The 19th annual UCCS Rust Buster Cross Country Meet took place last Saturday, Sept. 5 at Monument Valley Park. Students and parents lined up in the early morning heat to watch CCXC’s first home meet of the season. The Tigers were the only Division III team racing, which did not stop them from setting the bar high after both teams placed well in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference last year, with the women’s team placing 23rd at DIII nationals and the men placing 25th.
The women’s team scored 56 points, second only to UCCS, led by fourth-place finisher Charlie Flint ‘27 and Austin Cook ‘30 in fifth. Sadie Honig ‘29, Annie Schendel ‘30 and Lila Muirhead ‘30 rounded out CC’s top five racers, with the team’s top seven finishers completing the 5K in under 19:30 despite the heat.
“Having such a fun team with great pre-race energy was super awesome and fun. I was able to push myself and get super excited for the season ahead,” Cook said. The team’s energy and community were evident in the iconic use of face glitter on race day, a women’s team tradition that this year’s men’s team has picked up as well.
In the men’s 8K, the University of Colorado Colorado Springs placed first with 20 points, Metro State University in Denver placed second with 73 points and CC scored third overall with 75 points. Scores are based on the final rankings of a team’s top five runners. The team with the fewest points wins. Junior Diego Escalante finished fifth with a time of 25:54, followed by Vincent Mangat ‘28 in 14th, Aric Accetta ‘29 in 22nd, Lincoln Brewer ‘29 in 26th and Diego’s younger brother Mateo Escalante ‘30 in 27th. Accetta, whose cousin Kendall Accetta ‘23 led CC to its third straight SCAC victory in 2023, ran a personal record of 26:57.
The teams’ next home meet is Oct. 24 at Monument Valley Park, followed by the SCAC meet on Halloween, which will be hosted at home.