Sports

Henry Cheseto earns West Region accolades

UAA freshman cross-country runner Henry Cheseto was named the NCAA Division II West Region Men's Athlete of the Year last week for cross-country running by the U.S. Track and Field and Cross Country Coaches Association (USTFCCCA).

Cheseto, a nursing major from Kapenguria, Kenya, is the third Seawolves runner to win the award. He joins his brother, Marko Cheseto (2009, '10) and Micah Chelimo (2011, 12) as previous honorees.

On Nov. 22, Cheseto led the UAA men to a second-place finish at the West Region Championships in Billings, Montana, winning the individual men's race to extend UAA's streak of at least one individual champion at regionals seven years in a row. UAA runners have won eight of the past 12 individual men's and women's individual region titles.

Cheseto is the top performer on a UAA men's team that is ranked No. 6 in the most recent USTFCCCA national poll. The UAA women are ranked 11th in the poll, the final one released before this weekend's national meet. Grand Valley State (Allendale, Michigan) has the top-ranked teams in both the men's and women's divisions.

The UAA men and women each qualified for the upcoming NCAA Division II National Championships, which will be held on Saturday in Louisville, Kentucky. The men were second at the Western Regional meet while the women were third. It's the seventh consecutive year both UAA teams have qualified for the Division II national championships.

The UAA men will be participating in the national meet for the 11th time, which includes a seventh-place showing in 2013 at the races in Spokane, Washington. Their best finish is a third-place showing in 2012.

The UAA women will be making their ninth appearance at nationals. In 2013, the Seawolves had their best women's team finish at the national meet, placing fourth.

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