Daytona State men's cross country took home their fifth straight team title Friday at the Region 8 Championships in Tallahassee at Apalachee Regional Park.  Led by sophomore Evan Casterline, the Falcons took the top four spots in the NJCAA Division II race to score 18 points.  Casterline, named meet champion and FCSAA Runner of the Year, was followed by sophomore Joel Jean, freshman Nick Pugh, and sophomore Pedro Zapata.  All four earned All Region honors. Casterline ran a solid race, taking control at the 5k mark, and was never challenged.  Jean, Pugh, Zapata finished within 42 seconds of Casterline.  Casterline becomes the fifth straight individual winner of the Region 8 meet for the Falcons, following Andy Martinez in 2020 and 2021, Sebastian Hernadez in 2022, and Jared Falchook in 2023.  All went on to run at NCAA Division I schools. 

Rounding out the Falcon top five, sophomore Zeniel Lizardo placed 8th, running one of his better races of his college career, according to Coach Judy Wilson.  "We sent Zeniel out with our other top guys and he really handled it well.  He may have just missed all Region, but this race helped our team prepare for the national championship in two weeks."  Finishing sixth for the Falcons was freshman Hayden Herndon who has put on a late season surge for the Falcons and will run at the NJCAA National meet on November 9th. 

Daytona State scored 18 points, with Pasco Hernando finishing second with 64 points, Lake Sumter SC in third with 77 points,  FSCJ in fourth with 100 points, and Florida Gateway College finished with 125 points.  Next up is the NJCAA Championships in Richmond, VA on November 9th.