Men's Cross Country Moves Up to #5

Daytona State men's cross country moves up to #5 this week in the USTCCCA coaches poll.  After a strong run at the Seminole Invitational on September 26th at Florida State University, the Falcons moved up one spot from two weeks ago, and 15 spots from the preseason poll.  The Falcons have had a history of finding their way into the top five in recent years and have had two podium finishes at the national meet, finishing second in 2021 and third in 2023.  With a strong freshmen class leading the way, the Falcons have been able to put together a tight pack, with a spread of less than a minute separating their first five runners.  In cross country, the first five runners score with their finish place.  The Falcons have been lead most recently by Caden Baker and Jeffrey Belizaire, but they have been followed closely by Hayden Clark and Michael (Luke) Brewer.  These four have a strong supporting cast in sophomores Nikolas Boone, Spencer Lawrence and Nathan Henning.  "We held Hayden, Nik, and William Hernandez out of a race or two early due to minor injuries that we wanted to heal up.  Will had a really good race and we are excited to see what he can do in the coming weeks. We are just now getting the group to learn how to race together and they did a solid job at FSU," commented Coach Judy Wilson.  The Falcons will be back in action on October 11th in Muskegon, Michigan for the Jayhawk Invitational.