OAKVILLE, Ala. – At Oakville Indian Mounds Park, Spring Hill College's cross country team ran at the Calhoun Warhawk Invitational on Thursday. With her first top-10 finish and new personal-best time, Cecilia Light led the women's team, crossing the finish line at 20:06.3 and placing 10th. Zachary Thomas led the men's team with a time of 29:31.0, finishing in 59th place.
 
Behind Light, Evelyn Hererra finished in the top-20, clocking a time of 20:31.9 and placing 17th. Allison Mangan (24:19.7) finished 80th with a personal record while Lydia Hamilton (27:37.0) and Mariam Cosky (27:44.6) placed back-to-back, finishing in 101st and 102nd, respectively. Overall, the women's squad placed 10th out of 17 teams with 265 points.
 
On the men's side, Luke Burlison crossed the finish line with a time of 30:09.9, placing 70th. Erik Lindmark finished 86th, setting a new personal record time of 30:49.5. Luke Mipro (31:53.4) and Nolan Akers (32:41.1) placed 99th and 106th, respectively. Out of 19 teams, the Badger men finished 14th with 358 points. 
 
Meet Details
Date: October 9
Venue (Location): Oakville Indian Mounds Park (Oakville, Ala.)
 
They Said It – Head Coach Craig McVey
On the meet
"Thursday was our best weather day of the season when you consider the temperature and humidity, which are huge factors in cross country. Everyone competed better. The day, the course, and our concentration level made for a good day. Both teams raced more complete races. We have room to improve, but our progress is key. Our women were 10th of 17 scoring teams, and our men were 14th of 19 scoring teams."
 
On the women's race
"CeCe [Cecilia] Light finished as our number one runner again in 10th place with a time of 20:06.3. She was aggressive in getting out in the race and isn't afraid of anyone, which is something that will be good for her moving forward. She and Evelyn Hererra are both doing the things they need to do to be in contention for All-Conference honors. Evelyn is also racing better at this time than a year ago. The field of runners was really good, so their scoring places were not easy to grab. Alli [Allison] Mangan raced a personal best, and Thursday was a great time to begin doing that."
 
On the men's race
"The men were racing at 8K again, and that's only their second 8K race of the season. Zach [Zachary] Thomas finished as our number one runner. 29:31 for 59th place is about where he was a year ago. Luke Burlison was just off of his effort from where he was a year ago since he is back from being injured and needs more training time. They'll both be ready to roll for our conference meet. Talan [Erik] Lindmark continues to make progress with the race only being his second 8K of his college career."
 
Up Next
The Badgers will travel to the Georgia Premier Cross Country Course in Macon, Ga., for the SIAC Cross Country Championship on October 24.
 
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