Men's Cross Country Named ASUN Champions

Friday, March 5

Macon, Ga.

12 p.m.

University of North Florida

2020 ASUN Championship

2021 ASUN Men's Cross Country Champions team picture with trophy

3/5/2021 12:41:00 PM | Men's Cross Country

Results

Meet: ASUN Men's Cross Country Championship
Location: Macon, Ga.
Date: Friday, March 5, 2021

COURSE REPORT

The North Florida men's cross country team was named ASUN Champions after dominating the field, placing four runners in the top five. Nathan Jubran earned Runner of the Year with a first place overall finish and Jake Turner earned Freshman of the Year after placing sixth overall. Head coach Jeff Pigg earned ASUN Coach of the Year for men's cross country. The Ospreys put seven runners on All-Conference teams.

As conference champions, the North Florida men's cross country team has a chance to receive a bid to the NCAA Cross Country Championships. The 2021 DI cross country championship selection show will be at 1 p.m. Sunday, March 7.

"It was great to be back out there competing," said head coach Jeff Pigg. "Today's race was a test as to how well the kids would handle competition after having off time due to the pandemic. Their performance today was a testament to what they accomplish on their own time and what they do when no one is looking. They put work in during quarantine and it's good to see it pay off."

FINISH LINE

Nathan Jubran, the men's champion, led the field with a first place finish and a time of 24:38.4
Sophomore Aidan O'Gorman (25:09.6) and Senior Leo Queyrou (25:13.5) placed second and third respectively
Noah Perkins placed fourth in his first meet back with the Ospreys, finishing the course in 25:17.2
Freshman of the Year Jake Turner finished sixth with a time of 25:42.3
Robert Pedroza, Timothy Doyle, and Anderson Bobo completed the top-20 finishers for North Florida, placing 11th, 14th, and 19th respectively

PIGG'S POINTS

"The men bought into practicing hard and doing the small stuff in the other 22 hours of the day they're not at practice. They took pride in doing the work by themselves and showing up even during COVID. We weren't sure how we would emerge this season, but they handled it very well. They truly committed to being a Division I athlete 24 hours every day and I'm very proud of that. I can't tell you how happy I am for them. To see their hard work pay off is exciting. They were unselfish, worked hard and did their best. We had five first-team runners and tied the lowest score in ASUN history. It was comforting to seven top guys and not just five leading the pack."

"Nathan Jubran was a little sore this week and took the time to heal so he was able to press hard for the championship and take the lead. His leadership helped push the other guys and they pushed a lot harder when they ran together. This season Aidan O'Gorman came in and said he wasn't where he wanted to be. He went from running 70 miles to 80 miles a week and just a month later that hard work paid off. This was Leo Queyrou's best ASUN meet. As a senior this was his last race and I know it meant a lot to him. He kept his poise and executed his race plan. After recovering form an Achilles injury last fall and nursing a hamstring injury earlier this season, Noah Perkins did a great job in his first race back with the team. Jake Turner didn't feel great today, but didn't want to let the team down and ran really tough. Freshman Robert Pedroza usually runs the 800m and him racing 10 times what he usually runs is a big ask, but he's done really great. Timothy Doyle usually runs the 800m as well and had a great run." -- Head coach Jeff Pigg.

ASUN AWARDS

Runner of the Year - Nathan Jubran

Freshman of the Year - Jake Turner

Coach of the Year - Jeff Pigg

UNF RESULTS

1. Nathan Jubran - 24:38.4
2. Aidan O'Gorman - 25:09.6
3. Leo Queyrou - 25:13.5
4. Noah Perkins - 25:17.2
6. Jake Turner - 25:42.3
11. Robert Pedroza - 26:00.2
14. Timothy Doyle - 26:09.4
19. Anderson Bobo - 26:36.5
33. Thomas Weiler - 27:02.3
38. Onix Ortiz - 27:16.0
39. Jared Vazquez - 27:18.6
43. Justin Tackling - 27:33.5
DNF - Jack Anderton
DNF - Andrew Stivers

TEAM SCORES

1. NORTH FLORIDA - 16
2. Liberty - 54
3. Lipscomb - 85
4. North Alabama - 110
5. Stetson - 130
6. FGCU - 143
7. Bellarmine - 182
8. Jacksonville - 249