Covenant Cross Country Teams Place 6th At Berry Invitational

After two weeks off from competition, the Covenant cross country teams posted strong results at the Berry Invitational on Saturday. Both teams placed sixth in the large field of Division I, Division II, Division III, and NAIA teams.

Among Division III teams in the race, the men placed fourth while the women were third.

Lilly Smith once again paced the women's team with her 10th place finish and 6k time of 23:11.01.

The senior saw her streak of four straight individual titles come to an end, but Smith was second among Division III runners. Hannah Samuels came in 43rd overall at 25:03.24, while Maggie Henry set a personal record in the 6k with her mark of 25:07.19. 

Michelann Settle was the fourth Covenant finisher as she placed 50th at 25:10.04 and Anna Danek rounded out the top five Scots at 26:07.88. Alexandra May (26:18.82) and Ashleigh Baker (26:43.68) both finished inside the top 100 in a field that saw 217 competitors. Baker's time set a personal record.

Covenant was sixth overall with 193 points, just one spot behind USA South foe Berea, and in front of teams from Emory and Sewanee.

Caleb Aikens was the anchor for the men's team as he came in 23rd overall with his 8k time of 26:29.15. The time for Aikens was his best of the season. Following Aikens was freshman Nate Collins, who set a personal record in the 8k with a time of 27:01.06 that placed him 38th. Matthew Tueller (27:07.38) and Matt Seitz (27:10.08) finished back-to-back at 43rd and 44th, respectively.

Jonathan George came in 62nd overall at 27:34.63 and Micaiah Allison was 72nd at 27:54.06. Matthew Broussard rounded out the top seven finishers for the Scots with his 77th place finish and a personal-best time of 27:58.10. Leif Le Mahieu and Benjamin Jones also finished in the top 100 out of 213 runners.

Covenant was fourth on the men's side among Division III programs with 149 total points. Berea took home the team title, while Covenant finished ahead of Berry and just three points back of Oglethorpe.

Women's Results (top 7 finishers):
10th - Lilly Smith - 23:11.01
43rd - Hannah Samuels - 25:03.24
48th - Maggie Henry - 25:07.19 (PR)
50th - Michelann Settle - 25:10.04
76th - Anna Danek - 26:07.88
82nd - Alexandra May - 26:18.82
97th - Ashleigh Baker - 26:43.68 (PR)

Men's Results (top 7 finishers):
23rd - Caleb Aikens - 26:29.15
38th - Nate Collins - 27:01.06 (PR)
43rd - Matthew Tueller - 27:07.38
44th - Matt Seitz - 27:10.08
62nd - Jonathan George - 27:34.63
72nd - Micaiah Allison - 27:54.06
77th - Matthew Broussard - 27:58.10 (PR)

UP NEXT

Covenant will prepare for the USA South Championships set for Friday, Oct. 26 at Maryville.