Another step forward for Barton Men’s Cross Country, Cougars place 15th nationally

Taking another step towards program respectability, the Barton Community College men's cross country team completed the season Saturday placing 15th in the nation at the 2014 NJCAA Division I Cross Country Championship in Lubbock, Texas.  Held at the Shadow Hills Golf Course, the No. 22 ranked Cougars placed fourth out of fellow Region VI teams after coming in 6th two weeks ago at the region championship.   Barton completed the 8k race in a combined 2:17:57 to average 27:35.40 as three Cougars placed amongst the nation's best 100 runners. 

Region VI runner up Sampson Laari led the Cougars with a seventh place finish coming in at 25:05 and four seconds behind Butler Community College's Kennedy Chumba and just a second ahead of Colby Community College's Michael Kinuthia.  Laari finished second to Kinuthia at the region championships and had outraced Chumba by ten seconds two weeks prior.

All-Region selection Devyn Brotherton completed his freshman season cracking the nation's Top 50 runners as the Wyoming native crossed in 26:40 to earn a 46th placing.  Texas freshman Tony Perez was the third Barton runner to finish in the Top 100 placing 92nd in a time of 27:48.  

Dodge City freshman Elder Colindres ran one of his best races of the season to place fourth on the Cougar team coming in 148th in 29:09 and six seconds ahead of teammate Tyler Thornton who also ran one his better races to come in at the 151st spot in 29:15.  

Marcus Pastran finished in 174th as the Abilene freshman timed a 29:48 mark while Great Bend's Kole Stiner rounded out the Barton entries with a time of 33:28 to come in at 213rd.