The Christian Brothers Academy cross country team has earned distinction as the best in the nation. 

The parochial boys' high school in the Lincroft section of Middletown won the 8th Nike Cross Nationals (NXN) Finals Saturday in a dramatic finish against a Texas contender.

It was the first time the team has won the honor. The race was held in Portland Meadows Race Track, Portland, Oregon. Accounts from the race describe the boys pulled off a heart-thumping late-race surge.

Coach Tom Heath's team included standouts George Kelly, Billy Bragg, Mike McClemons, Conrad Lippert, Aaron Liberatore and Jack Boyle.

Here are some links to coverage by sports journalists who witnessed the race.

• ESPN's John Nepolitan took photos of the team's reaction, and read ESPN writer Doug Binder's tick-tock of how the race was won on ESPN's HS Track and XC site.
• Read the Star Ledger reporter Jim Lambert's account in Oregon on NJ.com here.
• The NikeCrossNationals.com site includes photos, webcasts of the race and closing ceremonies.