MADISON, Wisc.--Led by an eighth-place finish by senior Jason Witt, No. 5 BYU men’s cross country took second place in a very competitive field at the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational Saturday.

“It’s important that we have guys to step up, and I feel like today was one of those days for me,” Witt said. “It was great to be there for the team. We came into the meet as the second highest ranked team in the meet and we finished second. We did what we were supposed to do.”

The Cougars scored 174 points, second to No. 3 Northern Arizona with 121 points. West Coast Conference rival and eighth-ranked Portland finished in third place with 217 points.

“I thought that the guys really delivered,” head coach Ed Eyestone said. “To get second was an awesome effort. Jason Witt led the group and ran a really smart race. The cool thing is that we were second on a day when we were solid, but we still have room for improvement.”

Tylor Thatcher was the second Cougar to cross the finish line, placing 22nd overall. Jonathan Nelson took 27th place. Steve Flint and Spencer Gardner were the last scoring running for BYU, finishing in 52nd and 65th place respectively.

“Thatcher felt like he could have run better,” Eyestone said. “Flint is back on track. The cool thing was that between our fourth man and our eighth man, there wasn’t much separation. It’s great to see them run so close and compact.”

Aaron Fletcher finished in 71st place and Thomas Gruenewald in 77th. Full race results can be found here.

With five top-10 teams participating in the race, this was the Cougars’ most competitive meet of the season until the NCAA Championships. The field included 19 ranked teams total, and beating 17 of those teams sets the Cougars up well for the regional and national meets.

The Cougars return to action Saturday Nov. 2 at the WCC Championships in Malibu, Calif.

PROVO, Utah—The No. 5 BYU men’s cross country team will travel to the University of Wisconsin to compete in a loaded field at the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational Saturday.

“This will be the biggest, most competitive race of the year, other than nationals,” head coach Ed Eyestone said. “There will be a lot of top-quality teams going head to head. This is a great opportunity to find out how good we really are.”

Of the 35 teams participating, 19 are ranked in the USTFCCCA coaches poll top 30. Five are ranked in the top 10, with No. 3 Northern Arizona ranked the highest.

“On paper, we are the second-highest ranked team there, so we should be near the top,” Eyestone said. “If we have a good day, we could beat Northern Arizona and win the whole thing, but if we have a bad day we could lose to some of the lower-ranked teams.”

The Cougars are coming off a victory at the Griak Invitational over 15th ranked Colorado State and 30th ranked Arizona State. Tylor Thatcher, named the West Coast Conference Runner of the Month for September, led the Cougars and finished first overall. It was Thatcher’s second consecutive individual victory and third team win of the season for the Cougars.

Jason Witt has been consistent as the No. 2 BYU finisher in the last two races. Sophomore Jonathan Nelson has also been a key contributor to the Cougars’ success, scoring in every race this season.

The men’s race will be an 8K and will begin at 11 a.m. CDT. The race will take place at the Thomas Zimmer Championship Cross Country Course in Madison, Wis. This is the last race before the Cougars head to the WCC Championship meet in Malibu, Calif., on Nov. 2.