JOPLIN, MO –
Dawson Strom headlined a strong performance for the University of Mary men's cross country team which produced a 6
th place team finish at the NCAA Central Region championships, the top finish at the regional in program history.
With three finishers in the top 45 of the 31-team field, the Marauders finished with a team score of 231. The NSIC runner-up once again finished second among conference teams. Augustana won the team title with 43 points, followed by Missouri Southern (81), Pittsburg State (92), Nebraska-Kearney (171), Central Missouri (179) and UMary. The Marauders placed just ahead of Forth Hays State (244) and Northwest Missouri.
"The men laid everything out on the course today," said Marauders head coach Jamison Dietrich. "We had an outside shot to qualify for nationals and because of this, we tried to be aggressive. The opportunity was there and we had to attempt it. The guys hung in there really well but it wasn't the outcome we were hoping for. We swung for the fences but fell a little short.
"I'm happy with how we approached the race and the fight the guys had. We aren't quite there yet but you never know until you try. We still ended up 6th overall, which is our best finish ever in program history. This men's team has made so many big leaps in recent years. They finish this season as being the best team in NCAA program history. I'm excited for the future of this men's team. These guys have redefined what a successful season looks like at the University of Mary."
Strom finished 24
th overall to earn NCAA All-Region honors for the first time. The Moorhead, MN, native traversed the 10,000 meter course in a time of 30:37.7.
Jesse Kaas and
Robert White finished just five seconds apart. Kaas placed 41
st overall with a clocking of 31:23.2. White checked in with a time of 31:28.2 to finish 45
th.
Guillermo Fregoso and
Timothy Moore wrapped up the Marauders team scoring. Fregoso placed 59
th in a time of 31:50.5. Right behind in 62
nd place in the field of 207 runners was Moore with a clocking of 31:53.5.
Also racing for the Marauders was
Alex de la Maza (67
th in 32:02.0) and
Ethan Maish (105
th in 32:47.6).
The Marauders wrap up a season in which UMary won the Dragon Twilight for the first time, had the program's best finish at the prestigious Roy Griak Invitational, and a program-best runner-up finish at the NSIC championships.
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