CONCORD, Calif. — A pair of underclassmen led the Santa Clara University men's cross country team Friday at at the Saint Mary's College Invitational, as the Broncos' young squad ran to an 11th-place finish at Newhall Park.
 
Freshman Jackson Levasseur made his collegiate debut Friday and led the Broncos with a 57th-place finish, running the 8-kilometer course in 24 minutes, 40.8 seconds. Levasseur made huge moves during the race. At the first checkpoint he was in 105th. He'd move up 47 spots by the final checkpoint and outkick one more runner to finish 57th. Fellow underclassman and sophomore Connor Rickey wasn't far behind Levasseur, placing 60th in 24:44.4.
 
Santa Clara's No. 3-6 runners packed well, with only a 24-second gap between them. Jack Kyle led the group as the Broncos' No. 3 runner, finishing 107th in 25:49.4. James Estrella and James Ponzio finished back-to-back in 113th and 114th, respectively. Estrella ran the race in 25:53.7, while Ponzio turned in a time of 25:54.0. Sophomore Coen Strub rounded out the group in 120th with a time of 26:13.1.
 
The Broncos scored 308 points to finish 11th. They beat West Coast Conference foe Pacific, who placed 13th with 394 points. NCAA Division II No. 7-ranked Chico State won the team title with 30 points, placing four runners among the overall top-eight. Chico State's Mario Giannini won the individual race with a time of 23:03.7
 
Santa Clara's top runners compete Saturday morning at the John McNichols Invitational, hosted by Indiana State at this year's NCAA Championship site in Terre Haute, Ind. Fans can find live coverage links on SantaClaraBroncos.com.