Results

RIVERSIDE, Calif. - Senior Izzak Mireles led the UC Irvine men's cross country team to a second-place finish at the Highlander Invitational Saturday morning at UCR Ag/Ops Course.
 
The 'Eaters totaled 72 points with three individuals in the top-15. Mireles, who led the Big West field, was the overall runner-up with a 6000-meter personal-record 17:56.9. He topped his previous best by over 12 seconds. This was Mireles' highest finish of the year and his third top-three showing, as he was also third at the Pepperdine Invitational and Master's University XC Invitational.
 
Sophomore Hector Garcia took ninth with a career-best 18:09.3, while junior Jon Rodriguez was 15th with a lifetime-best 18:19.7. Junior Ashton Garcia came in next for the Anteaters, placing 22nd with a PR 18:28.2, and freshman Ravi Sharma was not far behind in 24th (18:30.2).
 
Sophomore Sam Ayala (18:34.4) and junior Andrew Graciano (19:28.3) rounded out the team's top seven.
 
Five of UCI's six returners established a personal record, while the team's three freshmen were running their first collegiate 6K.
 
Cal State Fullerton claimed the team title with 58 points and Pepperdine's Nick Heath was the individual champion at 17:49.7. The 'Eaters finished six points ahead of UC Santa Barbara for their first win over the Gauchos in 10 years.
 
UC Irvine returns to UCR Ag/Ops Course in two weeks for the Big West Championships on Saturday, Oct. 28.

 
HIGHLANDER INVITATIONAL
UCR Ag/Ops Course - Riverside, Calif.
Saturday, Oct. 14
 
Men's 6K Team Results (12 Teams)
1. Cal State Fullerton (58)
2. UC Irvine (72)
3. UC Santa Barbara (78)
4. UC Riverside (131)
5. CSUN (146)
 
Men's 6K Individual Results (122 Runners)
1. Nick Heath - Pepperdine (17:49.7)
2. Izzak Mireles - UC Irvine (17:56.9)
3. Isaiah Lozano - UC Santa Barbara (17:58.9)
4. George Martinez - Long Beach State (18:00.0)
5. Solomon Demeku-Ousman - UC Riverside (18:00.8)
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9. Hector Garcia (18:09.3)
15. Jon Rodriguez (18:19.7)
22. Ashton Garcia (18:28.2)
24. Ravi Sharma (18:30.2)
30. Sam Ayala (18:34.4)
78. Andrew Graciano (19:28.3)
89. Kit Carter (19:46.7)
103. Xavier Weaver (20:19.2)