Men's Cross Country Take Sixth at SCAC Championship

October 28, 2023

SEGUIN, Texas - The University of Dallas men's cross country team ended their season at the SCAC Championships hosted by Texas Lutheran University on Saturday.  The Crusaders finished in sixth place with 179 points in the field of seven eligible schools; Centenary had participants in the race, but not enough to qualify for the team leaderboard.  The athletes were tasked with battling oppressive humidity and a sloppy, muddy course as a result of the storms moving through the southern U.S. this week.

Colorado College were the winners with 24 points, occupying five of the top 10 spots, including the individual champion James Settles who finished with a time of 25:01.027

Nico Walz led the way in the final meet of his career, finishing in 55th place with a time of 30:18.240.  Thomas Skendzel finished in 60th with a time of 31:54.330.  Bruce Reed overcame a troublesome start to his race and finished 64th with a time of 32:34.512.

James LaTour, also running the final race of his career, finished in 67th with a time of 33:15:009, and Tim Kus rounded out the field for Dallas in 71st place with a time of 39:31.547.

Paul Simko, who has been a solid number five for the Crusaders all season, was forced to withdraw from the race due to dehydration.

"I'm happy with what the team did today," said head coach Nick Schneigert. "Everyone was battling the heat and the humidity, not to mention the mud. It was tough to see that Paul had to withdraw, because he's been solid for us all year, but thankfully it didn't affect our spot in the standings and we were still able to beat Schreiner.  My freshman recruits soaked in the experience and we improved immensely from last season.  All have developed nicely, and we will only get better as we continue to bring in more talent."

The Crusaders will now have a lengthy break, but all of the cross country athletes will  be returning in the spring for the track and field season.

"The off-season is really important for us; my athletes know how important it is and are prepared to put in the work.  Track season is right around the corner, and I'm excited to see how they will continue to progress," said Schneigert.