Michael Mireles will now be etched in UCLA Athletics history.

Mireles and UCLA cross country made their debut at the Big Ten conference championships, hosted by Illinois at its Orange and Blue golf courses, Friday morning. The men’s and women’s sides matched each other’s 12th-place team finishes, while the graduate student took home UCLA Athletics’ first-ever Big Ten championship medal after placing second in the men’s 8k race.

“Being in that second spot for that long in the race proves to me that I’m strong and I can hold my ground,” Mireles said. “This one is especially important to me, and I really just want to make sure I can leave everything out there every single race, every single time.”

Mireles placed second to No. 9 Wisconsin’s Bob Liking, who won the title for the fourth time in a row. Liking, who posted a Big Ten championship record with a 22:47.3 tally, became just the fourth person to win four Big Ten cross country individual titles.

Liking led Wisconsin to its seventh consecutive conference title, while No. 18 Washington and No. 25 Oregon rounded out the top three.

Mireles’ second-place finish didn’t come without its caveats, though. The race was restarted after two Illinois runners fell almost immediately after the starting pistol was fired. The unexpected start called for a redo, which could have sent Mireles down a spiral.

“Something like that can really shake you up,” Mireles said. “After doing this for four or five years at the collegiate level, you learn how to control yourself. It’s all a mental battle, so keeping the composure is really important.”

After the first 1,000 meters, Mireles sat in 44th. But the Thousand Oaks, California, local made a move after the 3,000-meter split, launching himself to first place.

“One of the things that I’ve been talking about with my coach is betting on myself,” Mireles said. “Making a jump like that, that early, is a little risky, but I just knew that I had to put the work in to do it, and I just needed to trust that.”

Right before the halfway point, Liking took control, maintaining first place for the rest of the race.

Graduate student Angus Harrington and sophomore Aaron Cantu placed 150th and 151st, respectively, sitting in dead last. Sophomore Mark Cortes ran for the first 5,000 meters of the race but withdrew because of a foot injury flare-up.

The women’s team got its race started exactly one hour earlier. No. 17 Oregon made a splash at the conference championship, winning the title in its first-ever appearance at the event.

“I thought if we had a good day, that we could maybe be in the No. 8 to 9 range, but 12th isn’t too bad for our first time in the Big Ten,” said assistant coach Andrew Ferris. “It’s a strong conference across the board, and especially in cross country. And to be a part of that was pretty cool.”

Individually, senior Mia Kane led the Bruins with her 44th-place finish, recording a 20:13.9 mark. Freshman Olivia Foody also placed 53rd overall, earning her Big Ten All-Freshman team honors – the first in Bruin history to earn the title.

“My goal for this race was, ‘I’m not going to let anybody pass me. I’m doing to be doing the passing.’ I learned that from the last race, because in the last straight-away at the (Bill) Dellinger Invite, I let some people pass me, and I was like, ‘That’s not going to happen this race,’” Foody said.

The Bruins’ appearance in the Big Ten Championships marks UCLA’s first varsity sport to attend the conference tournament, signifying a new era for UCLA Athletics.

But the story doesn’t end here. UCLA’s historic performance at the championships is just further preparation for the postseason.

“We got to be more aware of where we are on the start line and the implications of that. And if we can correct that going into regionals, we’ll put ourselves in a good spot,” Ferris said.