The Mesa College Men’s Cross-Country team has made their mark so far this season. Currently ranked No. 1 in Southern California, the cross-country team has displayed phenomenal talent and consistency throughout the early part of the season.

Impressively through two meets, they have placed in the top five as a team in both of them, while also adding some top individual performances.

Key performances by Muluken Beressa, Marcos Corona and Mike Denman have helped earned the Olympians much deserved respect from their opponents along with a first place ranking in Southern California.

Mesa hopes these key players can stay healthy throughout the course of the season because missed time by any of these players can have a detrimental outcome for the season.

“Our biggest strength is that we have excellent up front talent. We should have a number of All-State runners,” commented Coach Hunt. “On the other hand however, our biggest weakness is our lack of depth. Right now we’d be in a lot of trouble if one of our five scoring runners were forced to miss time due to and injury or sickness,” he added.

Mesa Men’s Cross-Country team finished first as a team at the Foothill Invitational in Chino, Calif. Individual awards included Beressa, who won the Invitational, along with Corona and Denman who finished third and fourth.

Earlier this season the men’s cross-country team finished fourth behind division one powerhouses Arizona and Arizona State at the Dave Murray Invitational in Tucson, Ariz.

With the early season success building at a steady pace, Coach Hunt has high expectations for his team.

“Our team has enough talent to compete for the state championship, we will have a great chance to win if we continue to prepare the way we are currently,” replied Hunt. “Ultimately, our team goal is to win the state championship.”

Mesa’s next meet will take place on Saturday, Oct. 11 in Irvine, Calif. The Howard Brubaker Invitational is schedule to begin at 10:00 A.M. and will showcase some of the top schools in California.