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DENVER, Colo. – Racing within what is considered the toughest region in all of NCAA Division II, the No. 17 West Texas A&M men's cross country team rolled to a fourth place finish in the NCAA South Central Regional Championship in Denver, Colo. on Saturday morning. With the top-six finish, the Buffs will now advance to the NCAA Division II National Championships for the second-consecutive season. WT would be led by three All-Region performers who crossed the line in the top-25 individually.
"It was a great team effort today," said head coach
Darren Flowers. "I feel like we have more in our legs and I'm excited for the opportunity to go back to the NCAA Championship!"
The SCR Championships were held at Washington Park in Denver, Colo. and was hosted by Metro State University out of the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC). The men competed in a 10K race for the first time this season. Only the top-six teams from the region advance to nationals while the top-three individuals from non-qualifying teams and any top-five individual also qualified.
Making it out of the region were No. 1 Adams State (first place, 38 points), No. 3 Colorado Mines (second, 41 points), No. 9 Western State (third, 71 points), No. 17 WT (fourth, 123 points), Colorado-Colorado Spring (fifth, 185 points), and Colorado Mesa (sixth, 191 points).
The Buffs were led by three United States Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches' Association (USTFCCCA) All-Region performers (top-25 individually) in freshman
Geoffrey Kipchumba (16
th, 32:55), senior
Brett Villarreal (19
th, 33:10), and senior
Armando Rueda (22
nd, 33:22). Also scoring for the Buffs were sophomore
Steve Lagat (26
th, 33:28) and junior
Zach Daniel (40
th, 34:02). Senior
Baptiste Moreu and junior
Cameron Gifford would also run for the Buffs Saturday, placing 41
st and 50
th, respectively.
Two weeks ago, Flowers earned Coach of the Year honors for the third-consecutive season after leading the Buffs to their second-straight LSC Championship on Nov. 8 at Hawk Ridge Golf Course in Wichita Falls, Texas. WT dominated on the men's side with a total of 28 points.
The NCAA Division II Cross Country National Championships will occur on Saturday, Dec. 6, at E.P. Tom Sawyer Park in Louisville, Ky. It will also feature a 6K for the women and a 10K for the men. The races will be hosted by Bellarmine University with support from the Louisville Sports Commission and the Louisville Convention and Visitors Bureau.
