WARRENVILLE, Ill. - The Elmhurst University men's cross country team placed third at the NCCXC Invitational, finishing with 105 points in the 8,000-meter race. The Bluejays placed three runners in the top 25 and saw five athletes record personal-best times in the effort.

Sophomore David Valkanov led Elmhurst with a 17th-place finish, crossing in 26:00.7 for a new personal best. Fellow sophomore Michael Bailey followed in 22nd place with a personal-best 26:17.7, while junior Eric Martinez also set a personal best at 26:18.6 to take 24th overall. Senior Brandon Pounders recorded a personal-best 28:10.1 in 68th place, and junior Kayden Miller added a personal-best 29:09.2 for 80th. Sophomore Chris Marroquin rounded out the lineup, finishing 90th in 29:30.3.

Host North Central won the meet, sweeping the top three individual spots and scoring 15 points by placing all five runners in the top seven. Wisconsin-Whitewater took second with 56 points, while Elmhurst outpaced Wheaton (118), Joliet Junior College (130), and Harper College (133) for third.