VANCOUVER, Wash. –Three Bulldogs made an appearance at the 2021 NAIA Cross Country National Championships: Eireann O'Connor, Mason Baseley, and Luke Lutz.
 
Eireann O'Connor, a senior from Jackson, Wyo., led the Bulldogs with a 12^th-place finish and a 5k time of 18:39.5; she was the third Frontier Conference finisher. O'Connor made five appearances at the national championship meet in her career, finishing in the top 65 for three straight years. With her top 40 finish, she received All-American honors for the second time in her career.
 
Mason Baseley—sophomore from Palo Cedro, Calif.—finished 238^th of 338 runners in the women's 5k with a time of 20:44.5. This is Baseley's second appearance at the national championship meet; her first was as a member of Montana Western's first women's cross-country team to qualify for the national meet (2019).
 
Luke Lutz, a junior from Frenchtown, made his third appearance at nationals in the men's 8k. Lutz finished 141^st overall with a time of 27:05.3. His time and placement surpass his previous appearances at Nationals (2019—27:23.8, 220^th; 2021—28:05.0, 253^rd).
 
"I thought we competed really well and showed off that we can be really successful at this level," coach Zitzer said. "I hope Eireann can hand off the baton of success at the national level and this should inspire us for more success."
 
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