UT Martin Cross Country Team Opens the Season Strong at City Auto Memphis Twilight XC Classic

By Alex Boggis, UT Martin Assistant Sports Information Director

MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Tennessee at Martin cross country program opened its 2022 campaign with a strong start to the season at the City Auto Memphis Twilight XC Classic on Saturday evening.

The Skyhawks competed against some of the top teams in the region with Ole Miss sitting atop the USTFCCCA South Region rankings in both the men’s and women’s polls. Meanwhile, Middle Tennessee ranked seventh on the men’s side and eighth on the women’s. With the challenging field of competitors, the Skyhawk men finished fourth in the men’s 4-mile run while the women came in seventh in the 5k.

First up on the night was the women’s 5k run which saw Lilia Alvarez lead the Skyhawk pack with a time of 19:29.41 and finish 24^th overall. Trailing behind her was freshman Maggie Roy who ranked second on the team in her collegiate debut with a time of 19:57.42 to come in 37^th while Rita Eimer wasn’t far behind in 41^st with at 20:13.14.

Another freshman joined the scoring group as Cierra Nord posted a time of 20:28.10 while Jill Plotner rounded out the contingent at 20:38.50.

In the final race of the night, the Skyhawk men stepped to the starting line in the 4-mile run. UT Martin’s top to finishers ran in a tight pack with sophomore Will Cahill taking home top honors for the squad with an 11^th place finish at 20:25.42. Reigning All-Ohio Valley Conference first team performer Luke McNair wasn’t far behind as he came in 12^th at 20:28.67.

UT Martin saw its scoring group all finish in the top 26 of the field with senior George Payne coming in 15^th at 20:49.70 while classmate Cole Davis posted a 19^th place finish with a time of 21:09.89. Wrapping up the scoring five for the Skyhawks was freshman Luke Johnson in 26^th with a time of 21:24.49.

The Skyhawks will return to action in two weeks when getting a trial run at the host course of the OVC Cross Country Championship when competing at the Golden Eagle Invitational on Friday, Sept. 16.

Graphic courtesy of UT Martin Sports Information