The UNM men's and women's cross-country teams had an impressive showing in the NCAA Mountain Regional Championships meet Saturday in Provo, Utah, with a pair of sophomores leading the way.
Sophomore Matt Gonzales ran an outstanding 10,000-meter race for the men, finishing ninth to advance to the NCAA National Championship meets in Greenville, S.C., on Nov. 19. He became the first Lobo since April Brannon in 1997 to earn a spot in the National Championship field. The top-10 finishers qualify for nationals. He also helped lead the men's squad to a ninth place finish in the regional meet, improving on a 12th place finish from last year.
Gonzales, who took second at the Mountain West Conference Championships in Albuquerque Oct. 27, completed his first 10K of the year in a time of 31 minutes, 28.6 seconds. He finished 36.3 seconds behind the winner, the University of Colorado's Jorge Torres.
Other Lobo runners had impressive outings, with sophomore Ben Ortega finishing just five seconds behind Gonzales to end the race in 11th place. He was the Lobos' top runner in the Region Championships last year, finishing in 26th place. Sophomore Chris Orrell, freshman Cameron Clarke and sophomore Sean Flaherty crossed the finish line in 45th, 53rd and 71st place, respectively.
UNM improved by 109 points over its performance at last year's Mountain Region Championships, finishing with 189 points. Colorado ran away with the team title.
On the women's side, sophomore Jackie Gallegos ran her fastest time of the year in the 6,000-meter race, finishing in 19th place with a time of 22 minutes, 29.8 seconds. Sophomore Sarah Gonzales, senior Kim Baca and freshman Venaasa Funston finished in 42nd, 86th and 87th place, respectively.
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