FLORENCE, Ala. (September 7, 2024) – The University of North Alabama cross country teams hosted the sixth annual UNA Invitational Saturday morning. Both the men's and women's teams finished in second place with 40 points and 47 points, respectively. Freshman Brian Bett set the school 8K record with a time of 24:08.14 to win the UNA Invitational.
The previous record was set by Evan Allen at 24:08.60 in 2022 at the UAB Classic, as Bett beat it by nearly half a second. This comes one week after Bett shattered the 4-mile record at the City Auto Memphis Twilight by over an entire minute clocked at 19:46.35. Bett bests Allen, who ran 24:19.55 in 2022, for the McFarland Park UNA Invitational course record in six years of the meet.
The men finished with 40 total points for second best in the Invitational. Four Lions glided into the top 10 with nine in the top 25 overall. Sophomore Vincent Chepkwony made his debut with a time of 25:37.14 that was good for ninth best.
Senior Adam Nipper had a career race, recording both his highest finish and personal best on Saturday. He placed eighth with a 25:35.08, his previous highest finish was 12th and beat his former record by six seconds. This was his first top 10 finish in four seasons.
Alongside Nipper, three other Lions on the men's side found themselves with a new PR. Sophomore Brent Lyons finished 10th with a 25:51.01 time which gives him his best run by 14 seconds. Senior Noah Bonsall placed 12th with a time of 25:53.15, a record by 54 seconds. Finally, sophomore Grayson Hall bests his former record by seven second with a time of 26:32.89 which was good for 24th place.
The women finished with 47 total points best for second place in the Invitational. Five Lions placed in the top 15 with Gracie Mathews leading the way in third place with a time of 18:26.79. Mathews won the fifth annual UNA Invitational last season with a time of 18:16.11. This year's winning time by Jacksonville State's Linda Grundmann is .22 seconds off Mathews' winning time from last season.
Seven collegiate personal records were set for the Lion women Saturday morning. Sophomore Emma Bradford set a new PR by 43 seconds with a 20:15.83 run that gave her a top 30 finish. Sophomore Taylor Williams set a new PR by 18 seconds with a 20:28.56 finish. Freshman Mary Anna Trimble made her debut with a time of 20:43.61.
Three Lions set UNA Invitational personal records. Senior Laura Mobley set a new PR with a time of 18:47.56 which lifted her to the seventh spot. Senior Aaliyah Charo ran a 19:12.18 which set a PR by about 46 seconds, as this is the first UNA Invitational Charo competed in since 2021. Camille Etheridge set a PR with a 19:22.18 time to place 14th, shaving 17 seconds off last year's UNA Invitational time.
Both the Lion programs crushed the competition after them. The men were 11 points behind first place Jacksonville State but finished 50 points ahead of Union University (Tenn.) in third place. The women were 20 points behind first place JSU, but separated themselves from third by 25 points to keep the University of West Florida at bay.
This is the second top five team finish for both UNA teams this season. Last season only saw one top five finish which came at last season's UNA Invitational.
Next up, the Lions stay in the state of Alabama with the Southern Showcase hosted by Jacksonville State on Friday, Sept. 13 at John Hunt Park in Huntsville.
For more information on North Alabama Athletics, visit www.roarlions.com and follow UNA Athletics on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
