COLUMBIA, Mo. -- Run in ideal conditions of overcast skies and cool temperatures and contested over one of the most finely created cross country courses in America, a majority of the Bruin men's cross country squad etched their names into the record books at Friday's Gans Creek Classic in Columbia, Missouri. Meet hosts University of Missouri had over fifty squads in attendance as the races were divided into Division I and Open races. The course features slightly rolling terrain with immaculately prepared grounds and features such as video scoreboards that will be the site for the 2024 NAIA Cross Country Championship in November.
The Open race featured ten ranked or receiving votes NAIA teams as the Bruins placed twelfth of 15 NAIA squads and 21st of 26 total entered teams. The Bruins did squeeze out a twelve-point win over conference rival Dakota State to retain their No. 1 ranking in the NSAA. The top five scorers averaged 26:43.8, which was a team record. Individually, it was a record-setting day over the eight-kilometer distance, beginning with a freshman all-time best by Xavier Mallow as he ran 26:05.6 to place 134th in the 389-runner field.
He was followed closely by Jose Lara Flores who posted the second fastest time for a junior with his 26:10.3 in 144th place. Fellow junior Luis Casallas Vega moved to No. 5 with a 26:56.0 clocking in 201st. At 236th, Collin Kotz ran the fourth fastest time for a fifth-year senior while Ronald Kipyegon (257th) made the freshman list at no. 10 in 27:27.1. Griffin Kipchumba Kisoryo (308th in 28:04.3) and Robbie Siford (314th in 28:09.7) also turned in lifetime bests for the distance. Jaedon Maxfield rounded out the Bruin finishers with a 339th place run of 28:46.3.
Head Coach Craig Christians: "It was great for the team to have a championship experience like we had today. The course is a little bit of cross country heaven, and the high-level competition made it feel very special. I was encouraged by our performance with all the personal bests. Neither Dakota State nor Bellevue ran with all of our men today, and today's outcome is a great example of how close we are. Every one of our guys is going to need to be at his best when we get to Valley City in November if we want to win the conference and get back to Gans Creek for the national championship."
The Bruins will use a two-week training block to prepare for their next meet, the Holiday Inn Express Classic hosted by Dordt on October 12.
