SALEM, Va. — Averett University men's and women's cross country competed in the Roanoke College Cross Country Invitational on Saturday, with each team coming away in 11th place.
The women's team kicked the morning off with a 6K race, their first event to run longer than the standard 5K. The team performed well up against the added distance. Sophomore Gabrielle Griffin paced the Cougars as she so often does. Griffin crossed the finish line in 63rd place, with a time of 24:18.9. Junior Alheli Ramos-Garcia followed behind her Averett teammate, posting a time of 26:41.0, good for 100th place. Junior Kailey Gates closed the book on the Cougars' top-three, placing 102nd with a time of 26:50.4. Averett tallied 331 team points, placing them just below Mary Baldwin University, and ahead of familiar foes such as Meredith College and Sweet Briar University.
The men's team followed the women with an 11th place finish of their own. The race ran a familiar 8K distance, and saw familiar faces leading the Cougars' pack. Freshman Hunter Moss led the way for Averett yet again. Moss scored a 76th-place result, running across the line with a time of 28:15.3. Senior Jaden Carter became Averett's second finisher as he ran to a 106th-place finish with a time of 29:59.2. Sophomore Justin Schmied rounded out the Cougars' podium with a time of 30:47.5, a 115th-place effort. The men's team scored 318 points to earn 11th place overall, coming home just behind conference foe Eastern Mennonite University, and just ahead of both Mary Baldwin and Ferrum College.
It's the Old Dominion Athletic Conference Championships on deck for Averett, as the Cougars will head right back to Salem, Virginia, for an 11 a.m. start on Nov. 2.
