Posted: Nov 11, 2023

Aztecs Men's Cross Country takes ninth place at NJCAA National Championships

Sophomore Abraham Valenzuela (Palo Verde HS) was the top Pima finisher in 31st place out of 199 runners at the NJCAA Division I National Championships. Freshman Hall Griffith set a season personal-best with a time of 25:22.50 in the 8K race as the Aztecs finished in ninth place in the final team standings (best finish since 2015). Photos by Ben Carbajal and Raymond Suarez

The Pima Community College men's cross country team finished in the top 10 for the first time since 2015 on Saturday at the NJCAA Division I National Championships.

The No. 14 ranked Aztecs finished in ninth place out of 28 teams in the final team standings with a score of 280 at the John Hunt Cross Country Park in Huntsville, AL. This was Pima's best finish since 2015 when they also placed ninth.
Sophomore Abraham Valenzuela (Palo Verde HS) crossed the finish line in 31^st place out of 199 runners as he finished the 8K (4.97-miles) race with a time of 25 minutes, 08.40 seconds.
Freshman Hall Griffith set a new season personal-best as he placed 38^th with a time of 25:22.50. Fellow freshman Declan Jorgenson (Ironwood Ridge HS) closed out the race in 61^st place and clocked his time at 26:12.80.
Freshman Louis Madrigal-Diaz (North Canyon HS) set a season personal-record in the race as he finished the race in 68^th with a time of 26:20.30 and fellow freshman Jace Schaub (Canyon del Oro HS) finished 82^nd at 26:44.40.

The Aztecs will be back in action for track & field season in January.

See complete team and individual results of the NJCAA Division I National Championships on Athletic Live