Two in Top 20 as WPU Places Fifth in Nationals Preview
Columbia, Mo.–The William Penn men’s cross country team took advantage of a sneak peak at the NAIA National Championship venue as it competed at the Larry Young Invitational hosted by Columbia.
As a team, the Statesmen were fifth out of 21 programs with 177 points, while The Master’s (Calif.) won the title with 19 points.
TMU also had the individual winner as Jack Anderson finished first on the 8K course with a time of 24:36.9.
D’Artagnon Beaver (Sr., Rockford, Ill., Human Services) led the way for the navy and gold, taking 10th out of 218 runners in a time of 25:58.1. Brandon Williams (Sr., Fountain, Colo., Engineering Technology) was close behind him in 14th place at 26:14.
Andrew Miller (So., Le Claire, Iowa, Exercise Science) was the squad’s bronze placer, taking 35th at 27:18.6, and Ruben Perez-Rodriguez (Sr., San Antonio, Texas, Wellness and Recreation) crossed the line soon thereafter in 47th at 27:34.5.
Ethan Varvelo (Sr., Channelview, Texas, Engineering Technology) completed the team’s scoring by finishing 85th in 28:31.3.
Carson Springer (So., Grimes, Iowa, Business Management) paced the remaining Statesmen harriers as he was 138th (29:56.7).
“We had some fun while working hard in the heat,” Head Coach Caleb Drake said. “Our guys took some risks and most of them paid off, but most importantly, we grew a lot from this race. We showed we are a team to look out for within the conference. I look forward to seeing how we progress in the coming weeks. Our confidence is building, which is a great place to be.”
Next Up: William Penn is off until Saturday, October 5 when it travels to Cedar Rapids to battle in the Mount Mercy Seminole Valley Stampede at 9:30 a.m.
