HONORS
| 2016 |
| NCAA All-West Region |
| Conference |
| 2016 |
| All-Mountain West - Second Team |
| Mountain West Male XC Athlete of the Week - 10/18 |
| Academic |
| 2018 |
| Academic All-Mountain West |
| 2016 |
| Academic All-Mountain West |
| 2015 |
| Academic All-Mountain West |
SPARTAN NOTES: Competed for four seasons as a Spartan...in 2016 became the first Spartan in 32 years to compete in the NCAA Men's Cross Country Championship.
2019: Competed and scored in all five races...was the first Spartan across the finish line four times...had two top-three finishes including an individual title at the USF Cross Country Invitational (9/3)...was third at the Santa Clara Invitational (10/19)...had a season-best mark of 24:01.7 at the Santa Clara Invitational.
2018: Competed and scored in all five races...was the first Spartan across the finish line three times and was second the other two...had two top-10 finishes including a third place at the season-opening race - the USF Cross Country Invitational (9/1)...was 10th at the Stanford Invitational (9/29)...finished 17th in a season-best 24:07.9 at the Wisconsin Pre-Nationals (10/13).
2017: Took the season as a redshirt.
2016: Competed seven times, including the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Men’s Championship… Earned the first win of his collegiate career at the Santa Clara Duel (10/15) in a personal best of 23:47.0… Had top-10 results in the Bronco Invitational (6th), NCAA Regional Championship (8th) and the San Francisco Invitational (10th)… Was the team’s top finisher four times – at the Bronco Invitational (10/15) in 23:47.0, the Santa Clara Duel, Mountain West Championship (10/28) in 24:23.1 and the NCAA West Regional Championship (11/11) in 29:59.3 for 10k… Twice was the second Spartan to cross the line – at the San Francisco Invitational (9/3) in 24:58.4 and the Stanford Invitational (10/1) in 24:14.7… Finished the 2016 NCAA Cross Country Men’s Championship in 174th place in 31:24.4 for 10k.
2015: Led Spartans in three races, at the Stanford Invitational, Mountain West Conference Championships and the NCAA West Regional Championships… Competed in six races, scoring in all of them… Season best third place finish at the 6K Fresno State Invitational (9/11) with a time of 18:28.5… Finished fifth overall at the 8K Santa Clara Invitational (10/17) with a time of 24:06.2, placing third among Spartans, to help lead the Spartans to a first place team finish… Finished 23rd overall at the 8K Mountain West Conference Championships (10/30) and 67th overall at the 10K NCAA West Regional Championships to lead the Spartans.
Spring Season Track Highlights: Competed in three distances, the 1500m, 5000m and 10,000m… Finished third in the 5000m at the West Coast Last Chance meet (5/14) with a personal record 14:31.71... Ran the 1,500m at the Hornet Invitational (3/19) in 3:58.36... Competed in the 10,000m at the Mt.SAC Relays with a time of 31:03.71.
HIGH SCHOOL: A 2015 graduate of Lincoln High School in San Jose, Calif. ... Lettered in cross-country and track and field coached by his father (Jose Piña)... Broke school records in the 1,600m (4:17) and 3,200m (9:11)... During junior and senior seasons, qualified for the CIF state championships in cross-country and track in his senior year.
GET TO KNOW JOSE: Majoring in health science and plans to attend graduate school...enjoys playing the guitar and going to church...the son of Sara Gamboa and Jose Piña... Jose Alberto Piña is a native of Mexico City, Mexico.