Thompson, Facio become first All-Region duo in 23 years

WAVERLY, Iowa -- Trey Thompson and Jonathan Facio ran to all-region recognition to lead the Simpson men's cross country team to a 12th-place finish of 31 teams at the NCAA Central Region Championships on Saturday.

Thompson placed 24th and Facio 32nd to become the first pair of Simpson runners to earn all-region recognition at the same meet since 1995. The Storm have now finished in the top 15 at the regional level four-consecutive seasons.

"Our men committed to the process dating back to last May and they saw that hard work rewarded today," head coach Heath Moenck said.

Thompson navigated the 8k course in 25:33.7 for the first all-region honors of his career. Facio wasn't far behind in 25:39.8, making the all-region cut after finishing one place out of all-conference consideration just two weeks ago.

Thompson's performance came on the heels of a fifth-place effort at the American Rivers Conference meet, the best finish by a Simpson runner since 2012.

"Trey and Jonathan put in outstanding efforts today," Moenck said. "Trey capped off a terrific career today and we're going to miss him greatly, not only for his ability on the course but for his leadership off the course."

The team's No. 5 runner at the regional meet a year ago, Tyler Combs filled the No. 3 spot on Saturday. He finished in 26:14.6 to place 58th, a 30-spot improvement over his freshman season.

Logan Egeland and Caleb Cobbs turned in top-100 finishes to round out the Storm's point-scorers. A senior, Egeland missed out on the regional meet a year ago. His previous best regional finish was 127th.

Sophomores Ryan Courtney (98th, 27:00.6) and Cale Billheimer (107th, 27:06.9) completed the Storm's lineup.

Storm Varsity Finishers
Trey Thompson — 24th, 25:33.7
Jonathan Facio — 32nd, 25:39.8
Tyler Combs — 58th, 26:14.6
Logan Egeland — 85th, 26:43.1
Caleb Cobbs — 96th, 26:59.7
Ryan Courtney — 98th, 27:00.6
Cale Billheimer — 107th, 27:06.9