Bellevue, NE	48:43:00	268204	275	Mars Hill College
23	24	Benjamin Salibra	Fayetteville, NY	48:53:00	233370	260	Cumberland University
24	22	Christopher Mondiek	Dublin, OH	49:36:00	229657	281	Rochester Institute Of Technolo
25	20	Connor McCutcheon	Bigbearlake, CA	49:55:00	279388	261	Central Oregon Community Colleg
26	Exp	William Palm	Arlington, MA	49:59:00	126801	277	Massachusetts Institute Of Tech
27	18	Jeremy Chambers	Murfreesboro, TN	50:54:00	244154	258	Cumberland University
28	17	Dan Ipp	Livingston, NJ	51:30:00	301422	271	Rochester Institute Of Technolo
29	16	James McCabe	Bridgewater, NJ	51:44:00	267691	273	Wake Forest University
30	15	Andrew Lysaght	Cambridge, MA	52:07:00	327318	268	Massachusetts Institute Of Tech
31	0	Austin Jones	Lewisville, NC	52:50:00	329052	256	Wake Forest University
32	13	Samuel Phillips	Grand Junction, CO	@1Lap	288750	283	Mesa State College
33	12	Zachary LaBry	Somerville, MA	@1Lap	235849	285	Massachusetts Institute Of Tech
34	11	Patrick Dunn	Ticonderoga, NY	@1Lap	276042	264	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institut
35	10	Kyle Curtin	Tacoma, WA	@1Lap	328184	282	Pacific Lutheran University
36	9	John Wofford	Winston Salem, NC	@1Lap	219168	288	Wake Forest University
37	8	Chris Lowe	Winstonsalem, NC	@2Lap	289420	290	Wake Forest University
38	7	Matthew Warbrick	Tuxedo Park, NY	@2Lap	244750	265	Rensselaer Polytechnic Institut