Inside the Hilltopper room at Onalaska High School, friends and family gathered around to celebrate Manny Putz. The Onalaska senior made it official, he will be running for the University of Wisconsin next season.
Putz is one of the top cross country runners in the nation at the high school level. He took visits to some of the top running schools across the country, but when it came to finding what was best for him, the answer was clear.
“Oregon had the best looking stuff. Oklahoma was my favorite color. But Madison, the team culture was amazing. They were so friendly to me. I was only there for two days for the visit, yet I had, like, the best time of my life there, and they treated me like family there,” said Onalaska senior, Manny Putz.
Putz become Wisconsin’s seventh three-time cross country state champion earlier in the fall, but his cross country season isn’t done yet. He is set to compete in the Foot Locker Cross Country Regionals at the end of November and will compete in the Nike cross country national meet on December 7th.