Bruin Men Have Personal Record Day at Dordt
SIOUX CENTER, Iowa -- The Bruin men's cross country squad averaged an impressive 48-second improvement per man at Saturday's Holiday Inn Express Classic hosted by Dordt University. Nine Bruin men who had raced previously this fall cut time as they finished ninth in a very competitive sixteen-team field. Along the way, they established team bests for average time among the top five and top seven runners as well as bests in the time gaps between those runners.
The three-loop, eight-kilometer course on the campus of Dordt University features firm footing and gently rolling terrain. This morning's race was conducted in ideal conditions, with temperatures in the low 50s and little wind. Due to the growing size of the field, two races were held, with 287 athletes participating. All Bruin men competed in the Gold race, which included all of the sixteen entered teams' top ten runners. The Bruin men were once again led by senior Jose Lara Flores, who finished 25th overall with a lifetime best of 25:31.7, where he currently ranks seventh in the Frontier Conference. Xavier Mallow cut twenty-two seconds from his season best with a 26:09.3 clocking in 55th. He was followed closely in 61st by Jack Brown with a half-minute improvement to 26:13.2. Cody Fikar had the breakout of the day, cutting over two minutes to 26:33.0 and 79th place. Rounding out the top five scorers was Luis Casallas in 97th and a forty-second improvement to 26:57.4. That group of scorers averaged 26:16 for 8K, the fourth-best team average in program history.
Only thirty-seven seconds separated the next four Bruins led by Griffin Kipchumba at 101st with a half-minute personal best of 27:02.2. At 120th, Ronald Kipyegon raced for the first time this season and finished 120th in 27:35.8. Trey Larson and Robbie Siford battled to the line with Larson running 27:39.6 to Siford's 27:39.7 for 122nd and 123rd place respectively. Both set lifetime bests. Finally, Alejandro Corona Martinez reduced his life best by over a minute with a 31:16.2 clocking in 147th place.
Head Coach Craig Christians: "I was really proud of the guys today. That's what this is all about. You use each other's energy, and you go to work every day, getting better, and we did an amazing job of that today. There were some hanging heads after the race, and that's only because they know there's more time to cut out there. This group is hungry to improve. We had nine guys finishing within two minutes of each other today, and I'm sure that's a benchmark we've never achieved in this program's eight-year history. That is exciting."
The Bruins will compete against NAIA-only competition next on Oct. 25 at the Blazing Tiger NAIA Classic, hosted by Doane University and the College of Saint Mary. The meet will be held at Mahoney State Park with the first race starting at 10:00 AM.