(CARY, NC)---Wheeling Jesuit junior Dustin Hall has qualified for the NCAA Division II men's cross country national championship by virtue of his fifth place finish at the Atlantic Region meet.
The St. Mary's, WV native completed the 10K course in a time of 31:43.5, less than 13 seconds behind eventual winner Nathan Zondlo of Lock Haven. West Virginia Wesleyan's Barry Franklin placed 23rd and Wheeling Jesuit's Stewart Jones was 24th for the other top 25 efforts by WVIAC male runners.
Lock Haven claimed the men's team championship, followed by Shippensburg and Edinboro. Wheeling Jesuit placed finished seventh, while West Virginia Wesleyan (10th), Seton Hill (11th),and Concord (12th) notched the next efforts by league members.
Seton Hill senior Anna Cote ended her career with a 20th place finish and was the top WVIAC women's runner. Concord's Dani Pye was 21st and West Liberty's Sherry Borsos was 24th. Eleventh-place Concord was the leading WVIAC women's team finish in the 26-team field.
Hall will compete in the national meet on December 4 over the course at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park in Louisville, Kentucky. The event is part of the 2010 NCAA Division II Fall Festival, which brings the national championships for soccer, volleyball, field hockey, and cross country to one site.