SANTA CLARA, Calif. — Men's cross country is off to a strong start through two meets in 2017, and the Broncos have reached the highest USTFCCCA regional ranking in program history. Santa Clara checks in at No. 13 in the week three poll, released Monday.
The team's prior highest ranking was No. 14, a spot Santa Clara held for five straight weeks at the beginning of the 2014 season. The Broncos have earned a spot in the regional rankings for the second straight season and three of the last four years.
Stanford is the top-ranked team in the west for the fourth straight poll, including preseason. Fellow West Coast Conference members Portland (4), Gonzaga (10) and San Francisco (11) were also recognized among the west region's 15 best teams.
Santa Clara held down its home course, Baylands Park, by sweeping a dual meet against Saint Mary's last Friday morning. The Bronco men tallied 24 points in the 6-kilometer race while the Gaels had 38.
On the men's side, Santa Clara scored at 2-4-5-6-7 and had seven runners place in the top nine overall. Jack Davidson (2nd – 17:54.44) spent most of the race ahead of the pack and was edged by top overall finisher Raymond Boffman (17:51.16).
Joey Berriatua (4th - 18:26.15) took fourth place to lead a group that featured six Broncos with a spread of just over four seconds. Zach Litoff (5th - 18:26.22), Ben Davidson (6th - 18:26.32) and Evan Misuraca (7th - 18:27.57) also scored for Santa Clara.
XC VIDEO | Ben Davidson Talks #SCUBroncos Sweep of Saint Mary's, 2017 Season #StampedeTogether FULL INTERVIEW ▶️ https://t.co/lgRbq40OGL pic.twitter.com/S362mFeRQW
— Santa Clara Broncos (@SCUBroncos) September 26, 2017
NEXT MEET
Santa Clara splits its squad for the Chile Pepper Festival (men – Fayetteville, Arkansas) and Capital Cross Challenge (women – Sacramento, California) on Saturday. Those meets mark the final tune-up races before the teams return home for the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational — also held at Baylands Park — on Saturday, October 14.
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