Terre Haute, IN - McNeese State' David Rooney ran one of the best races in his career in finishing 58th at the NCAA men's meter cross country championship on Monday. The Cowboy sophomore from Dublin, Ireland, posted a 30:32.6 clocking over the 10,000 meter course. Teammate Joshua Sawe ran 152nd with a 31:24.1 effort. The individual champion was Samuel Chelanga of Liberty with a 28:41.3 time. Rooney was also the top Southland Conference runner to finish the race as Lamar's Francis Kasagule placed 86th. "He ran a fantastic race," McNeese coach said of Rooney. "He ran smart and he had a good pace all the way around." Sawe had entered the race as the Cowboys top performer but he went out too quick and then had trouble keeping up. Gilory said that the Kenya runner was in the top 10 after one mile of the race. Rooney and Sawe were the top two runners from a Louisiana school to finish. They were the first Cowboys to participate in the NCAA championship race since the late 1970s.