ROCK ISLAND, Ill. – It was the best of the best running at Augustana's Interregional Invitational, and on Saturday that was Cornell's Isaac vanWestrienen in a loaded field of 339 finishers at Saukie Golf Course.
 
VanWestrienen captured the signature win with a personal-best 8K clocking of 23:57. The senior star rose to the top in an elite race that showcased 17 nationally-ranked teams.
 
VanWestrienen broke 24 minutes for the first time in his career while leaving a smattering of NCAA title hopefuls in his tracks at the finish. UW-La Crosse rival Grant Matthai was runner-up in 24:01, four seconds behind vanWestrienen.
 
Colorado College's Will Shuflit took third (24:07), UW-La Crosse's Aidan Matthai fourth (24:18) and Wartburg's Isaiah Hammerand fifth (24:21).
 
Cornell sophomore newcomer Jacob Bach also stacked up well, placing 43rd overall (25:13) in his second race as a Ram.
 
Sophomore Jaxon Barnes finished 285th (27:34), Caleb Long 310th (28:06) and Isaac Morris 311th (28:07) to round out Cornell's scoring five. Jamie Briggs was 332nd (29:01) and Caden Edwards 334th (29:11).
 
The Rams placed 28th out of 36 teams with 766 points. Top-ranked UW-La Crosse beat second-ranked Wartburg for the team title, 56-68.  
 
Coming up – Cornell hosts the Midwest Conference Championships Nov. 1 at Seminole Valley Park in Cedar Rapids. The Rams are the defending men's team champion. The 8K men's race starts at 11 a.m.