The Lee University men’s cross country team placed eighth out of 34 teams Saturday morning at the UAH Chargers Cross Country Invitational. The 8K run was held at John Hunt Cross County Park.
Chico State placed first with 45 points and Alabama Huntsville was second with 92 points. Pittsburg State rounded out the top three with 116 points. The Flames collected 239 points in the top 10 finish.
"This was a really good day for us,” said Director of Cross Country and Track & Field Caleb Morgan.
“We sat out our top 10 men to get in a big training block before conference. This gave some underclassmen a great opportunity to lead our team.”
Edimo Ninteretse was the first Lee runner to cross the finish line at 24:14.20. He finished 15th out of 345 runners. Josphat Meli on Harding was the top individual with a time of 23:17.90.
Elijah Moran stopped the clock at 24:54.00 as the second Lee runner and 41st to finish. Kenneth Bishop and Tal Old were the next two Flames across the line. Bishop placed 52nd (24:58.30) and Old (24:59.60) was 55th. Parker Campbell completed the Lee scorers with a time of 25:24.10 (85th).
“Edimo had a huge day and ran a top 15 time in school history,’ added Morgan. “Really happy for Elijah, Kenneth, and Tal going under 25 minutes for the first time. They have progressed a lot this season and are sometimes overlooked. I’m glad they got an opportunity to lead our Flames."
William Ta was the final Lee runner to complete the race. He recorded a time of 28:32.00 and finished 265th overall.
The Flames return to action on October 26 at the Gulf South Conference Championship. The meet was originally scheduled to be held in Valdosta, Georgia, but has been moved to Clinton, Mississippi, due to the effects of Hurricane Helene. The men’s 8K race is set for a 9:30 a.m. EDT start at Choctaw Trails.