HENDERSON, Nev. (August 22, 2022) – By all accounts, the College of Southern Nevada Cross Country program had a banner debut season last year.
 
CSN was nationally ranked in the 2021 season, finishing the year with runners competing in the NJCAA championships. Led by Bryan Astudillo, the program quickly built around successful runners from the region, utilizing the variety of terrains in the Las Vegas Valley to rise to success.
 
Now Southern Nevada is primed to take a leading role in the NJCAA conversation, facing off against other Scenic West Athletic Conference members like Southern Idaho and Salt Lake. Any 2022 success will begin with a successful preseason camp, though.
 
"The primary goal for this preseason is to get the freshmen comfortable with the adjustment to college sports, and to have sophomores and freshmen meet and get to know each other better," said Astudillo. "Teaching our new athletes our routine and our culture was also very important. We also focused on having our returning sophomores take more of a leadership role and teach the freshmen our routine."
 
Astudillo also has focused on building a culture of academic accountability and interpersonal commitment. The second-year coach emphasized both during the preseason training.
 
"We have a real close unit and having team outings throughout the summer really allowed our team to get closer," he said. "We have all different kinds of personalities on our team, but our outings really allowed us to get to know each other, have fun with each other, and gain that trust and respect for each other."
 
Looking ahead to a 2022 schedule that features a variety of invitationals and meets, Astudillo said he is looking forward to seeing his team take the next step.
 
"I am very excited for this season," he said. "We finished our season nationally ranked with both our teams; our men ended 20th while our women ended 22nd. I really like the direction we're heading so far this summer and I really believe we have two teams that will continue to build and grow from our national ranking last year. If we work hard and take care of our bodies, I think we can once again be on that national poll."