Complete Results | USI Results Only

SPOKANE, Wash.—Running on a snow-covered course, blowing snow, and in temperatures that were in the mid-20s, the No. 11 University of Southern Indiana men's cross country team ran to a seventh-place finish out of 24 teams at the NCAA II National Championships Saturday afternoon.

Junior Michael Jordan finished the 10k course in 31 minutes, 47.80 seconds to lead the Screaming Eagles. Jordan finished 21st in the 187-competitor field to earn All-America honors for the first time in his career.

“Michael ran a really smart race,” Head Coach Mike Hillyard said. “We talked last night about him going out and getting into the top 30 early. He did that and stayed in that group for most of the race. He faded a little bit from the seven to nine kilometer mark, but made up about four spots in the final 200 meters.”

Seniors Dustin Emerick and Brendan Devine, both of whom are two-time All-Americans on the cross country course, struggled with the conditions. Emerick, who finished 55th, faded away from the top 40 down the stretch, while Devine rolled his ankle early in the race before finishing 67th.

As a team, the Eagles finished with 267 points, 57 behind sixth-place Augustana College and 23 ahead of ninth-place University of Alaska Anchorage. Western State College had five runners finish in the top 13 as it captured the team championship with 27 points, while Western State's Ryan Haebe won the individual title with a time of 30 minutes, 45.10 seconds.

“If you would have told me before the race that Brendan Devine and Dustin Emerick would not finish in the top 50 and we would still finish seventh, I would've said you were nuts,” Hillyard said. “It's a testament to the rest of the guys and to Michael's performance. He had a huge day and it's nice to see all his hard work come to fruition.”

Junior Michael Callison and sophomore Efrain Flores finished 80th and 89th, respectively, while senior John Latta and freshman Tyler Pence rounded out the Eagles' lineup with finishes of 99th and 113th, respectively.

“Michael Callison, Efrain Flores, John Latta, and Tyler Pence were really solid for us today,” Hillyard said. “They went out and did what they were supposed to do and that really helped us.”

The seventh-place finish for the Eagles marks the third straight top 10 finish for USI at the national meet and the fourth in the last five years. The Eagles were 10th last year and sixth in 2009.