LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- Led by Grayson Reid and JJ LaPointe, who both finished in the top-60, the 23rd-ranked Christopher Newport men's cross country team wrapped up a tremendous 2016 campaign with an 11th-place finish at the NCAA National Championships on Saturday afternoon at E.P. "Tom" Sawyer State Park.

Piecing together a complete team effort, CNU registered its top finish at the national meet in program history. Previously, the Captains' finest performance was a 20th-place showing in 1994. Christopher Newport also came in 21st in 1984 and 32nd in 2015.

Overall, the Captains posted a score of 356 on Saturday, finishing just four points shy of a top-10 effort. North Central (Ill.) won the team title with a score of 60, while SUNY Geneseo, Wisconsin-Eau Claire, Washington University, and Claremont-Mudd-Scripps rounded out the top-five.

On an individual level, Reid capped off his junior campaign with another historic effort. The CAC and South Region Athlete of the Year placed 40th overall with a time of 25:00.7. That finish marked the highest by a Captain since Matt Sinclair placed 35th and earned All-American accolades in 2001. Overall, the Glen Allen native averaged a 5:01.9 mile over the 8k course.

Along with Reid, LaPointe also added a top-60 effort after finishing just eight seconds behind his teammate. He eventually clocked in at 25:08.0, which placed him 53rd overall.

In addition to the team's top-two runners, Jeff Dover came in 103rd with a time of 25:23.9, Sam Murch was 157th in 25:44.7, and Andrew Benfer was 162nd in 25:46.9. Rounding out the national performers, Daniel Read crossed the line in 167th (25:48.9) and Jason Putnam was 198th (26:07.0).

As a team, Christopher Newport posted a total time of 2:07:04 for an average of 25:25 over the 8k course. Showing its depth, the team's 0:46.2 spread among its top-five finishers marked the eighth-finest among any team at the competition.

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