CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa – The Montreat men's cross country squad finished 21st in the nation in the team's first ever trip to the NAIA National Championships on Friday. Sophomore Lydia Wilson ran as an individual on the women's side as she finished 17th in the nation, earning All-American honors. The Cavs competed at Seminole Valley Park in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.

Freshman Nathan Richards led the Cavs with a 41st place finish out of 330 total runners, crossing at 25:21.1. In second for Montreat was Antonio Gomez at 25:54.6. Rounding out the top five for the squad was Caleb Silver (26:04.1), Jacob Parker (26:25.1), and Rylan Hincher (26:27.9). Also competing for the men's team were Benjamin Schmidt and Daniel O'Dell.

Lydia Wilson's top-20 finish time of 17:53.6 makes her the first ever All-American for either Montreat cross country program.

"What a great way to end the cross country season," said head coach Jason Lewkowicz. "Lydia ran a tremendously gutsy race and turned it on the last 400 meters to secure a top-20 finish and become Montreat's first cross country All-American. The men were very tough today as well and all seven guys gave it their all. We started the year with goals of winning the AAC, advancing a team to the national championships, and finishing in the national top 25 so I'm extremely proud of them for putting in the work necessary to follow through on those goals. With six of our top seven guys returning and a strong recruiting class lining up for next year, the future is very bright for the Cavs."

At the awards banquet that took place on Thursday, Coach Lewkowicz was named the USTFCCCA South Region Coach of the Year.

"It is always our top goal to compete in a way that honors Christ and to maximize the gifts He has given us," said Coach Lewkowicz. "I feel like this team, both the men and women, embodied that this year and centered themselves around that firm foundation. To God be the glory!"

To view the full official results, click here.