Bates College

A great season ended with a hard-fought struggle for the No. 23 nationally ranked Bates men's cross country team, as the Bobcats placed 32nd at the 2019 NCAA Division III Championships held Saturday at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park.

Junior Tucker Barber (Wilton, Maine) finished 135th out of 280 individuals to lead Bates, covering the 8-kilometer course in 25:40.9. Barber was one of only three team members who raced at nationals in both 2018 and 2019.

Making the ninth team appearance in program history at the national meet, Bates scored 795 points, trailing 31st-place Oneonta by 40. Pomona-Pitzer was the surprise team champion with 164 points, while Williams was the top New England team in third place (183).

Bates earned the trip with a fifth-place showing out of 54 teams at the NCAA New England Regional Championships last week at Bowdoin. Other highlights from the year included winning the Maine State Meet and placing fifth in the NESCAC Championships.