(Courtesy ASU Athletics)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. – Led by first time all-American Brandon Birdsong (Lubbock, Texas) and fellow senior Ryan McNiff (Los Alamos, N.M.), who finished together amongst the top six, the Adams State College men’s cross country team lived up to its No. 1 ranking Saturday morning, winning a third straight and record setting eighth NCAA Division II National Championship with a score of 57 points at E.P. “Tom” Sawyer State Park.

Adams State placed its five scoring runners in the top 24, and all seven Grizzlies in action earned all-America status for a convincing win over arch-rival Western State which finished as the runner-up with 102 points.

Rounding out the top five teams were Grand Valley State (Mich.) in third with 135 points, Colorado Mines, the third Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference (RMAC) squad, in fourth overall with 151 points, and Chico State (Calif.) in fifth with 179. Augustana (S.D.) gave the Central Region four teams in the top six, amassing 299 team points.