Four Cyclones qualified for the national tournament, and the team finished in second place at the NJCAA Region IV Championship at the Wayne E. Dannehl Cross Country Course in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
The goal for the No. 17 nationally ranked men was to win a region championship, particularly after coming off being crowned the week prior in the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference. However, rival Carl Sandburg College, another nationally ranked team, had a better day and took first.
"Even though we've been nationally ranked all season, we went into the meet as underdogs against Carl Sandburg College. As well as we ran, they were better on the day, and that is something out of our control," said Head Coach Dimitri Dimizas. "The men gave it their best effort. Even though they didn't reach their ultimate goal of getting to nationals as a team, they should still be proud of their season. We were able to get four qualifiers, so they have the responsibility of representing their teammates in two weeks."
As they have done all season, David Olmos and Brandon Armendarez led the way with their 3rd (26:48) and fifth place (27:44) finishes, respectively, out of 39 runners. Gavin Hampton and Jack Kajmowicz worked together throughout the race as they have done consistently this year. Hampton took 11th in 29:31, and although Kajmowicz wasn't 100%, he toughed it out for 14th place (30:05). All four earned All-Region honors, the second consecutive year for Armendarez and Hampton.
Ryan O'Connor crossed the line for the Cyclones in 18th place in 30:31 while Thomas Diaz was right behind him in 19th in 31:34. Efrain Alvarez finished in 27th place in 35:21. "These three ran admirably and should be proud of not only this race but also of their season," Dimizas said.
The four All-Region runners have a few weeks to prepare for the NJCAA Division II Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, Florida on Saturday, Nov. 12. They will join the three members of the women's cross country team who also qualified.
Complete results can be found here.