Florida Gators
Covered Bridge Open
Florida Men Take First, Women Finish Second at Covered Bridge Open
Saturday, September 5, 2015 | Cross Country
*Men's Results | Women's Results*
BOONE, N.C. – The Florida men's and women's cross country teams eased into their respective 2015 seasons at the Covered Bridge Open, hosted by Appalachian State University, on Friday evening.
On the men's side, the Gators had the fourth-, fifth-, sixth- and seventh-place finishers, helping them post a score of 32 points and collect a 28-point victory.
Redshirt seniors Eddie Garcia and Jimmy Clark were the team's top finishers, clocking in at 20:18.95 and 20:19.59, respectively. In his first race as a Gator, redshirt senior Charles Chambers, a graduate transfer from Australia, took sixth place with a time of 20:25.77. Junior Carlos Miranda took seventh, while freshman Jack Guyton came in 10th place.
For the women, four Gators finished inside the top nine, highlighted by freshman Maria Larsen's runner-up finish. Florida took second place as a team.
Junior Taylor Tubbs (fifth), redshirt sophomore Becky Greene (sixth), and freshman Elisabeth Bergh (ninth) rounded out the group of Gators who led the way at the season-opening race.
NUMBERS OF NOTE
· This is the 11th consecutive year the men's team has won its first race of the season
RESULTS
| Gator Men – 6.4k |
| |
| Place | Runner | Time |
| 4. | Eddie Garcia | 20:18.95 |
| 5. | Jimmy Clark | 20:19.59 |
| 6. | Charles Chambers | 20:25.77 |
| 7. | Carlos Miranda | 20:30.68 |
| 10. | Jack Guyton | 20:37.91 |
| 15. | Mac Reynolds | 20:47.97 |
| 17 | Jack Beitter | 20:50.07 |
| 33. | Connor Vaughan | 21:22.76 |
| 34. | Mark Mutz | 21:29.51 |
| 35. | Jack Rogers | 21:32.72 |
| 36. | Nick Diaz | 21:33.17 |
| 42. | Seamus Love | 21:43.99 |
| 48. | Bryce Statham | 21:56.18 |
| 49. | Trey LaNasa | 22:00.99 |
| Men's Top Five Teams |
| |
| Place | Team | Points |
| 1. | Florida | 32 |
| 2. | Appalachian State | 60 |
| 3. | Florida State | 60 |
| 4. | Virginia Military Institute | 100 |
| 5. | Mars Hill University | 130 |
| Gator Women – 5k | ||
| Place | Runner | Time |
| 2. | Maria Larsen | 17:59.60 |
| 5. | Taylor Tubbs | 18:03.44 |
| 6. | Becky Greene | 18:05.78 |
| 9. | Elisabeth Bergh | 18:29.31 |
| 20. | Caitlin McQuilkin-Bell | 19:03.44 |
| 21. | Maddox Patterson | 19:10.07 |
| 24. | Delaney Tiernan | 19:18.85 |
| 25. | Meg Schloss | 19:22.11 |
| 39. | Lauren Brasure | 19:48.22 |
| 40. | Julie Wollrath | 19:50.56 |
| 46. | Emily Chapman | 20:08.30 |
| 53. | Gabrielle Yatauro | 20:45.24 |
| 68. | Madison Morse | 22:10.62 |
| 70. | Autumn Bartlett | 22:33.62 |
| 71. | Jenny Coleman | 22:36.92 |
| Women's Top Five Teams | ||
| Place | Team | Points |
| 1. | Florida State | 29 |
| 2. | Florida | 42 |
| 3. | Appalachian State | 54 |
| 4. | East Carolina | 112 |
| 5. | Virginia Military Institute | 161 |
COACH SPANGLER SPEAKS
Florida assistant cross country coach Paul Spangler on the men winning the season's first race: “I was really pleased with the men. We had a really good group of five in the front. Charles Chambers performed well in his first cross country race, Jack Guyton was the top freshman finisher, which is impressive for it being his first race over 5k. Our top seven did a really good job. It was good to have a pack of guys right there working together.”
On the women taking second place: “Our women have to get better in the four and five spot. We have a lot of girls who can fill in that spot. But for us to make it on to nationals, we have to get better there. We are as good as anybody at the one, two and three spots. I thought Elisabeth Bergh and Maria Larsen did a good job in their first collegiate cross country races.”
On what's next for the Gators: “It's a long season. Certainly we have to continue to get better and we have two weeks to get ready for Mountain Dew Invitational.”
UP NEXT
Florida's next race is in two weeks, when it hosts the Mountain Dew Invitational at Mark Bostick Golf Course on Sept. 19.
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