CLAREMONT, CA — Matthew Salas led the Leopards with a top-15 finish and Jeremiah Alarcon set a new personal record to lead the University of La Verne men's cross country team Saturday morning at the Pomona-Pitzer Invitational.

From the Coach

"The men put together a very similar race, spread-wise and time-wise, compared to two weeks ago at the Coyote Challenge," said Head Coach Justin Wood. "I think today's course was a little harder than two weeks ago so I can see some progress in the men's team. They will be ready for next week at Pre-Nationals and I expect, conditions permitting, some big drops in times and a really solid team result."

The Leopards finished in fifth place as a team, finishing in from of SCIAC schools Caltech, Cal Lutheran, Whittier, and Chapman as well as NAIA Vanguard.

Salas took 13th overall with his personal record. His time of 26:34.8 placed as the eighth fastest 8K in La Verne history.

Alarcon took 29th with his new best time of 27:17.7. Eric Lopez-Elwell finished close behind Alarcon with a time of 27:41.3.

Marcelo Arcos (27:55.3) and Kyle Regret (28:12.1) rounded out the top-five for the Leopards.

Next Race

The Leopards take a trip to the Midwest next to compete in Pre-Nationals. The meet at Oshkosh, Wisconsin will take place on Saturday, October 13 at 11:20 a.m.