Wake Forest University
NCAA Southeast Regional Championships
Cross Country Teams Post Best Regional Finish in Over a Decade
11/9/2018 1:54:00 PM | Cross Country
Women finish fourth, men finish fifth at NCAA Southeast Regional
By Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeTrack)
ROCK HILL, S.C. – The Wake Forest men's and women's cross country teams competed Friday morning at the 2018 NCAA Southeast Region Championship at Winthrop Farms. The women finished fourth and the men finished fifth in their final meet of the season.
The women's fourth place finish was the program's best at the meet since a fourth-place finish in 2005. The men's fifth place finish was the best for the program since a third-place finish in 2001.
In the 6K women's race, the Demon Deacons finished in fourth place. Samantha Halvorsen finished ninth and Mimi Smith finished 14th to each earn All-Region honors. Elise Wright was 41st, Hannah Brookover was 42nd and Georgia Evans was 53rd to round out the scoring five for the Demon Deacons. Johanna Schulz (83rd) and Anna Campbell (174th) also were in the Wake Forest lineup.
"Obviously, this wasn't the season we were hoping for," said women's head coach Michelle Chewens. "We hit a lot of bumps in the road, but I'm happy with how the women regrouped the last two weeks following a disappointing finish at ACCs. Mimi and Sam had the highest finish of their career and executed their race plans perfectly. We are ending our season with our best regional finish in over a decade and have the motivation to come back stronger next year."
In the men's 10k race, Zach Facioni earned All-Region honors with a 14th place finish. Jack Tiernan was the second Deacon across the line in 33rd place, followed by Mitchell Day in 40th place. Craig Corti was 44th and Daniel Viegra was 46th to score for Wake Forest. Myers McKinney (81st) and Joaquin Martinez de Pinillos (89th) also competed for the Demon Deacons.
"What an effort, today we became a team" said head coach John Hayes. "We learned how to fight in both the men's and women's race. I am so proud of all 14 men and women as well as my staff. It doesn't quite erase the sting of not quite hitting our goals, but the future is extremely bright. The year before our staff arrived we were 23rd and 12th at this meet. This year we were fifth and fourth. Our expectation from now on is to be at the NCAA meet every year."
Players Mentioned
