PROVO, Utah – BYU men’s cross country swept the Autumn Classic with a perfect score of 15 points to get the season started Saturday at the Clarence F. Robison Track and Field Complex in Provo.
Freshman Dallin Farnsworth took first place overall after overtaking senior teammate Aaron Fletcher in the last 100 meters.
“I didn’t think I was going to get him (Fletcher), actually,” Farnsworth said. “I thought he was going to turn it on. I think he just wanted to jog it in. He’s been a great team leader for me.”
Farnsworth, Fletcher, and sophomore Connor McMillan, who finished third, led the race from start to finish. Newcomer Clayton Young came in fourth and Mitchell Briggs finished fifth overall among attached runners. Coach Ed Eyestone was very pleased with the team’s showing.
“When you can put six or seven of your runners ahead of Utah Valley University, which has a solid program, and perfect score them then you feel pretty good about things,” Eyestone said. “I don’t think UVU had necessarily the best day in its history, but it was a nice opener for us.”
Eyestone mentioned his runners’ preparation as one of his biggest takeaways from the meet.
“I’m super pleased with the work the guys did over the summer. Their race today was a direct correlation to the work they put in during the summer months when coach isn’t there to crack the whip over them. I think we’ll be able to use this as a springboard for a really good season.”
He thinks the performance bodes well for more challenging events ahead.
“I’m really happy that our top four, and specifically our top three, were able to break away and run together as a pack. It’s good preparation for meets later in the year when there will be more highly ranked teams. When you score 15 points at a meet you feel really good about it. That’s all you can ask for.”
There were also a number of unattached runners who made impressions on Saturday. They could very well see time in upcoming meets based on their performances in the only home meet of the season.
“We had a couple of guys running unattached just because we didn’t know how they were going to figure in,” Eyestone said. “Steve Morrin was one of those guys and Nicolas Montanez was another. They ran well enough in my mind that I’m going to go back to the office and take a good solid look at them. They certainly made a compelling argument to be running in uniform when we go up to Spokane.”
The Cougars won the Autumn Classic for the eighth year in a row.
Next up for BYU is the WCC Preview on Saturday, Sept. 19, at 10 a.m. PDT. The meet will be hosted by Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington.
Click here for complete race results.