Men’s Cross Country Places 23rd at Nationals
By: Alex Kline, Assistant Athletics Director for Communications
JOPLIN, Mo. – The Cal Poly Pomona men's cross country team competed in the NCAA Cross Country Championships for the 23rd time in program history on Saturday morning, finishing in 23rd place in a field of 34 teams. The 10K race took place at Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course in Joplin, Missouri on the campus of Missouri Southern State University. This is just the second time CPP has ran the course, the only other time being the 2015 National Championships.
The team started the race off strong, checking in between 12th and 15th place through each of the first 6K benchmarks. However, by the 7K mark, the team had fallen to 18th. A late push by three schools then dropped CPP to 23rd in the final 1K of the race.
Ricardo Vargas led the Broncos with a time of 31:14.4, finishing 106th out of 260 runners. Vargas was the only Bronco to return to Nationals, having competed as an individual last season in University Place, Washington. His 2022 time of 30:53.2 was 21 seconds faster than his performance in 2023, having finished in 61st place.
Tom McDonnell was close behind Vargas, placing 111th with a time of 31:17.6. Leandro Candray came in third for the Broncos with a time of 31:26.7, finishing 123rd in the race. Candray led the Broncos in their last Nationals appearance in 2021, placing 105th with a time of 32:38.2 in Saint Leo, Florida. In Saturday's race, Candray checked in at the highest place of any CPP runner at 38th at the 1K mark.
Vincent Sarino, Nicholas Albro, and Daniel Echeveste all placed in the Top 175 of the race, finishing under the 32-minute mark. Francisco Zavaleta closed out the field for CPP, finishing with a time of 32:37.3.
Race Results from the NCAA National Championships in Joplin, Missouri!@CPPxctf places 23rd in a field of 34 schools, with an average time of 31:29.2. Ricardo Vargas led CPP with a time of 31:14.4 and placing 106 out of 260 runners 🏃♂️ pic.twitter.com/hgO93ArbAK
Bronco Bits
- Saturday was the 36th meet for head coach Chris Bradford in his sixth season at CPP.
- This was CPP's second time running the Tom Rutledge Cross Country Course in Joplin, Missouri as a team, the only other time coming at the National Championships in 2015 when the team placed ninth out of the 32 schools.
- In 23 appearances at the national level, the Broncos have had a Top 10 finish as a team 11 times – most recently in 2016. In 1983, they won the national title by finishing first out of `7 teams in Kenosha, Wisconsin.
- Wingate University claimed their first national title in Saturday's race, with an average time of 29:49.3 and six Top 50 finishes.
Latest Men's Cross Country
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- Broncos Secure 23rd Trip to NCAA Championships With Third Place Finish in RegionalsMONMOUTH, OR – The Cal Poly Pomona men's cross country team placed third in the NCAA West Regional 10K championships on Saturday morning, earning an automatic qualifier to the NCAA Championships in Joplin, MO on November 18th. This will be the Broncos' 23rd appearance on the national stage, and their first since 2021.
