Season Preview: 2024 Men’s Cross Country
MILLIGAN, Tenn. – The Milligan University men's cross country program heads into the 2024 campaign having earned their second NAIA national championship title in three years.
The Buffs will once again be a favorite to earn another national title in 2024. Milligan begins its season at Appalachian State's Firetower Project on Friday, Sept. 13.
2023 Season Review: After a runner-up finish at the NAIA National Championships in 2022, Milligan opened the season with a national No. 1 ranking and remained in the top three for the entirety of the campaign.
The squad earned their fifth straight AAC Championship, with Bryn Woodall becoming the individual conference champ. The five counting runners for the Buffs all finished in the top seven at the event.
The Buffs boasted three All-AAC First Team honorees (Woodall, Will Stockley, Aaron Jones) and four All-AAC Second Teamers (Zimri Kuhn, Bryson Lewis, Alex Brittain, Josh Hale), meaning that all seven runners who competed for Milligan were recognized as all-conference performers.
At the 2023 NAIA National Championships at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Championship Course in Vancouver, Wash. Milligan grabbed 93 points, outlasting Saint Mary (Kan.) by five tallies to capture their second national title in a three-year span.
Woodall (6th), Jones (7th), Stockley (9th) and Lewis (30th) each earned All-America honors for the squad, with Woodall (2x), Jones (4x) and Stockley (3x) sporting multi-year XC All-American honors.
"We're filling big shoes in both Aaron and Will and there was a continuity they both brought to the table," said head coach Chris Layne. "I think this years class has the talent and experience, it's just going to come down to piecing that puzzle together by the end of the season – that's the really enjoyable part of what we get to do as coaches."
2024 Preseason Poll: The Buffs topped the 2024 AAC Preseason Poll.
2024 AAC Men's Cross Country Coaches' Preseason Poll
School (First-Place Votes) - Total Voting Points
1. Milligan (10) - 130
2. Montreat - 120
3. SCAD Atlanta - 104
4. Tennessee Wesleyan - 95
5. Reinhardt - 88
6. Bryan - 81
7. Columbia - 74
8. Truett McConnell - 57
T9. Columbia International - 45
T9. Union Commonwealth - 45
11. Pikeville - 33
12. Bluefield - 14
Key Returners: Two returning All-Americans, alongside three additional members of the seven-man national champion squad in 2023, headline Milligan's 2024 squad.
As the top finisher for the Buffs at last season's national championship race, Woodall enters his senior season in 2024, looking to help lead this year's squad to greatness, yet again. He notched a time of 24:56 to place sixth as an individual in Vancouver and helped propel his squad to another victorious season.
"It's been rewarding to see Bryn develop in this program," Layne stated. "His ceiling in this sport is extremely high and he's starting to believe in himself at a level that is going to again put him in the equation when November comes around."
Just a sophomore, Lewis became an All-American in his first collegiate season with a 30th-place finish at last year's national championships. His 25:31 time was a wildly impressive feat to help boost Milligan's chances.
"Bryson is a young man that will always find a way to have himself in the mix," opined Layne. "He is incredibly calm under pressure, and he has an incredible work ethic and I think that really stood out at nationals last year."
Zimri Kuhn was the final counting finisher for the Buffs in the title race, as he crossed the line with a time of 25:50 to finish 52nd.
"Zimri is the guy that is going to do everything he can to make this team better," Layne said. "He's a captain for a reason and this year he's charged, along with Bryn, with carrying the flag that Will and Aaron firmly planted. I know that's important to him."
Both Josh Hale and Alex Brittain competed at last year's national championship, as well, and will be continuing their careers at Milligan. Hale placed 78th at the ultimate event in 2023, with a time of 26:06, while Brittain came in 101st and crossed the line in 26:16.
"I seem to say this every year, but the top of the NAIA just gets stronger and stronger. There are a number of teams that could win this thing in November, or they could be 6th or 7th," Layne remarked. "It's going to come down to the day, and for us, that's what makes this exciting."
Newcomers: The Buffs are bringing in a 14-man distance class, with nine freshmen and five transfers.
Douglas Cornfield (Corning HS, N.Y.) brings a career-best 5k time of 15:41 to Milligan. Serem Collins Kipkemboi (Kenya) has a 5k best of 14:49 at altitude. Nathan Taal (Sevier County HS, Tenn.) brings a 5k personal-best of 15:42 to the table, and Joseph Abbott (Green Hill HS, Tenn.) sports a time of 15:55 in his top 5k.
Blake Hipkiss (Transfer, Marian University (Ind.)) comes to Milligan sporting a 25:06 in his best collegiate 8k performance. Walid Jarfani (Transfer, Texas Wesleyan University) has a 25:16 as his 8k best at the NAIA level. Luis Peralta (Transfer, University of Oregon) sports a 24:51 in the 8k, and Winston Telford (Transfer, Eastern Oregon University) comes to the Buffs with a personal-best time of 24:56 in the 8k.
Jaiden Carmichael (Morristown-West), Brayden Goddard (Daniel Boone), Brayden Johnson (Tullahoma), Mick Stokes (Science Hill) and Andrew Whaley (Daniel Boone) all enter the fray from Tennessee high schools as freshmen, as well.
"I noted this earlier, but there's no question we have the personnel to put a really competitive team on the course this season," declared Layne. "We might even have a little more competitive depth to this roster. The big difference is going to be replacing what we lost in Aaron and Will, on and off the field of play. I'm just personally looking forward to being a part of this journey as I think this continues to be a special group of human beings and that can't get lost in the process."
Looking at the Schedule: Milligan's 2024 cross country schedule includes four regular season dates prior to the AAC and NAIA championships in November.
The Buffs return to Appalachian State for the fourth straight season on Sept. 13 and will attend the Brevard XC Classic in Brevard, N.C. on Sept. 20.
Milligan will travel to the ECU Pirate Invitational, facing a litany of NCAA Division I and II opponents in the process on Oct. 4.
Sequoyah Park in Knoxville will once again be the site for the Appalachian Challenge (Oct. 26) and the AAC Championship (Nov. 8).
The NAIA National Championships will be held at the Gans Creek Cross Country Course in Columbia, Mo. The Buffs claimed the NAIA national championship in Vancouver, Wash. in both 2021 and 2023.
"I don't know a lot about the Columbia course," said Layne, "but I've heard good things, and we'll look forward to setting ourselves up to make this trip again. One of the best parts of doing what we do as coaches is being able to travel and experience these championships and I'm grateful that's always a standard and a staple with our programs."
Last Word: "The last few years we've gone into the season with a real feel for what we have," Layne said. "This year we don't know that yet and that brings an element of excitement and intrigue that we'll look forward to seeing unfold."