ROMEOVILLE, Ill. — The Cal State East Bay men's cross country team was in action far away from home on Saturday morning, as the Pioneers finished 23^rd overall at the Crossover Classic hosted by Lewis University.

CSUEB recorded a total of 668 points to finish ahead of host Lewis (674) and just behind Bellarmine (637).

Sophomore Bryan Llopis led the pack, placing 65^th overall with a time of 26-minutes, 33-seconds. It's the second time this season the Foothill Ranch, Calif., native was the first Pioneer to cross the finish line.

Senior Esteban Leon continued his solid season, following Llopis with a 91^st-place finish behind a mark of 26:49.3.

In addition, sophomore Xavier Smith was third among Pioneers and 130^th overall after crossing the finish line in 27:13.4, Luke Calubayan was 189^th (28:19.8) and Jeremy Shaw was 193^rd (28:23.8).

"I knew we had an inexperienced team and the conditions were very challenging," said Cal State East Bay head coach Tony Nicolosi. "We need to learn from these experiences quickly.

"I know we are better having come here, but we need to really challenge ourselves to reach our potential in the post season."

The Pioneers return to action next Saturday, Oct. 19, when they compete in the Santa Clara Bronco Invitational beginning at 8:45 a.m.