Eagles Hit the Ground Running at North Georgia Invitational

Eagles Hit the Ground Running at North Georgia Invitational
September 15, 2019

OAKWOOD, Ga. - It was the inaugural race of the season featuring both the men's and women's cross country teams in action at the same event on Saturday, as North Georgia hosted its invitational for a number of squads in the region.
 
The men (8K; 2:24:33 total time) finished just above the middle of the pack with a fifth-place finish out of 12 schools, while the women earned a top 10 placement (ninth overall in the 5K with a 1:59:56 total) out of 14 competing teams.

"Solid efforts to start the season for both groups today, and I am especially excited to see where we are in two months compared to where we are at now," head coach Jordan Turner said. "Jackson ran a great race and moved up through the field in a controlled effort for him, and he's primed for a big senior season. Brian and Salvador both looked really good moving up the field in the last 3K and they will be counted on late in the season.

Girls looked strong and almost all advanced spots in the last half of the race as was the race plan today. Some folks on both sides took some lumps today, so hopefully they learn from it and come back stronger in practice and meets."

Highlights included Caprice Konitshek (21:10) finishing 25th-place out of 102 runners and Alexis Casey coming in 38th at 22:38. On the men's side, Jackson Helfrich crossed the finish line in front of all the runners but one - a West Alabama student-athlete - with a time of 26:38; a new personal record at the North Georgia course for Helfrich.

Brian Vincent Jr. ran a spectacular race of his own in 28:22, which was good enough for 14th overall, and Salvador Castillo got a 24th-place finish at 29:01.

School Marks Set at the Event

  • Fastest men's team time (top 5 average) of 28:54, beating the old record from 2016 of 29:28.
  • Helfrich ran his fastest time at the North Georgia course, beating his own time from 2016 of 28:07. 
  • Helfrich eclipsed the 13-year-old senior class record of 26:57 set back in 2006.
  • Helfrich (26:38) and Brian (28:22) both landed on the top 10 fastest season debuts in the Reinhardt record books.

The teams have a bit of a break before hitting the course again in a few days - under the lights - at the Wingfoot Cross Country Classic in Cartersville, Ga.

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