Results

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (Oct. 6) – Junior Riley Willcox delivered a breakout performance for the Trojans after placing second overall in a field over 200 runners on Friday, as UMO finished third in the team standings at the Royals XC Challenge.

Milligan, the No. 3 ranked NAIA program in the country, earned the team title with 44 points after featuring three individuals in the top-10 overall. Georgia College scored 100 points in the team standings to place second while the Trojans rounded out the top three overall behind three runners in the top-25.

A native of Garner, North Carolina, Willcox posted a personal best time in the eight-kilometer race after crossing the line in 26 minutes, 7.56 seconds to finish just under six seconds behind the race winner. It marked his best career finish in the cross country race while being the top finisher for the Trojans for the third straight competition.

Freshman Evan Hall produced another stellar performance for Mount Olive after posting a career best time of 27:08.39 to place 13th overall in the Queen City. Sophomore Josh Hendren also delivered a personal best mark of 27:40.09 to finish to 23rd place on Friday.

Junior Ashton Olmstead placed 36th overall with a time of 28:17.95 in the final race before the Conference Carolinas Championship later this month. Just four position back, fellow junior Richard Villafranco crossed the line with a time of 28:23.95 to finished 40th. Senior Nathanael Bierly was five spots behind in 45th place after recording a time of 28:36.14.

Sophomore Matthew Riggs registered career best time of 29:17.57 in the eight-kilometer race to take 65th overall. Freshman Devon Coughlin placed 163rd on Friday with a time of 33:30.92, while teammate Shamar Cowan recorded a time of 37:09.65 to finish 190th.

Milligan senior Arran Kearney claimed the individual title by just over five seconds after crossing the line with a time of 26:01.88 on Friday afternoon.

The Trojans are idle for two weeks as they prepare for the Conference Carolinas Championships on Oct. 21 in Charlotte, North Carolina.