HARDEEVILLE, S.C. – Men's and women's cross country competed in the 12th Annual Sand Shark Invitational hosted by USC-Beaufort on Saturday. In Hardeeville's hot and humid conditions, the men finished fourth out 33 teams as the top Appalachian Athletic Conference finisher, beating No. 24 Milligan. The women were able to finish 16th of 34 teams.

"Our toughness was really tested today with the heat and rough course conditions. Final times were in no way a good indicator of how well the teams ran," said head coach Jason Lewkowicz. "Our team is coming together at the right time, and we are excited to get even better heading into the AAC Championships."

On the men's side, Nathan Richards was Montreat's top finisher in the 8k with a time of 25:57, finishing 11th out of 281 runners. Benjamin Schmidt and Rylan Hincher were less than a minute behind at 26:38 and 26:53, respectively. Lydia Wilson led the women in the 5k with a seventh place finish time of 18:05 out of 293 runners, while Skyler Tait came out with a time of 19:59.

Up Next: Both squads will compete in the Appalachian Athletic Conference XC Championships in Canton, Ga. on Saturday, Nov. 3.