ACC Release || Men’s 8k Results || Women’s 6k Results
CARY, N.C. – On a brisk and sunny Friday morning at WakeMed Soccer Complex, the Clemson cross country teams put together a well-rounded performance during the 2020 ACC Cross Country Championships. The men’s team placed 11th overall by scoring 335 points, making it the team’s best finish and fewest points since 2015. The women’s team was led by Laurie Barton who finished 22nd overall and helped the Tigers finish in 13th with 320 points.
“I’m really proud of this team and how they handled everything we’ve been through this year,” said Head Coach Vicky Pounds following today’s Championships. “It’s great to see our team persevere through everything and come together for this ACC meet. It was a lot of fun today.”
The men’s team saw its top-five runners all earn personal-best times at the 8k distance, with John Ward leading the way in 36th place overall with a blistering mark of 24:04.4. Marlin Young and Jackson Leech finished second and third, respectively, for the team in the third-straight meet this season. The largest improvement of the day was recorded by Colby Caviness, who ran his first sub-26-minute 8k, finishing in 25:35.4 to take 62.2 seconds off of his previous best and finish fifth for the Tigers. In addition to the five personal bests, Danny Shaughnessy recorded a season-best time of 25:59.6 this morning. Michael Fabiano and Samuel Garringer competed in their first ACC Championship meet on Friday.
“Our top-five guys ran personal bests, so we can’t ask for much more than that,” said Pounds. “It was a great learning experience for our freshman. I’m really excited about what the future holds for this group.”
The women’s team was led by Barton for the second consecutive meet, with the senior running a personal best of 20:42.5, making it an improvement of 10.4 seconds. Lauren Hayes competed in her first ACC Championship meet and ran a personal best of 21:02.6 in just her second race at the 6k distance. Josie Wirtz, Amelia Jones and Mikie Harris were the Tigers’ third through fifth finishers, helping the team score its lowest point total since 2018.
With Ward’s achievement today, the senior has earned a personal best in each of his three races this season. Throughout the 2020 campaign, Ward has improved upon his previous best by a combined 53.4 seconds. Barton’s time surpassed her previous best of 20:52.9 which was set at the 2017 ACC Cross Country Championships.
The Clemson Track & Field and Cross Country programs will now shift their focus to the Indoor track and field season. The NCAA Championships for cross country are scheduled to happen on March 15, 2021, in Stillwater, Oklahoma, with qualifiers set to be announced at a later date
For all of the most up-to-date information regarding Clemson’s Track & Field and Cross Country programs, be sure to follow @ClemsonTrackXC on Twitter.
