KERNERSVILLE, N.C. (Oct. 27, 2023) – Led by three Bucs in the top-10, the ETSU men's cross country team finished runner-up at the 2023 Southern Conference Championship, which was held Friday morning at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville, N.C. 
 
Jason Bowers paced the Blue & Gold as he finished second, while Evan Guzman came in fifth and Myles Stoots posted a seventh-place finish. Bowers, who has two wins and two runner-up finishes this season, recorded a time of 23:45.6. Guzman, last year's runner-up, clocked in at 24:10 and Stoots posted a mark of 24:58.8. Friday was Stoots' best finish at the SoCon meet. 
 
The trio Bucs all earned first team all-SoCon honors, marking the first time since the league went to two conference teams ETSU has had three first team honorees.
 
Xian Campbell and Chance Underwood also posted top-20 finishes for the Blue & Gold. Campbell placed 17th (25:42) and Underwood – who earned all-freshman team honors – finished in 25:42. Underwood was joined by Luke Young on the all-freshman team. Young finished 27th with a time of 26:13.9, while Nate Hillis came in 30th with a mark of 26:17.5.
 
As a unit, ETSU totaled 47 points, while No. 12 Furman finished first with 22 points. The 47 points marked the Bucs' best point total since rejoining the league in 2014. 
 
Furman's Dylan Schubert won his second straight SoCon crown with a time of 23:33.7. 
 
For the second straight year, Coach George Watts was named SoCon Coach of the Year.
 
The Bucs will now gear up for the NCAA South Regional, which will be held Friday, Nov. 10 in Gainesville, Fla.
 
For more information on Buccaneer men's cross country, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the men's cross country tab.