CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The No. 12-ranked Milligan University men's cross country team was looking to have a breakout performance on Friday evening at the Royals Cross Country Challenge in Charlotte, N.C., hosted by NCAA Division I Queens University. They did exactly that with flying colors, winning the event behind a quartet of personal bests and outpacing the remainder of the field by 50 or more points.
Caleb Greene continued his outstanding start to the 2026 campaign, as the graduate transfer ended up in sixth place with a PB time of 24:33.3 in the 8k event.
Marti Molins Rallo also clocked a record time for himself, finishing 13th in 24:40.8, ahead of 2025 AAC Champion Ryan Stade from Montreat.
A pair of season-best times were completed by
Bryson Lewis (19th, 24:48.6) and
Aaron Gottlied (20th, 24:49.3), as they finished in the third and fourth slots for Milligan's team score.
Freshman
Kevin McCurry also had a strong performance, crossing the line in 25:08.6 to set another personal-best mark for the Buffs' squad as the final counting score to the team tally.
Luke Kennedy (77th, 25:46.4, SB),
Evan Holbrook (92nd, 25:58.0, SB) and
Emils Mattias Reinfelds (97th, 26:04.0, PB) all finished in the top 100 as individuals.
Ashton Sheesley (124th, 26:24.4) and
Rowen Moser-Bryan (160th, 26:54.3, SB) also raced for Milligan.
The team only totaled 70 points placing 50 points better than the second-place finishers from Catawba.
"I thought the men played it smart early," said director of cross country and track & field
Chris Layne, "which allowed them to move well on the back half of the race—just a solid team effort all around. Caleb has had his sights set on that type of run, and I think that's exactly why he came to Milligan. He had a strong supporting cast behind him today, as well."
The Appalachian Challenge in Knoxville, Tenn., at Sequoyah Park, sits next on the slate for the Buffaloes on Oct. 23. That meet comes two weeks prior to the AAC Championships on the same course on Nov. 6.
RESULTS
