Milligan Women's XC Finishes Third at Firetower Project Run

BOONE, N.C. – The No. 2-ranked Milligan University women's cross country squad earned a third-place finish at the Firetower Project Run, hosted by Appalachian State University at their on-campus cross country course. Junior superstar Ellen-Mary Kearney placed fifth as an individual with a time of 20:59.9, just four seconds and change slower than her personal best, which helped push her team to their impressive conclusion.

The Buffaloes finished behind just NCAA Division I powers Wake Forest and Appalachian State in the race, outdueling the likes of Marshall, College of Charleston and Radford.

"Our women have never opened up with a 6k before, and I feel like they really handled themselves well," said head coach Chris Layne. "The women up front have really looked good in training, and we saw that from Ellen-Mary and Kirsten Geary. It was just an off race for Alyssa Bearzi, and I know she is gonna bounce right back."

Geary nabbed a top-10 finish with a great debut run for the Buffs. The transfer junior crossed the line at 21:20.8, marking her personal-best in the 6k by more than a full minute. Hannah Brown finished in the top 20 in terms of points, picking up a 19th-place finish. She came in with a time of 21:57.1, marking the second-best 6k of her collegiate career.

Bearzi placed 23rd in points, clocking a respectable time of 22:11.7 to become the fourth Milligan finisher. Patricia Barrera and Gracie Franklin came next for the Buffs in 31st and 34th. They posted clips of 22:49.3 and 22:54.0, respectively. 

Senior Anna Jones closed out the scoring for the Buffaloes with a 23:00.5 time to come in 39th in the points.  

"I thought our two freshmen showed a lot of maturity, and that is a testament to the women they have around them," Layne stated.

Next on the schedule for Milligan is a trip to Brevard, N.C. for the Brevard XC Classic on Saturday, Sept. 21, as they look to build on a solid start to the 2024 season.