CONWAY, Ark. – The University of Central Arkansas Bears Men's and Women's Cross Country teams competed in the first meet of the season held on our home turf at Beaverfork Lake. The UCA XC Invitational was a great start to the season with two first-place finishes and 12 top-10 finishes.

This meet was part of the Governor's I-40 Showdown and the Bears secured full points versus Little Rock, two points for the men's team and two points for the women's team.

 
Women's Results
Madeline Hill placed first overall with a personal record time of 16:38.56 and Sara Steimel was close behind in second with a personal record time of 16:50.17. Ali Nachtigal placed fourth with a personal record time of 17:21.62 and Kayleigh Wagnon placed fifth with a 17:22.84.
Running in a solid pack, Jewel Baer placed eighth with a personal record time of 17:42.06, Anna Bommes placed ninth with a personal record time of 17:46.52, Emma Selph placed tenth with a personal record time of 17:51.80, and Sequoya Prentice finished 11^th with a personal record time of 17:56.07.
Alexis Frick was close behind with a time of 17:59.58 to place 13^th. Felisa Saheib finished 14^th with a personal record time of 18:07.43, and Ashlyn Floyd finished 17^th out of 47 runners with a time of 19:06.14.
 
Men's Results
Pete Johnson secured the first-place position with a strong lead with a time of 14:03.85. Jack Dingman placed third with a time of 14:15.45, Gavin Frick placed fourth with a 14:17.03, and Thomas Cain stayed with the pack with a time of 14:19.25 to finish fifth.
In eighth place, Ky Bickford had a time of 14:49.22. Lucas Tauch finished 11^th with a time of 14:56.23, Carlos Hernandez finished 13^th with a 15:09.43, and Bresner Austin finished 15^th with a time of 15:20.30.
Beau Melancon came in at 15^th with a time of 15:36.96 and Johnny Cordero finished 18^th with a time of 15:39.06. Hayden Boyett finished 28^th with a 16:26.99 and Tomas Thompson finished 32^nd out of 60 runners with a time of 16:35.14.
 
From the Coach – Head Coach Josey Weaver
"We raced extremely well as a team today, which is something that all coaches hope to watch and witness. We are pleased with our effort and how we opened the season. We know there is more work to do and I believe our men and women are ready for the challenges ahead."
 
From the 1^st-Place Finisher – Madeline Hill
"This is my first year competing with the team since I was a redshirt last year. I'm just happy that I got to come out and compete with my team today and I think we have a really bright future ahead. I think we are looking really strong. I could not be happier with the line up that we have for this year."
 
From the 1^st-Place Finisher – Pete Johnson
"The meet this morning was something special. The energy and focus that the guys brought to the course was contagious and led to our success as a team. Today was the product of countless hours of hard work put in behind the scenes, and as exciting as it is to see the fruit of the labor, it's an unfinished product and now it's time to get back to work.
To speak to our culture, this is just the beginning for a team that's growing both as athletes and leaders. We are full of passion, and will lift a brother up on the tough days and celebrate them on the great ones. Today was a great day, and there's a lot more in store for the Bears this season."

Live Results: http://milesplit.live/meets/567690
 
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