Milligan Women’s Cross Country Posts Perfect Score to Win Brevard XC Classic

Alyssa Bearzi had a great bounce-back race at the Brevard XC Classic, finishing second as an individual

September 21, 2024

On Saturday morning, the Milligan University women's cross country team traveled east to Brevard, N.C. to compete in the Brevard XC Classic 5K hosted by Brevard College.

It was a massive day for the Lady Buffs, as they produced the meet's top nine times and scored a perfect 15 for the meet.

"We started the morning off with our charter bus breaking down," said head coach Chris Layne, "so I think it's important to note how well these student-athletes handled a little adversity because they really didn't have a lot of time to think. It knocked all of us off our normal schedule when it comes to how we operate pre-race."

Ellen-Mary Kearney posted a 17:44.4 to lead the charge for Milligan, grabbing a race title in the process.

Alyssa Bearzi had the bounce-back race that coach Chris Layne predicted after the Firetower Project Run, placing second and crossing the line in 17:46.7. First-year Buff, Kirsten Geary rounded out the Milligan podium with a third-place run in 17:48.7, matching her outstanding performance from last weekend.

Hannah Brown was the lone finisher in the 19th minute of the race, clocking in at 18:49.5 to finish fourth overall.

Gracie Franklin (19:02.8), Ashlyn Haas (19:05.5) and Anna Jones (19:12.5) finished fifth, sixth, and seventh, respectively. They accounted for the remaining counting scores for the Lady Buffs.

Patricia Barrera missed seventh by hundredths of a second, posting the same 19:12.5 time that Jones did. Karly Wilhjelm had a 19:15.1 clip to finish ninth and was the final finisher of the string of nine straight Milligan runners.

Four additional Milligan harriers posted top-20 finishes. Natalie Fellers (11th, 19:38.2), McKenna Spaulding (14th, 19:47.1), Hope Krell (15th, 19:51.1) and Cameron Walker (17th, 20:01.4) finished in the event's top 17 racers.

"I don't care where you're running, perfect scores don't come easy," Layne stated, "so that was really neat to see. It was a different dynamic to find yourself racing your teammates for a lot of the race, but we wanted them to embrace this race and put an emphasis on getting the most out of the opportunity - they did that."

The impressive race precedes a two-week hiatus for the Buffs, as they prepare to attend the ECU Pirate Invitational on Friday, Oct. 4 in Greenville, N.C.