ROMEONVILLE, Ill. & CLARKSVILLE, Ark. — The Harding men's cross-country team doubled its efforts Saturday, splitting the squad to compete in two separate 8K races across the Midwest and the Ozarks, and they collectively walked away with a host of personal bests to show for the marathon day of competition.
While the Bisons faced stiff regional and national competition at the Lewis Crossover in Illinois, a smaller contingent simultaneously posted strong individual times at the University of the Ozarks Invitational in Arkansas.
Lewis Crossover: National Competition Pushes Top Bisons
Competing against a field of 37 teams in Romeoville, the Bisons finished 22nd overall in a field topped by the sixth-ranked team in the nation, Colorado Christian.
Senior Nate Perry and junior Noah Haileab paced the scoring runners with times just seconds apart. Perry finished 54th with a personal best of 24:54.72, and Haileab followed close behind in 57th with a season-best 24:55.98.
Other key performances that contributed to the team's 521-point finish included junior Aidan Bailey, who recorded a personal best of 25:37.70 for 122nd place, and junior Ryan McCarn, who finished 142nd in 25:46.75.
Ozarks Invitational: Top Finishes Highlight Arkansas Run
Closer to home in Clarksville, a smaller group of Bisons took to the Clarksville High School Cross-Country Course for the Ozarks Invitational, where they placed third of four teams with 59 points. The host, University of the Ozarks, took first with 23 points.
Sophomore Glenn Graves led the charge for Harding, securing a top-five finish and a new personal best, clocking a 26:16.41 for fifth place. Senior Mason Sciba also ran a personal best, finishing 11th in 26:54.51.
Freshman Rocky Stone continued the trend of strong individual performances, finishing 16th with a personal best of 27:26.49. Parker Hansen was another Bison to record a personal best, running the course in 28:02.14 for 19th place.
Harding's next competition will be the Great American Conference Championships on Oct. 25 in Monticello, Arkansas.
