The UCSB men’s cross country team finished 17th out of 31 teams at the NCAA National Championships at Furman University, in South Carolina, in the Gauchos’ first ever NCAA appearance.

Senior Josh Horton placed 17th overall in the 10,000-meter race, coming in with a time of 29:49 to pace Santa Barbara. UCSB Head Coach Pete Dolan labeled Horton’s race as “his best race as a Gaucho.”

Fellow senior Eric Gans finished in 102nd place and in the 79th team scoring position.

Junior Katie Appenrodt was the sole representative from the women’s squad and she finished 81st in the 6k race.

Rounding out the men’s team, junior Brandon von Guenthner stomped in 130th with a time of 31:15, senior Aaron Sharp came in 142nd with 31:25, junior J.T. Service (149, 31:28), sophomore Chris White (178, 31:49) and junior Bryon Lamorandier (215, 32:32).

The Gauchos came into the meet ranked 18th in the country and improved one slot. With the strong showing, Santa Barbara ranked in the elite 4 percent of all Division I programs in the nation.

Colorado captured the Championship over Stanford, beating out the Cardinal by one point.

-Nexus Staff Report