Trojan Men Deliver Strong Showing in Top-Ten Finish at NAIA National Championships
VANCOUVER, Wash. – The No. 10 Taylor (100-32) men's cross country team delivered an outstanding showing at the NAIA National Championships, finishing ninth out of 36 teams.
After a breakout performance in the Crossroads League Championships, Taylor continued its late-season breakout, with all seven runners finishing in the top half of the 331-man field.
Taylor had a team time of 2:09:5, which led to a clean 300 points, only two behind eighth-place Dordt.
The ninth-place finish is the third top-ten mark for Taylor alongside its national championship in 2021 and its runner-up finish in 2020.
Freshman, Nathan Burns paced the Trojans and became the 17th individual to earn NAIA All-American Honors for the men's cross country program. Burns led Taylor in all but one race throughout the year, and he earned his 32nd-place finish with a time of 25:31.8.
The sensational sophomore duo of Ryan Hanak and Luke Harber were the second and third Trojans to cross the finish line in 56th and 63rd, respectively. Hanak came on strong to end the year, finishing in the top two in each of the final three competitions. Harber was steady for TU, finishing second or third on the squad, with a time of 26:01.3.
Ben Eiffert finished his Taylor career with an 88th-place finish fueled by passing 22 athletes in the final 1000M of the race. The senior ran a mark of 26:10.7 in his final collegiate race.
Alex Ortiz was another TU runner who picked up steam at the end of the season. The sophomore notched his personal best in the Crossroads League Championships and was close to it with a mark of 26:17.6, which earned him a 102nd-place finish.
Zach McKowen and Joel Mumaw were the sixth and seventh Trojan runners. The duo was closely paired the entire race and ended up in 136th and 139th, with times of 26:31.8 and 26:33.0 respectively.
Milligan won a tight race with Saint Mary (Kansas), finishing with 93 points compared to 98. The Trojans finished second among the four Crossroads League schools participating. Indiana Wesleyan finished fifth, while Grace and Goshen finished in the top sixteen.
Along with Eiffert, Zane Callison, Nate Conkel, and Jack Hammond closed the book on their collegiate running careers on Friday afternoon, while Taylor is set to return 18 runners to the program next year.
