Men's XC Finishes Sixth At NCAA Championships

Saturday, November 18

Charlottesville, Va.

10 A.M.

North Carolina

NCAA Championships

November 18, 2023 | Cross Country

Men's Results (PDF)Women's Results

By: UNC Athletic Communications

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – UNC recorded its second straight top-10 finish at the NCAA Men's Cross Country Championships on Saturday, placing sixth – its highest finish since 1985 – on the Panorama Farms Course.

Second-ranked Oklahoma State won its first national championship since 2012, with five runners finishing inside the top 15. Top-ranked NAU finished second, followed by BYU, Arkansas and Iowa State to round out the top five.

Junior Parker Wolfe and graduate Alex Phillip each finished among the top 20 runners to earn All-America accolades for Carolina. Wolfe came in ninth for the second consecutive year, posting an NCAA 10K Championship school-record time of 29:12.6. Phillip placed 17th and completed the race in 29:26.8, the third-fastest championship time in program lore.

Wolfe becomes the first three-time All-America performer in UNC history, whose best team finish was fifth in 1985.

"Today was another huge step in the evolution of our program," UNC head coach Chris Miltenberg said. "Our guys have finished 18th,10th and sixth in the previous three years and just keep climbing step by step. We are now knocking on the door and beating the previously established programs, which is the most exciting place to be.

Junior Ethan Strand was the third Tar Heel to cross the finish line, traversing the course in 29:57.6 for 45th place. Graduate transfer Jake Gebhardt was close behind Strand, completing the race in 30:21.8 to finish 78th. Freshman Gitch Hayes rounded out the scoring for Carolina, coming in 147th at 31:02.1.

"The part that I am most proud of today is that all of our guys weren't having A+ individual days, but they were willing to scrap and fight for each other and a great team day," Miltenberg explained. "That's a testament to their commitment to each other and the mission. That also says everything about what this team is built on going forward."

The Tar Heels concluded a historic season that included their first ACC championship since 1985, a second straight NCAA Southeast Regional title and the highest national ranking in program history of No. 4.

Junior Fatima Alanis competed in the women's 6K as an individual and placed 32nd to earn All-America accolades. She finished at 20:03.6 to cap off the season, which included All-ACC and all-region honors.

"Fatima getting up for her first All-American honor was huge," Miltenberg said. "She just kept coming the entire second half and passed 22 people over the last 2k. Really exciting sign of what's to come for our women's team.

"I'm so proud of our entire team and where we're going!"