Photos from the 2023 Southern Conference Men's & Women's Cross Country Championships at the Ivey M. Redmon Sports Complex in Kernersville, N.C.

Todd Drexler - www.sesportsmedia.com

Cross Country 10/27/2023 5:00:00 PM Greg Hartlage, Director of Media Relations

Cross Country Completes the SoCon Championship

KERNERSVILLE, N.C. – The Western Carolina men's and women's cross country teams completed the 2023 Southern Conference Championships on Friday morning at Ivey M. Redmon Sports Complex. The men's team posted a sixth-place showing in the 8K event while the women's team placed eighth in the 5K race for the Catamounts.

Senior Drew Zink led the way for the men's team as he finished in 21st overall with a time of 25:49.5, just missing a personal best that he set earlier this month at USC Upstate (25.48.3). Classmate Andrew Edney followed five spots behind with a time of 26:06.7, placing just ahead of junior John Davis who finished in 29th overall with a time of 26:17.3.

Sophomore Jonny Sherwood crossed the finish line in 44th at a time of 26:52.1, followed by junior Will Mitchell in 57th at 27:33.0. Mitchell finished just ahead of sophomore Grant Parham who tripped the tape in 58th at 27:34.6. Freshman Chase Thurber rounded out the competing Catamounts with a 28:00.4 in 64th overall.

The men's team finished in sixth as Furman claimed the team title for an 11th-consecutive year. The Paladins Dylan Schubert finished atop the medal stand with a 23:33.7 in the 8K for his second consecutive individual SoCon title as Furman occupied five of the individual Top 10 finishers.

On the women's side, WCU sophomore Riley McKinney led the way in 43rd place for the Catamounts with a time of 19:10.7, finishing just ahead of freshman Grace Lane who posted a time of 19:14.7 in 47th. Senior Sydney Runyan finished her final SoCon championship with a 19:34.3 in the 50th spot.

Junior Sara Klemm finished Friday's race with a time of 19:58.8 and freshman Peyton Skoglund recorded a finishing time of 20:07.9 as the pair placed 53rd and 58th respectively. WCU concluded the race with freshman Amaya Hicks clocking in at 20:32.5 in 64th and senior Lauren Esselborn tallied a 20:44.9 crossing the finish line in 67th.

The women's team finished eighth as Furman completed the championship sweep, claiming its 11th consecutive women's championship. Furman's Abigail Robertson finished Friday's 5K with a time of 16:41.7 to lead the Paladins which collected eight of the Top 10 finishing positions.

"I was disappointed in our team results today," said WCU head coach Jesse Norman following Friday's championship meet. "We had some bad luck with our No. 1 on the women's side not finishing and then our No. 4 on the men's team falling inside the last mile that really affected our team results. They were not the results we wanted, but we've got some pieces in place that just need some additional help for us to finish in the top half of the conference."

The Catamounts are slated to run at the NCAA Southeast Regionals on Nov. 10 in Spartanburg, returning to the same site WCU competed at during the Upstate Invitational back on Oct. 14. WCU's men finished 11th of 27 teams while the women were 14th out of 32 teams scored.

Keep track of everything related to Catamount cross country and WCU Athletics through its social media outlets on Facebook (fb.com/catamountsports) and Twitter (@catamounts, @catamountxctf).

Gallery: (10-27-2023) 2023 SoCon Cross Country Championships

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Players Mentioned

John Davis: DISTANCE; Junior

Andrew Edney: DISTANCE; Senior

Lauren Esselborn: DISTANCE; Senior

Sara Klemm: DISTANCE; Junior

Riley McKinney: DISTANCE; Sophomore

Will Mitchell: DISTANCE; Junior

Grant Parham: DISTANCE; Sophomore

Sydney Runyan: DISTANCE; Senior

Jonny Sherwood: DISTANCE; Sophomore

Drew Zink: DISTANCE; Senior

Amaya Hicks: DISTANCE; Freshman

Grace Lane: DISTANCE; Freshman

Players Mentioned

John Davis
: Junior
: DISTANCE

Andrew Edney
: Senior
: DISTANCE

Lauren Esselborn
: Senior
: DISTANCE

Sara Klemm
: Junior
: DISTANCE

Riley McKinney
: Sophomore
: DISTANCE

Will Mitchell
: Junior
: DISTANCE

Grant Parham
: Sophomore
: DISTANCE

Sydney Runyan
: Senior
: DISTANCE

Jonny Sherwood
: Sophomore
: DISTANCE

Drew Zink
: Senior
: DISTANCE

Amaya Hicks
: Freshman
: DISTANCE

Grace Lane
: Freshman
: DISTANCE

Western Carolina University

Schedule

Cross Country Completes the SoCon Championship

Players Mentioned

John Davis

Andrew Edney

Lauren Esselborn

Sara Klemm

Riley McKinney

Will Mitchell

Grant Parham

Sydney Runyan

Jonny Sherwood

Drew Zink

Amaya Hicks

Grace Lane

Players Mentioned

John Davis

Andrew Edney

Lauren Esselborn

Sara Klemm

Riley McKinney

Will Mitchell

Grant Parham

Sydney Runyan

Jonny Sherwood

Drew Zink

Amaya Hicks

Grace Lane