CULLOWHEE, N.C. – The Emory & Henry College Men's & Women's Cross Country Teams got the 2017 season off to a start Saturday morning, racing at the Western Carolina Invitational. The race distances were shorter than normal, allowing the competitors to acclimatize themselves to a new year of competition.

The Basics
MEN'S RESULT –  6th/6
WOMEN'S RESULT – 6th/6
LOCATION – Cullowhee, North Carolina – Catamount Athletic Complex

The Men – 5K (3.1 miles)
- Junior Austin Tolbert (Wytheville, Va.) led the way for E&H with a 33rd-place finish – ninth among small college runners – stopping the watches at 16:52.
- Junior Zane Moran (Floyd, Va.) ran a 17:13 to finish 10th among non-Division I programs while senior Buck Kirtland (Richmond, Va.) clocked a 17:44.
- Seniors Michael LoGrande (Alexandria, Va.) and Caleb Simpson (Richmond, Va.) turned in times of 18:38 and 20:35, respectively, while sophomore Colt Pierce (Lockhart, Texas) finished in 21:05.
- The University of Georgia swept the top five spots to win the event while Milligan College took the small college title.
- Georgia's Bryan Kamau was the overall champion in 15:29 and Tim Thacker of Milligan went 15:42 (sixth overall) to lead the small college runners.

The Women – 2 miles
- Freshman Alette McGuire (Chesapeake, Va.) paced the Wasps with a 12:26 to take fifth in the small college division (23rd overall).
- Junior Kelly Light (Blountville, Tenn.) ran 15:03 while junior McKenna Tankersley (Big Stone Gap, Va.) put up a 15:14.
- Sophomore Maddie Copenhaver (Glade Spring, Va.) went 15:22 in the race while junior Annie Kate Leinius (Oak Ridge, Tenn.) recorded a time of 16:16.
- The team title went to Georgia, who put six runners in the top seven while Jessica Drop of UGA won the event in 10:40.
- Milligan earned the small college victory behind Katlyn Haas' eighth-place finish in 11:28.

Up Next
- Emory & Henry will next compete at the Royals Twilight Meet, hosted by Queens University of Charlotte on Saturday, September 9.
- The race, which will take place at Freedom Park in Charlotte, North Carolina, is set to begin at 8:00 p.m.

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