By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The 2024 campaign officially came to a close for the Tennessee Tech cross country teams Friday morning, as the Golden Eagles competed at the NCAA South Regional Championships at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee, Fla.
The Tech women's squad finished 21st among the 31 teams in action, totaling 596 points overall in the 6K race. The Golden Eagle men participated in the event with individuals only.
Freshman sensation Rylee Wells, fresh off her runner-up showing at the Ohio Valley Conference Championships, just edged out fifth-year senior Helen Pacurariu-Nagy in her final race as a Golden Eagle. Both runners clocked in at 21:58.3, with the rookie Wells just pulling the edge to finish 94th among the 215 runners in the field.
Pacurariu-Nagy placed 95th, literally on the heels of her teammate. Sophomore Makaleigh Jessee was the next member of the purple and gold to cross the finish line, delivering a time of 22:30.7 to rank 123rd.
Not far behind, freshman Savanna Amos clocked in at 22:37.8, completing the event 128th overall. Rounding things out for the purple and gold, senior Chloe Wade battled her way to a time of 23:00.1 to finish 157th.
On the men's side of the competition, junior Carter Bradford turned in a 10K performance of 32:52.4. The personal record by the Dunlap, Tenn. native provided him with a final ranking of 110th among the more than 180 runners. Senior Miceal McCaul did not finish the race.
File photos by Jim Dillon
