Milligan second at Disney, Ronoh breaks school record
Despite heavy rains and muddy conditions, the no. 2 ranked Milligan College women’s cross country team ran to a second place finish at the Disney Cross Country Classic in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
The field included 44 NCAA Division I, II, III, and NAIA schools from across the country. South Dakota State finished third with Furman, Elon, and the University of South Carolina rounded out the top five teams. Milligan moves to 17-2 on the season against NCAA Division I opponents.
Senior MacKenzie LaBonte again led the Lady Buffs and lowered her lifetime best 5k time to 18:17 to finish seventh overall.
Sophomore Rebecca McDowell finished 21st overall in a season best time of 18:51, while junior Jacklyn Talbert was the third Milligan woman across the finish in 26th place with a time of 18:58. Junior Nicole Moore recorded a lifetime best time of 19:01 running fourth for Milligan, while senior Erika Fox rounded out the top five with a time of 19:19.
“Both squads ran in rough conditions today, so to see season and personal bests is a great sign there’s more to come,” said Head Coach Chris Layne.
Milligan freshman Ben Ronoh again led Milligan’s men with an overall third place finish in a new school record time of 25:15.
Junior Wegene Degefa raced his first 8k of the season and finished 24th overall with a time of 26:23. Junior Will Frye was the third Buff across the finish line in a season best time of 27:28.
Milligan’s men finished 11th in a field of 41 teams. South Dakota State won the men’s team title, followed by Hofstra University.
Both squads will be in action again this Friday afternoon, Oct. 12, at the Covered Bridge Invitational hosted by Appalachian State University.