CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The Queens University of Charlotte men's & women's cross country teams produced a solid eighth-place and fourth-place finish at the Royals Cross Country Challenge at McAlpine Creek Park on Friday,. Oct. 11. Find full meet results linked here.
WOMEN'S TEAM - 8TH PLACE, 5000M
The Queens women's cross country team put on a strong display in the 5000m Gold race, accumulating key points that propelled them into a top-ten placement of eighth out of 20 teams with a total score of 255 points. The competition was tough, with notable performances from schools such as Wake Forest and UNC Charlotte.
Leading the Royals was senior Sarah Watts, who clocked in at an impressive 17:35.17, securing 13th place overall and earning nine team points.
Freshman Simone Mouras finished 50th in 18:33.55 while another freshman, Lina Mills-Zacapa, followed closely in 71st place with a time of 19:07.75, adding 48 points.
Sarah Bradley finished 104th in 19:45.81 and contributed 74 points while Beatty Grace Hite rounded out the scoring lineup in 124th place, crossing the finish line at 20:23.35 for 88 points.
Other Royals finishers included Rowan Shannon (128th, 20:33.36), Marin Sullivan (144th, 21:05.29), Gianna Mars (154th, 21:31.03), and Brynn Fogarty (167th, 23:28.23).
MEN'S TEAM - 4TH PLACE, 8000M
For the men, the Royals showcased a solid team performance - finishing fourth overall out of 21 teams. The squad's collective effort earned them 163 points, allowing them to hold their own in a competitive field that featured strong programs like UNC Charlotte, Morehead State, and Jacksonville.
At the forefront for Queens was Victor Tvistholm Jorgensen with time of 24:01.66, which secured him an impressive second-place overall finish.
Following Jorgensen was Noah Boeck, who delivered a solid race finishing in 47th place with a time of 25:15.82. Just a few seconds behind Boeck, Preston Gantt crossed the line in 51st place finishing in 25:18.57. His finish closely mirrored that of Lance Sotelo, who finished 54th with a time of 25:25.66. The team's top five was rounded out by Jonathan Schmidt, who placed 87th with a time of 26:05.15.
Further down the field, Luke Collins finished 162nd, clocking in at 27:55.36. Nate Adams finished just behind Collins in 169th place, crossing the line in 28:10.24. Queens' next finisher was Jason Linch, who completed the course in 28:34.75, placing him 177th. Amari Ned rounded out the squad, finishing in 181st place with a time of 28:52.03.
"Extremely proud of both groups today and the way they competed today," Head Cross Country Coach Will Crocker said. "We have put in a lot of work over the last month of training and it paid off this afternoon. We had a large majority of the team walk away from today with massive personal best times or seasons best times which does not happen often in our sport. We have three weeks left until the conference championships and I'm excited to see what this team can do come post season time."
UP NEXT
Next, the Royals will head to Elon, N.C. on Friday, Oct. 18 to race in the Phoenix Invitational.
SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow the Royals cross country teams on Instagram and Twitter/X stay up to date on all the latest news surrounding the team. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics to stay updated on all the Royals sports teams in action by searching @QueensAthletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.
