KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – The No. 8-ranked Milligan University men's cross country squad had designs on winning their seventh straight Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Championship on Friday morning at Sequoyah Park in Knoxville, Tenn. They had no trouble meeting that goal, as each of the top five finishers placed in the top nine of the event.
Bryson Lewis posted a 25:03.4 mark to place third as an individual and claim the top spot for a Milligan harrier. With the performance, he was named to the All-AAC First Team.
"Bryson had a nice bounce back today to lead these men and that was great to see," affirmed head coach
Chris Layne. "The 8k is a little different and I think we still saw a strong run at the App Challenge show up a bit today so I expect these guys will line up really well at nationals."
Right behind him were
Josh Hale (25:10.9),
Winston Telford (25:15.4) and
Aaron Gottlied (25:17.9), as the Buffs swept spots 3-6. Each of those student-athletes were also named to the First Team.
Marti Molins Rallo came away with one of his better performances of the season, clocking a 25:34.4 to place ninth and earn All-AAC Second Team plaudits.
For
Rowen Moser-Bryan, an 11th-place finish earned him Freshman of the Year honors, as well as an All-AAC Second Team recognition and an All-Freshman Team nod. He finished the race in 25:47.4.
Luke Kennedy (17th, 26:17.1) and
Evan Holbrook (18th, 26:18.4) also both finished in the top 20, and Holbrook was a member of the All-Freshman Team.
Dillon Craig (21st, 26:27.4),
Elijah Gouge (27th, 27:00.8, PR),
Ethan Bennett (28th, 27:01.2),
Joshua Starr (34th, 27:06.4),
Eli Cox (36th, 27:13.4),
Mitchell McCown (39th, 27:25.4),
Jaiden Carmichael (40th, 27:25.9, PR) and
Daniel Hornbuckle (42nd, 27:27.4, PR) placed in the top 50.
Andrew Whaley (53rd, 28:07.9),
Talan Hammack (65th, 28:42.6),
Granville Sexton (66th, 29:09.4) and
Benjamin Cox (95th, 33:15.4) closed out the list of MU runners.
The coaching staff for the Buffaloes, led by
Chris Layne, won the Staff of the Year for the seventh year running.
"Another really strong pack effort from our men," Layne said. "We're swapping spots up front but you know you can count on that core group to be there every time we race."
Milligan has now taken seven straight AAC titles and will head southeast to the NAIA Cross Country Championships in Tallahassee, Fla. on Friday, Nov. 21. That will be made official on the NAIA Selection Show, which takes place on Tuesday, Nov. 11 at 5 p.m.
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