BYU’s powerhouse cross-country program delivered two Big 12 Conference championships Friday in Waco, Texas. Both the women’s and men’s teams claimed the team trophies.
The women’s team, ranked No. 1 in the national polls, placed five runners in the top 13 to win its second straight conference championship. BYU’s Lexie Lowry, Riley Chamberlain and Taylor Rohatinsky finished fifth, sixth and seventh respectively, while Carmen Alder placed 10th and Destiny Everett 13th.
The race was won by West Virginia’s Ceili McCabe.
BYU finished with 41 points, followed by West Virginia, 60, and Utah, 86.
Utah, ranked No. 6 in the national polls, was led by an eighth-place finish from Erin Vringer.
The men’s team, ranked No. 2 in the national polls, produced a major upset in defeating No. 1-ranked Oklahoma State, the defending national champions. The Cougars finished with 41 points (the same score as the BYU women’s team), followed by Oklahoma State, 52, and Iowa State, 62.
Casey Clinger, a senior from American Fork, finished third in the 8,000-meter race with a time of 22:08.2, one of five BYU runners to finish in the top 12.
James Corrigan, the Olympic steeplechaser, was seventh, followed by Joey Nokes (eighth), Creed Thompson (11th) and Lucas Bons (12th).
The race included three of the top four ranked men’s teams in the nation — No. 1 Oklahoma State, No. 2 BYU and No. 4 Iowa State.
Next stop: Qualified teams will compete in the NCAA mountain regional Nov. 15 in Reno, Nevada, the final stepping stone to the NCAA championships.
