Cross Country Places Fifth at 2024 AAC Championships

Knoxville, Tennessee- The Brenau cross country team earned a solid fifth place at the 2024 Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Cross Country Championships on Friday.

The squad notched two top-20 finishes and a total of 157 points to outpace sixth place Truett McConnell (Ga.) by 44 points. 

Senior Kamille Dixon continued her strong inaugural season with a time of 22:40 to place 16th out of 91 total runners. Sophomore Averie Akin also ran an outstanding race by placing 18th overall in a time of 22:48 in the 6K event. Sophomore Victoria Woods placed 41st in a time of 24:58 and fellow sophomore Gladys Blanco Choque added a 54th place finish in 26:53. Freshman Re'Yanna Ellis-Pickett ran 28:06 for 64th place in her first AAC Championship appearance, while junior Paloma Resendiz-Perez took 67th place in 29:07. Sophomore Leslie Cabrera also placed 74th in 30:47.

Under the guidance of first-year head coach Katie Dant, the squad's fifth place finish was the highest at the championships since 2016-2017 when the team also garnered a fifth place finish.

Defending champion Milligan (Tenn.) University won the overall team title, while Montreat freshman Heather Murphy secured the individual title with a time of 20:33.

The team now waits to see which runners qualify for the 2024 NAIA Cross Country National Championships on November 22nd in Columbia, Missouri.

For a complete list of finishers, click here.