LODI, Calif. – Highlighted by sophomore Jett Davenport's first-place finish, the Pacific cross country program made history on Friday afternoon in the Pacific Invitational, hosted at Micke Grove Golf Course.

The Tigers' men's squad secured a first-place nod collectively for the first time ever at home, spearheaded by the individual effort of Davenport and his first individual win as a Tiger. Davenport became the first men's Tiger to win the home meet in just the program's second season, while the women notched a third-place finish as a group after winning at home last year.

"Jett executed that race perfectly," Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Cherise Roberts said. "He went out with the lead pack and when it broke up, he stayed with the lead runner. I was so happy with how the men's team performed. Before the race, I said to forget about the time and just race the bodies. I told them I cared about effort. Every single one of them put in the effort and I was happy to get a win out of it."

Davenport clocked in a time of 24:47.3 at the Pacific Invitational, while freshman Braden Himley (25:38.3) and freshman Thomas Capelli (25:40.1) finished amongst the top five finishers on the night for the men to boost the Pacific score. Davenport finished in first place by more than ten seconds.

"My main goal was just to compete," Davenport said. "I ran a good pace for a while. It got really hard toward at the end, but I decided that I wanted it more, and I went for it. Bringing the win home here for Pacific and the community felt so great"

On the women's side, sophomore Alexane Hunte finished in 12th place with a time of 22:38.0 to help Pacific finish ahead of Saint Mary's and William Jessup. Four Tigers on the women's side finished top 20 in the 6k.

"I'm super proud of everyone," Davenport said. "It's a confidence booster for us. As long as you believe in yourself, we can do it. We'll be ready for the next race down in Santa Clara."

Pacific now prepares for the Bronco Invitational, hosted by Santa Clara on Oct. 17, looking to build off Friday's momentum from its home meet.

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