By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Both the Tennessee Tech men's and women's cross country teams completed their second meets of the 2020-21 season Friday morning, competing at Florida State's Seminole Invitational at Apalachee Regional Park.
Competing in the Gold Men's 8K, the Tech men carved out a fourth-place finish among 10 teams, finishing the day with 96 points. The purple and gold out-raced fifth-place North Florida by 17 points and sixth-place Charleston Southern by over 50.
"The men ran strong as a team," Tech head coach Peter Dalton said. "We've got a few things to adjust as we progress towards our home meet and on to conference, but overall, they are competing strong."
Redshirt sophomore Dennis Kipkorir paced the Golden Eagles with a career-best showing, finishing 24th overall with a final time of 25:47.1. Rookie Clayton Kirkus improved on his first career outing at Belmont, finishing 29th overall and second among the Tech runners at 26:02.4. Fellow freshman Chase Faudi turned in a time of 26:32.7, finishing 44th overall.
"For the ladies, we're still missing some athletes," Dalton explained, "but the numerous PRs today bodes well for the future."
Making her Golden Eagle debut after transferring from North Florida, junior Tina Cesnik was the first across the finish line for the purple and gold, turning in a time of 23:54.6. Not far behind, freshman Amanda Laboy turned in a personal best showing in the 6K, posting a 23:59.8.
Junior Alexa Bruger completed the event with a time of 25:46.0 while freshman Emma Bradford turned in a time of 26:39.0.
Up Next
The Golden Eagles are set to return home to host the Golden Eagle Open on Feb. 19 in Cookeville, Tenn.
Photo by TTU Track & Field
