No. 5 Texas secured their position in the NCAA Cross Country Championships for the fourth consecutive time this past weekend at the NCAA South Central Regional Championships. The Longhorns pushed past Arkansas and Texas A&M to achieve their second consecutive first place win at the meet.

In addition to creating a winning tradition at regionals, the victory means that for every year assistant coach John Hayes has been with the team, they have been guaranteed a spot in the National Championship.

“I was really proud of the guys. They went out and did what we had to do,” Hayes said. “They did what they had to do in order to get to nationals and that is what our focus was today.”

Sophomore Ryan Dohner led the Longhorns at the meet, finishing fourth overall. Dohner accomplished a 10K time of 30:00.8, surpassing his personal record of 30:21.1, set at last season’s regional meet.

Despite the cross-country season nearing its end, the hardest part is yet to come for Texas. The NCAA Cross Country Championships is right around the corner Saturday, and the Longhorns will spend their remaining time until then preparing in any way they can.