UNCG Takes Fourth at Wolfpack Challenge
CARY, N.C. - The UNCG men’s and women’s cross country teams competed in their second meet of the season as the Spartans traveled to Cary, N.C. to take part in the Wolfpack Challenge at the WakeMed Cross Country Course.
On the men’s side, the Spartans finished fourth overall, with a team score of 113 points. Dylan Belles was the Spartans top finisher in the 5,000-meters with a time of 15:02.8 to finish in 14th place. Geoffrey Korir finished 18th with a time of 15:25. 3. Today’s race was the first 5,000-meters race of his career. Luke Sumerford was the third top finisher for the Spartans, wrapping up in 28th with a time of 15:53.0.
In his second race as a Spartan, freshman Robel Tecle set a new personal best time, finishing the race at 16:16.8 for 48th place. Classmate Brandon King also set a personal best, with a time of 16:47.6. Junior John Elwood improved his personal best as well, after finishing the race at 17:24.0.
The women finished fourth overall as well, with a total score of 123. The Spartans averaged 19:22:58 for the evening. Eira Jensen led the Spartans with a 13th place finish and a time of 17:58.3, which is a new personal best for the junior.
Also recording a new personal best, Katlyn Ayers was not far behind, finishing in 15th place with a time of 18:16.2. Katherine Link finished in 21st, notching a time of 18:49.4.
Host NC State came away victorious on both the men and women’s side. Joanna Thompson finished the race with a time of 16:57.0 to take home the women’s individual honors.
Next up, the Spartans host the Spartan Invitational on Friday Sept. 26 at the Ivey Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville, N.C. The site will be the site of the 2014 Southern Conference Cross Country Championships on October 31.
Bucs Battle Against Top Competition at Virginia Tech
BLACKSBURG, Va. – Facing a tough field of competition featuring multiple nationally-ranked teams, the ETSU cross country program turned in solid performances with the men finishing third while the women finished fifth on Friday in the Virginia Tech Alumni Invitational at the Buford Meredith Cross Country Course.
Competing at less than full strength due to injuries, the Bucs had a few underclassmen step up to pace them in the race. Sophomore Matt Warriner led the pack for the Blue & Gold with a tenth-place overall time of 25:17.80. Less than a tenth of a second behind Warriner, fellow sophomore Simeon Roberts finished in 11th with a 25:18.00 time.
Steady veteran Adam Chase followed in 19th with a time of 25:24.80. Fellow veteran Sean Duffy also crept into the top-25 overall with a 24th placement and a 25:30.20 time. Trailing their teammates were James Miller with a 31st place time of 25:45.70 and Angus Baldwin in 41st with a 26:06.00 time.
Transfer Matt Joyner got into the action at 51st with a 26:39.00 time, while Dan Sonnenfeldt followed in 56th overall with a 26:50.00 time. Rounding out the ETSU contingent, freshman Haydn Borghetti-Metz slid into 59th in the standings with a 27:26.30 race.
An average team time of 25:27.30 allowed the Blue and Gold to finish third overall behind nationally-ranked squads Florida State (No. 25) and North Carolina (No. 19) who finished first and second, respectively. The Bucs did finish ahead of host Virginia Tech who placed fifth with a 25:35.28 average time.
On the women’s side, a young ETSU team squared off against a pair of nationally-ranked foes. Per usual, the Bucs were led by veteran Katie Hirko who placed 10th overall with a 21:43.90 time. Freshman Macy Carrier followed with a strong showing to round out the top-25 overall with a time of 22:31.90, while sophomore Victoria Hutchens snuck into the top 40 with a 23:19.30 race.
Veteran Lisa Pallotta followed in 47th with a time of 23:44.40 and was trailed by a pair of underclassmen with Sarah Zimmer in 53rd (24:21.70) and Carmen Hilliard in 54th (24:29.00). A trio of first-year runners completed the Blue & Gold contingent with Kylie Rutherford in 56th, Alexa Zimmerman in 59th and Brianna Goble in 70th.
With an average team time of 23:08.24, the Blue & Gold placed fifth out of seven teams. Florida State (No. 6 nationally) took the women’s title, too, with a 21:23.90 average team time, while North Carolina and Virginia Tech (No. 22) took second and third, respectively.
ETSU will be back in action next Friday, Sept. 26, when it travels to Kernersville, N.C. to compete in the UNC Greensboro Spartan Invitational. This course is the same that will be used for the 2014 Southern Conference Championships.