MEDFORD, MA (November 19, 2025) – The Tufts University men's cross country team earned its fifth straight berth into the NCAA National Championship race and 20th overall this week. The Jumbos will compete at the 2025 Nationals in Spartanburg, South Carolina on Saturday.
In the team's 19 prior appearances, Tufts has posted six national top 10 finishes with a best of fifth place in 2005. This year's squad is making no secret of the fact that they are hopeful to join this list of the best Tufts performances, and perhaps even top it.
Championship Meet Details
2025 NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship
Date: Saturday, November 22, 2025
Time: Men's Race at 10:00 AM
Location: Roger Milliken Center in Spartanburg, SC /
Men's 8K Course Map
Live Coverage:
LIVE VIDEO /
LIVE RESULTS
"We have seven guys who go into the race with a lot of confidence and belief in themselves that they are ready to put themselves in the mix and compete and do well," said Director of Track & Field and Cross Country
Jamie Norton. "We're ready to go and gun for a top four spot at Nationals."
This team won the program's first NESCAC championship since 2012 on November 1, compiling the Jumbos' lowest score ever in the meet. They were second behind only current #3 in the nation Johns Hopkins University in a field filled with nationally-ranked squads at the Connecticut College Invitational on October 18.
Last week's second-place finish at the NCAA East Region Championship was a slight hiccup, though Tufts was resting two of their usual top-five scoring runners.
"We would have loved to win the Regional, but there's certainly no reason to panic," Coach Norton said. "This was part of the plan that we took to try to maximize going into the next week at Nationals. Nothing about our goals has changed."
The Jumbos will run a veteran group at the NCAA race on Saturday. The expected lineup includes senior
Amokrane Aouchiche, senior
Calvin Cummings, junior
Harris Gulbransen, senior
Quinn Hampson, senior
Cullen McCaleb, junior
Jonah Reisner and junior
Avery Smart. Senior
Luke Brennan and junior
Sam Kurian will be on hand as alternates.
Aouchiche, an All-American last season who was 35th at Nationals, will run at the NCAA race for the fourth straight year. Cummings and Hampson will make their third career starts at Nationals. Reisner and Gulbransen will compete on the national stage for the second time. McCaleb and Smart will be in the NCAA field for the first time. Of the alternates, Brennan has run at the last three NCAA meets and Kurian has not competed nationally yet.
At the Regional Championship, Aouchiche was the runner-up to lead all seven Tufts finishers who earned All-Region honors (top 35 individuals). Hampson, Cummings, Reisner, Smart, Kurian and Brennan were also recognized.
Along with the stiff competition, the Jumbos will face the challenge of running at Nationals in a warmer climate. The 2025 NCAA Championship Race will be held at the Roger Milliken Center in Spartanburg, South Carolina where temperatures are forecasted to be in the 70s on Saturday, warmer than the brisk late fall conditions that the NCAA race has typically seen. Race times were set earlier for this reason, with the men's race beginning at 10:00 AM.
"We had a very warm fall here," Coach Norton said. "We ran multiple races on 70-plus maybe even 80-plus degree days. I think we're ready for it. It might slightly change our execution. You have to be a little more patient sometimes in the heat. We're aware of it and we're preparing as best we can for it. It's going to be the same for everyone, with the majority of teams from cold climates."
--JUMBOS--
