Beaver, Williams Finish in Top 200 at NAIA Nationals
Columbia, Mo.–D’Artagnon Beaver (Sr., Rockford, Ill., Human Services) and Brandon Williams (Sr., Fountain, Colo., Engineering Technology) competed against the nation’s best Friday as they ran in the 69th Annual NAIA Men’s Cross Country National Championship.
College of Idaho came away with the team title at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course, scoring 87 points. Milligan (Tenn.) was a close second with 96 points.
Evert Silva of Oklahoma City blitzed the field with a winning time of 23:14.0.
Beaver finished 131st out of 326 finishers on the 8K course with a time of 25:21.5. He had three one-kilometer splits under 3:10 with a best of 2:56.9 in the opening kilometer.
Williams crossed the line in a time of 25:45.7 to place 195th overall. He went under 3:10 in two separate one-kilometer stretches.
The Championship appearance was the second for both individuals.
“Another season came to a close at the national meet, and I am glad to be able to say that,” Head Coach Caleb Drake said. “I am proud of the work Dart and Brandon have put in since June to help them compete at the highest level possible. They represented our school very well, not only in their performances, but also in the young men they are. They both embody the culture that our team has.”
“Dart and Brandon have done what we hope all members of our team do–leave the program better than they found it,” Drake added. “We have momentum for the future of the program and I am excited for the future of WPUXC.”
