Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference

1986 Western State Cross Country RMAC Hall of Fame Video

This was the first national team championship for legendary Coach Duane Vandenbusche. Led by the “Venezuelan Connection” of Eduardo Navas, Juan Diaz, Frank Oropeza and Jose Rojas, the Mountaineers were able to tie longtime rival Adams State to be NAIA co-champions in 1986 at the finals hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Parkside in Kenosha, Wisc. The other members of the top seven included: Steve Cathcart, Steve Roch and Doug Meade. Other instrumental members of the team included Kyle Caudle, Ryan Robinson, Bob Guidry, Stevin Johnson, Dan Buford, John Paitel and Russ Dryer. The RMAC Championship meet proved to be a big hurdle, as only the top two teams would advance to the NAIA Nationals. Adams State, the defending National Champions, took one of those spots and Western had to battle Fort Lewis for the second spot. The Mountaineers overcame 10 inches of fresh snow on the course in Golden, Colo. to edge Fort Lewis, 57-59, and advance to the Nationals. Adams State was the overwhelming favorite, but Western was able to compete. Navas finished second, Diaz was third and Cathcart finished eighth. Later came Oropeza (31st), Roch (56th), Meade (98th) and Rojas (197th). The team results were not known right after the race, so the Mountaineers didn’t learn of their fate until the awards banquet that night. The tie between Western State and Adams State marked the first time in cross country history that two teams had tied for the National Championship.