Although Texas placed fifth out of 31 teams in the Greater Louisville Classic this past Saturday, assistant coach John Hayes said that their main objective was not necessarily to win.

“It is important that we are out there and we get a sense of what we will see in two months [at nationals] … That’s the whole purpose of going — we are not going to worry about the results,” Hayes said.

The fifth place finish was earned with two of Texas’s top runners, Kyle Merber and Ryan Dohner, resting on the sidelines.

Despite finishing fifth, the Greater Louisville Classic was a race of firsts for the Longhorns. For the first time in his collegiate career, Craig Lutz, who finished 22nd overall, didn’t lead the team in a race; instead, it was Rory Tunningley leading the Longhorns, surpassing his personal best in the 8k for an 11th place finish. Additionally, Trevor Van Ackeren ran in his first cross-country race since the 2009 season and managed to take home a 49th place finish. Finally sophomore Blake Williams pulled off an 85th place finish in his debut as a Longhorn.