Redshirt senior Colin Burke and his teammates sat on the couch, watching the NCAA cross country championship from home in November. UCLA men’s cross country failed to reach the 2018 NCAA championship – the first time the program had not been one of the 31 teams to qualify since 2013. Read more...

Photo: Redshirt senior Colin Burke said UCLA men’s cross country’s failure to qualify for the 2018 NCAA championship has lingered in his mind since last season. He recorded an 11th-place finish at the 2018 NCAA West Regional, missing automatic qualification for the NCAA championship. (Courtesy of Don Liebig/UCLA Athletics)

Senior Garrett Reynolds said Saturday was a tone setter. UCLA cross country’s No. 24 men’s squad claimed third place at the Bill Dellinger Invitational in Springfield, Oregon, on Sept. Read more...

Photo: Senior Garrett Reynolds was one of ten men from UCLA cross country to compete at the Bill Dellinger invitational in Eugene, Oregon, on Saturday. Reynolds placed fifth individually with a time of 23:35.30 while the men placed third overall behind Oregon and BYU. (Courtesy of Don Liebig/UCLA Athletics)

Redshirt seniors Colin Burke and Robert Brandt haven’t run the same cross country course as teammates in two years. UCLA cross country will be sending the top 10 runners from its No. Read more...

Photo: Redshirt senior Colin Burke will enter his fifth season with UCLA cross country, traveling to the Bill Dellinger Invitational in Springfield, Oregon, on Saturday. He earned NCAA All-West-Region honors in 2018 and led the Bruins at the NCAA West Regional with an 11th place finish and a time of 29:49.17. (Don Liebig/UCLA Athletics)

The Bruins donned their racing singlets for the first time this season. UCLA cross country defeated UC Riverside in its first meet of the season Saturday in Mammoth Lakes, California. Read more...

Photo: Racing at 7,800 feet in Mammoth Lakes, California, freshman Emma Tavella claimed the top spot in her first collegiate race. The Danville, California, native finished the four kilometer course with a time of 15:05.63. (Courtesy of Don Liebig/UCLA Athletics)

During the time of UCLA cross country coach Bob Larsen, the Bruins traveled to Mammoth Lake every year for early season training. That tradition has continued even 40 years after Larsen first took over the reins of the program back in 1979. Read more...

Photo: Junior DJ Lawson (right) and freshman Marcus Mota (left) are training in Mammoth Lakes, California, as part of an annual UCLA cross country tradition. The Bruins will get their season started with a dual meet against UC Riverside Aug. 31. (Courtesy of Don Liebig/UCLA Athletics)

Erika Adler was the lone Bruin left standing at this weekend’s NCAA cross country championships. Competing in sub-30-degree weather in Madison, Wisconsin, the sophomore rubbed shoulders with the nation’s best en route to a time of 21 minutes, 22.5 seconds in the 6K – good for a 136th-place finish in a field of 253 runners. Read more...

Photo: Sophomore Erika Adler was the only Bruin to race in the NCAA championships Saturday in Madison, Wisconsin. She placed 136th, finishing the 6K in 21 minutes, 22.5 seconds. (Photo courtesy of UCLA Athletics)

With only one race left in the season, one Bruin remains. “It’ll be different, but I know that I’ll still have their support,” said sophomore Erika Adler. Read more...

Photo: Sophomore Erika Adler – who finished in 14th at regionals – will be the only runner representing UCLA cross country at the NCAA championships in Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday. (Courtesy of UCLA Athletics)