GREENSBORO, N.C.- The NC Wesleyan men's cross country team finished first in the D2&3 division and third overall on Saturday at the Greensboro XC Invitational.
The Wesleyan men finished just 6 points behind D1 runner-up NC Central while D1 NC A&T won the overall title. Wesleyan beat four D2 opponents and three D3 foes en route to their first ever win in school history.
Sophomore Christian Tippette finished 8th place overall (3rd among D2 and D3s) in the 8K in 28:45 and received an award.
"The day was beautiful and was full of excitement," said Head Coach Marshall Leonard. "This win represents the 1st win Ever in the Men's program. We believe we are on the right path to becoming a solid program as these runners that we have now. I am blessed to have such talented and hard working guys."
Freshman Connor Hayes then placed 2nd on the team and 14th overall but 4th among D2 and 3 with a time of 30:12 while Thomas Guadelupe-Johnson was third on the team and 16th overall with a time of 30:25. Freshman Terenthen Parker then placed 4th on the team and 22nd overall with a time of 31:30 while fellow freshman Jeshon Smith completed the scoring and was 28th overall in 32:34.
The top five guys all finished in the top 16 among D2 and D3 teams. Tippette was also the top D3 runner in the event while Hayes was 2nd and Guadelupe third. Parker was then 5th with Smith coming in 9th in D3. Williams was 13th and Bird 22nd out of 33 D3 runners.
Other individuals finishing for the Bishops included freshman Keyonte Williams in 36th overall in 33:19 while sophomore Tyler Bird was 50th in 36:48. Freshman Justin Nickle also finished in 41:46 while freshman Brandon Hester was 43:33.
"These wins represent the 1st wins EVER in the Cross Country programs history. This is an exciting time as we are creating a winning culture," said Coach Leonard.
Next weekend the cross country teams will be racing at the ESPN campus at Disney in Orlando next Saturday. They will be racing D1, D2, and D3 teams while being televised on ESPN3 for everyone to see.
