DeLand, Fla. - The Stetson men's and women's cross country teams traveled to Jacksonville Friday to take part in the JU Short Course Duals. The men ran a 5k and the women competed a distance of two miles. Unlike most cross country events, the JU Duals are actually four meets in one. The results of each team head-to-head are counted in the results.
As a team the Stetson women finished in second place with a 3-1 record. The Hatters defeated UNF 24-31, Savannah State 19-36, and Bethune-Cookman 18-41. They fell to Jacksonville 19-36.
Individually Colleen Mulholland finished fourth overall with a time of 13:17.60 and Maria Harper was sixth at 13:28.69. Also running well for Stetson were Jessica Spear (12th, 14:24.36), Stephanie Bird (13th, 14:27.38), Katrina McKay (17th, 15:26.46), and Kelsey Munson (22nd, 16:08.54).
"The highlight of the day was Colleen (Mulholland) who ran really well and finished 4th", said Stetson Head Coach John Boyle.
The men's team finished third out of four teams with a record of 1-2. The Hatters defeated Bethune-Cookman 20-37, and fell to Savannah State (18-38) and Jacksonville (27-30). North Florida did not compete on the men's side.
Individually Stetson's top performer was Kyle Burton who finished fifth with a time of 18:01.94. Following Burton were Brian Dughi (12th, 19:41.55), Andrew Edgecomb (14th, 20:09.16), Alexander Kempinski (16th, 20:20.78), Phillip Bassan (24th, 22:49.85), and MJ Gort (25th, 23:04.94).
"Kyle Burton ran very well", said Boyle. "Overall the guys fared fairly well, yet we have a lot of room for improvement."
Next up for the Stetson cross country team is the Florida Invitational on Friday, September 18 in Gainesville.