On an ideal fall afternoon, the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga men’s and women’s cross country teams finished second behind Middle Tennessee at the annual Front Runner Invitational at the Moccasin Bend Race Course.
Senior Amanda Cotter (Bristol, Conn.) led the women to a second place finish placing fourth overall with a time of 11:04.80 in the 2-mile race.
She was followed in sixth by junior Rebecca Greenwall (Bogart, Ga.) with a time of 11:11.39.
“Our strategy was to finish together,” Cotter said. “If we can do that at conference, then we can score high.”
Sophomore Maddison Melchionna (Afton, Tenn.) placed eighth for UTC with a time of 11:17.47 while sophomore Jessica York (Normandy, Tenn.) finished 10th (11:23.37) followed immediately by freshman Emily Drouin (Verona, Ontario) at 11:25.15 and Keeley Stewart (Winchester, Tenn.) at 11:32.25.
Middle Tennessee, led by overall winner Jackie Kiprono, won the event with 18 points followed by Chattanooga with 39 points. Southern Conference newcomer Mercer was third with 89 points just ahead of Lipscomb with 92 poitns and Tennessee State rounding out the teams with 150 points.
The Mocs men’s team also placed second led by senior John Gilpin (Nashville, Tenn. In eighth with a time of 15:29.74. Junior Trevor Janssen (Jordan Station, Ontario) was the next runner across the line with a time of 16:02.90. Junior Patrick O’Brien (Chattanooga, Tenn.) placed 10th for UTC at 16:21.43 while senior HarrySmithers (Melbourne, Australia) made a return to the course placing 11th with a time of 16:22.17.
Rounding out the scoring for UTC was junior Matthew Marshall (Signal Mountain, Tenn.) in 13th with a time of 16:42.52. Also making a return for Chattanooga was junior Austin Cassasa (Nashville, Tenn.) placing 17th with a time of 16:54.27. Junior Marquis Carter (Memphis, Tenn.) finished the 5K race in a time of 17:02.58, shaving off more than a minute for the track runner.
Middle Tennessee swept the top six spots for the overall victory led by Shadrick Matelong with a time of 14:53.75. The Blue Raiders too first with 15 points with the Mocs second with 51 points. Lipscomb was third with 88 points followed by Auburn Montgomery with 127 points. Florida A&M was fifth (131) and Tennessee State, with 138 points, placed sixth.
The Mocs will next see action Friday, October 31 at the Southern Conference Championships to be hosted by UNCG in Greensboro, N.C