Cruz, Boisseau named All-Americans, Tiger cross country team places eighth

Led by sophomore Miquel Cruz and freshman Esteban Boisseau garnering All-American honors, the Cowley College men's cross country team placed eighth at the NJCAA Division II National Championships held on Saturday in Richmond, VA.

Cruz was in the running to win the 8,000-meter race as he took the lead at the 6K mark.

"Miquel ran a gutsy race but faded a little bit over the last 800 meters, which the other runners took advantage of," Cowley head coach Cameron Rieth said.

Still, Cruz managed to finish fourth out of 315 runners. Meanwhile, Boisseau probably had the most impressive performance, running a 30-second personal best time of 25:48.9 while placing 11^th.

"Esteban ran out of his mind to finish 11th overall," Rieth said.  

Lansing Community College took home the national championship, while Paradise Valley's Jackson Bland was the top individual finisher with a time of 25:14.0.

Cowley's number three runner, Kevin Rivas, was running up near Boisseau through the 6K mark before seemingly dropping out because of a stomach issue.

Other Tiger runners were; Tiger sophomore Manuel Leos placed 62^nd with a time of 27:15.8, while fellow sophomore Deshawn Douglas finished in 95^th place with a time of 27:48.7. Freshmen Pedro Balenstrini (28:02.9) and Conner Walker (29:10.8) rounded out the Cowley runners by placing 110^th and 194^th, respectively.

"The results were not what we were hoping for, but I think the experience was good for the future," Rieth said. "We will regroup, have a little bit of a break, and get in some training for the indoor track season."

Before the meet, Cruz was named Men's USTFCCCA D-2 Cross Country West Regional Athlete of the Year.