Eagles Hit New PR's At Southern Showcase
Carson-Newman cross country returned from its trip to Huntsville, Ala., for the Southern Showcase this past Friday.
HUNTSVILLE, Ala. – Carson-Newman cross country returned from its trip to Huntsville, Ala., for the Southern Showcase this past Friday.
Final results from the meet were not made official until Sunday morning due to a timing system issue. The women's squad secured a 36th-place finish, while the men's team closed the meet 45th overall.
"Both teams showed up and competed today," said head coach Brent Borden. "This was an early test for us, as we're still working to improve each week. We don't expect major results in the early races, but everyone improved from their performances last week, and they are trending in the right direction."
The Eagles' women's team put together a solid performance on Friday, led by Jenna Pittman, who placed 176th with a time of 18:43.2 in the 5K. Keirieonna Wilson shaved 26 seconds off her previous personal best with a final time of 19:07.3, while freshman Emma Roberts impressed with a 19:32.1 finish.
"Our women's team ran well within their packs, especially our 4-8 runners, consisting of Peyton Couch, Stuart-Ann Leath, Maggie Hope, Carmela Smock, and Cara Bruce," said Borden.
On the men's side, senior Bryson Burkett paced the squad, finishing 367th in 27:55.7 for the 8K. Freshman Wesley Thomas was close behind in 28:23.2, with senior Andrew Thompson posting a 28:37.5.
"The men had some solid performances today. It was a big PR day for Will Cable and Andrew Zona, along with a strong 8K debut from Wesley Thomas," Borden noted.
Carson-Newman now gets a week off before traveling to the South Atlantic Conference Preview in Greeneville, Tenn., at the Kinser Park Golf Course on Saturday, Sept. 27, beginning at 9:00 a.m.
"We have to stay disciplined and consistent in training," Borden said. "A lot of our current training and workouts will pay off later in the year at conference and regionals. These early meets help us establish momentum, confidence, and show us where we need to improve. This crew is very intrinsically motivated, and they also provide extrinsic motivation to each other. I'm confident that we will see better results with each race."
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