TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - University of South Alabama men's cross country sophomore Zac Edwards and senior Micah Tirop earned top-10 finishes at the NCAA Cross Country South Regional Saturday morning at Henry Pritchett Running Park in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
Edwards, the Sun Belt Confernce Champion, placed fifth on the 10K course with a time of 30:09.00, while Tirop finished 10th with his fastest regional finish (30:30.14). Both are eligible to compete in the NCAA Championships Mon., Nov. 23, in Terre Haute, Ind. The official field of participants will be announced Sunday evening at 6 p.m.
Saber Salah crossed the line in 31st place (31:31.53), Derrick Rodgers placed 64th (32:44.70) and Scott Lasiter rounded out the top five for the Jaguars with a time of 32:52.09.
"I'm very happy with how the men's team ran even though we were missing two of our runners because of injuries," distance coach Tim Goldsack said. "Matt Miller developed an injury during conference, and Alex Shields sprained his LCL today, which hurt us because he was the top five. He still finished and it showed how tough he is."
On the women's side, freshman Tori Lawson concluded her first regional appearance with a 37th-place finish on the women's 6K course, with a time of 21:38.39. Finishing in 75th was Magrina Chepkoech with a time of 22:29.23, beating her time from last season by 29 seconds.
"The women ran hard and I'm happy with their hard work today," Goldsack said. "Tori was the number four freshman in the race which really shows her potential for the future of our sport."
"The men did a great job and we are thrilled with the way Zac and Micah performed," USA head coach Paul Brueske said. "The program is still very young, but we are going in the right direction and I'm excited about the national meet."
Auburn's Felix Kibioywo won the men's South Region championship with a time of 29:35.85. Rebecca Lowe of Florida won the women's race with a finish of 20:03.29.
The top-two teams that will automatically advance to the NCAA Championships are Alabama and Florida State for the men, and Florida and Florida State for the women.
For more information about South Alabama athletics, check back with www.usajaguars.com. Season tickets for all Jaguar athletic events can be purchased by calling (251) 461-1USA (1872).
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