BYU Women Finish Second, Men Win First National Championship in Program History

TERRE HAUTE, Ind. — BYU men’s cross country won its first national title in program history and BYU women’s cross country finished second at the 2019 NCAA Championships at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course on Saturday.

Both teams' finishes marked the first time in program history that both teams placed top-two in the country, besting last season’s men’s second-place performance and the women’s seventh-place finish.

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Men’s Results

Women’s Results

Mountain Region Women's Coach of the Year Diljeet Taylor led BYU’s squad to its best season as national runners-up since the 2003 season where the women also finished second. 

Ranked No. 3 in the nation going into the race, the Cougars bested No. 2 Stanford by 19 points to become runners-up. In a tightly contested battle, season-long No. 1 Arkansas edged BYU by six points, 96-102.

“Our women ran amazing,” Taylor said. “That was an overall great performance. I’m really proud of how tough they were out there. Getting NCAA runner-ups after finishing so close is a little bit bittersweet when you’re a competitor. We were ranked third coming in so we knew we had a shot to win it and our women for the win so I’m really proud of that. We had some crazy dreams, no one expected this out of us before the season. We fought for that crazy dream and I’m unbelievably proud of our women and how hard they worked.”

For the first time in program history the BYU women placed three runners in the top seven. Courtney Wayment (20:16.1) led the way for the Cougars in fifth place, while Erica Birk-Jarvis (20:16.1) took sixth and Whittni Orton (20:17.0) finished seventh. 

The Cougars had career-best national meet finishes from Olivia Hoj (20:59.4) to place 56th, Anna Camp-Bennett (21:01.3) in 60th, freshman Anastaysia Davis (21:18.5) who came in 109th and Sara Musselman (21:43.1) who finished 160th to round out a second-place overall team finish.

Each BYU women’s runner that has competed in previous national meets posted their best finishes at the national meet in their careers, improving their performances from last season’s title meet. Wayment went from 21st to fifth, Birk-Jarvis from seventh to sixth, Orton (who last competed at nationals in 2017) from 115th to seventh, Hoj from 86th to 56th, Camp-Bennett from 167th to 60th and Musselman from 162nd to 160th.

“Our women believed,” Taylor said. “That’s a big part of this job that makes it so special as a coach when you have athletes that believe in what you’re trying to do. Very proud of the effort today and super grateful to be at BYU with these women.”

WOMEN’S TEAM NOTABLES

• BYU had three All-Americans in Courtney Wayment-Smith, Erica Birk-Jarvis and Whittni Orton, the first time having as many as three All-Americans since 2003
• This season marks the first time that the Cougars have placed three runners in the top-seven in program history
• Lowest point total, 102, since the national title-winning team in 2002 where the squad scored 85
• Coach Diljeet Taylor’s third top-10 finish in her four years at BYU
• Best team-finish since taking second in 2003

BYU head coach Ed Eyestone became the first person in NCAA men’s cross country history to win an individual national title as a runner (1984) and then coach a team to win a championship. The men's national title also is the first NCAA championship won by a BYU team since the men’s volleyball won the 2004 NCAA Tournament.

“It was a huge day for us, for the program," Eyestone said. "I'm incredibly proud of coach Taylor and how the women performed. Seeing them rise up was really inspiring. We knew it could be a great day for BYU. Proud of the way the guys fought through the elements, it was raining for most of the race. I think our guys proved that they are 'mudders.' These guys that we have here on our team are tough, they overcome adversity and can compete through anything."

Conner Mantz led the way for the Cougars, placing third overall in the men’s 10k with a time of 30:40.0. Mantz has not placed outside of the top-four all season, taking home individual titles in his first four meets of the year. The sophomore also earned him All-American honors in cross country for the second-straight year.

BYU saw incredible efforts from Danny Carney (31:05.7)  and Jacob Heslington (31:10.5), who both finished as All-Americans in 17th and 21st, respectively. Not to be underscored were the performances of Brandon Garnica, who finished 41st (31:21.3), and Matt Owens (31:25.4), who placed 45th. It was the first time that Owens had raced a 10k in his collegiate career. Michael Ottesen (31:53.2) finished next for the Cougars in 87th-place and Connor Weaver (32:22.6) finished 154th to round out the day for the title-winning team.

“Our gameplan was to get out fast, maintain your place and move up and win the race that you're in for the last 3k. I think the guys got out well, which I think applied some pressure to some other teams, we were in a good place and we continued to execute as we needed to. I'm super proud of the way that they were able to finish this race."

MEN’S TEAM NOTABLES

• Best finish in school history with 109-point performance leading to the program’s first national title
• Finished five runners in the top-45
• Placed three All-Americans in Conner Mantz, Danny Carney and Jacob Heslington 
• Matt Owens finished 45th in the nation after running his first collegiate 10k race
• Coach Eyestone is the first person in NCAA men’s cross country history to win an individual national title (1984) and then coach a team to a championship (2019)
• Coach Eyestone’s best team-finish and ninth top-10 finish at the NCAA Championships as BYU’s head coach
• The national title is the first that the Cougars have won since the 2004 men’s volleyball championship team