David Dunbar was named California Collegiate Athletic Association men’s cross country runner of the week for the week of Oct. 7 through Oct. 13 as result of his 10th place finish at the UCSD Triton Classic last weekend.
UCSD senior Dunbar, who graduated from La Jolla High School, ran the 8,000-meter course in 25:40, a personal season-best and fourth all-time in the UCSD course record books. Competing against several Division I programs such as UCLA, UC Irvine and UC Riverside, Dunbar’s mark was second best among 55 Division II runners.
Dunbar has had his fair share of success throughout his cross country career, making waves as a sophomore as the only male UCSD runner to compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II national championships in 2000, where he finished 52nd out of 181 competitors.
Dunbar finished last season as a member of the men’s team that finished 15th at the national championships at Slippery Rock Universit, in Pennsylvania. Dunbar finished 94th among 179 competitors — third-best on the UCSD team.
Last year, he was also the top runner for the Tritons at their dual meet against Point Loma Nazarene, the UC Irvine Invitational and the Paul Short Invitational. In addition, he helped the team make a push toward the national championships, finishing 28th at the CCAA Championships and 26th at the NCAA Division II West Regional.
This season, aside from his top showing at the Triton Classic, Dunbar has finished third in the team’s dual meet against Point Loma, 13th at the Fresno State Invitational, and 56th at the Roy Griak Invitational, the largest collegiate cross country meet in the West.
Dunbar will look to continue his postseason success as a competitor on the Triton squad when they compete at the CCAA Championships at Cal State Bakersfield on Oct. 26.
“”He’s racing right now like he was the championship athlete he was when he was the only male athlete we had going to the national championships,”” said UCSD head coach Ted Van Arsdale. “”He’s learned to overcome the struggles that come along with being one of the best. He’s absolutely tremendous.””
