Nevada State University Cross Country continued to make strides in its inaugural season Saturday, with nine of the 11 Scorpions who finished recording personal-best performances at the TMU Invitational.
Competing in large fields featuring runners from NCAA Division I, NCAA Division II and NAIA programs, Nevada State entered the meet focused on continued improvement and being competitive among its GSAC peers. The Scorpions accomplished that goal, with both teams finishing ahead of their nearest conference competition.
Julianna Ondrisko turned in the top performance for the Nevada State women, placing 78th out of 198 runners with a personal-best time of 24:36.6 in the 6K. Eliza Miller followed with a personal best of 26:36.6, while Monica Nieto crossed the finish line in a personal-best 27:37.6. Iliana Schweitzer (28:07.1) and Abigail Thalman (29:43.0) also recorded personal bests, giving all five Scorpion women who finished the race new personal marks.
On the men's side, Semaj Hall led Nevada State in the 8K with a time of 29:42.7. Ahmaree Lott was close behind with a personal-best 29:58.1, followed by Bryan Aleman (30:18.5) and Juan Lopez-Corona (30:32.7), who each recorded personal bests. Diego Avelar-Avila finished in 31:31.5, while Tamari Hill rounded out the Scorpion finishers with a personal-best 32:04.8.
Head Coach Roy Session was encouraged by both the individual improvement and the teams' overall performances.
"Both teams ran amazing today. Nine of our 11 finishers recorded personal bests, which shows just how much progress this group continues to make. Our goal coming into the race was to show that we can be competitive within the GSAC and finish ahead of our nearest conference competition, and both teams accomplished that. I'm proud of how they competed, and now we'll keep working and building from here."
The performance marks another encouraging step for Nevada State's young cross country program as the Scorpions continue gaining experience and building momentum during their historic inaugural season.
Full results available here.
