IRVINE, Calif. – With fans and classmates clad in yellow and gold, the Concordia University Irvine cross country teams received a boost in their Code Yellow meet on Saturday at the Vanguard Invite.

Ultimately, the latest test for the Eagles featured the CUI women's squad finishing third out of 13 competing schools while the men finished fourth on the Irvine Regional park course. The CUI women earned 64 points, which was only 12 behind first-place Vanguard. El Paso CC won the men's race.

Rosalba Cabrera and former PacWest Runner of the Week Bailey Wade finished in the top 11 to pace the ladies. Anamauri Hernandez and two-time PacWest Freshman of the Week Jori Paradis both gained steam and emerged in the top 25 overall.

Tilicia Santiago also finished among the top 30 for the first time since coming back from an injury over the summer. Caitlin Shannon joined Santiago in the top 30 and Hannah Hopkins rounded out the top seven for the CUI women.  Freshman Sara Feitz, senior Natalie Hakala and Madilyn Herrera also finished just a handful of spots behind Hopkins.

On the men's side, David Brito turned in a standout performance. The sophomore from Ocean View High School was the second Eagle to cross the line, following closely behind California HS alum Angel Aguirre. Both placed in the top 20 among competing college athletes, as Aguirre led the way for the Green and Gold by completing the course in 25 minutes and 41 seconds while Brito posted a time of 25:52.

The dynamic duo was followed by freshman Jose Munguia and captain Hector Arteaga who both hustled their way into the top 35. CUI first-year runner Jason St. Pierre rounded out the top five Eagles on the day with a top 40 finish among attached student-athletes.

Next up for the Eagles is the highly anticipated PacWest Conference Championships on Saturday, Oct. 26 at Ted Craig Park in Fullerton, Calif.

For the full CUI cross country schedule, click here.