Women place first at Auburn Invitational

The Women's cross country team earned first place Friday at the Auburn Invitational, while the men finished third. Besides the host, Auburn, competitors included Florida State, Southern Miss., West Georgia, Troy, Kennesaw State, University of Alabama Birmingham, Alabama State, SE Louisiana and Samford. The women led the pack with a score of 72, just beating Samford's 74 and Auburn's 75. Freshman Hannah Stefanoff and junior Katherine Showalter both had another good showing, and looked improved from their last invitational at UGA. Head Coach Chris England was pleased with the women's performance. "The women ran hard from the start and held on for the win," England told Athletics. "For the women to earn the victory was a pleasant surprise." CAA Runner of the Week freshmen Hannah Stefanoff, who was also a top runner at this event, finished sixth at the invitational with a time of 14:57.90 in the 4k. Stefanoff also led the women's team at the UGA invitational. Showalter finished tenth overall, and second on the team, while Bishop finished 13th overall and third on the team with a time of 15:25.7. This was Bishop's first meet of the season. Seniors Zanny Anderson and Kacee Houle, the women's captains, made fourth and fifth, placing them in the top 25 overall. "A lot of credit goes to our four team captains, England told Athletics. They've provided the team with strong leadership and motivated everyone to continue working hard." On the men's side, captains Tyler Tomy and Chris Harper were second and third for the team and placed in the top 20 overall. Sophomore Valentin Poncelet finished sixth with a time of 19:32.6 in the 6k at the meet, leading the team. Freshman Austin Boetje finished fourth on the team with a time of 20:59.4, placing him 24th overall for his first collegiate meet. Poncelet once again led the men's team as their top finisher. England still sees room for improvement. "The men were much improved from last week, and I expect to see continued improvement through the rest of the season," England told Athletics. The men scored 79, while Kennesaw placed at second with a score of 59, and Auburn won with a score of 30. Georgia State returns home to Nash Farm Battlefield in Hampton, Ga. for the GSU Invitational this Saturday at 9 a.m.