The Georgia Gwinnett College men's cross country team came home in a strong third place in the program's inaugural meet Friday evening at the Young Harris XC Invitational in Young Harris, Georgia.
The start of the 5-kilometer race was delayed due to lightning just as the teams were receiving instructions at the starting gate.
RESULTS
Mother Nature couldn't dampen the Grizzlies' spirit, and the 10 student-athletes compiled an 84-team score on a course that featured one steep incline and two downhill curves.
Friday's meet featured two NCAA Division II institutions and one Division III school.
Freshman
Joshua Baez Soto paced GGC's inaugural effort, breaking away from the middle of the pack to place 25th overall with a time of 20:12.3. He averaged a blistering 6:30.2 per kilometer in the race.
Classmate
Seth Hataway also had a strong finish outpacing a Young Harris runner at the finish line to tally 16 points with a 28th-place finish in 20:26.4.
Sophomore
Kellen Simmons and freshman
Isaiah Hines fed off each other throughout the race to place 31st and 32nd place with times of 21:05.2 and 21:06.2, respectively.
Freshman
Kian Brown rounded out the team's scoring runners with a 33rd-place finish in 21:36.4, adding 19 points.
Coach's Corner
"The guys really performed well for their first meet competing at the collegiate level. It was good to see them run down other runners at the end of their races. The team was motivated to accomplish something today and it is rewarding to see the hard work of our practices showing up in this meet," said Interim Head Coach
Kat Ihlenburg.
Up Next
Georgia Gwinnett College is scheduled to travel to compete in the University of North Georgia XC Invitational on Friday, September 18, in Gainesville, Georgia.
