WINGATE, NC – Sophomore Alison Filer set a personal-best time and senior Javier Bustos Jaimes placed 35th to lead the Francis Marion University women's and men's cross country teams to finishes of ninth and 11th respectively at the eighth-annual Bulldog Stampede Meet hosted by Wingate University, Saturday morning (Sept. 23).

The meet was the first intercollegiate competition in three weeks for the Patriots due to Hurricane Irma.  FMU will return to action on Friday afternoon when the Patriots compete in the Royals Cross Country Challenge hosted by Queens University of Charlotte.

Filer finished the 6,000-meter women's race in 25:47.04 to place 36th and lead the Patriot women. She shaved nearly three minutes off her previous best 6K time.  Sophomore Emma Driggers finished 65th with a time of 27:01.72, while other FMU runners included senior MacKenzie Arnold in 67th (27:09.30), senior Taylor Brunson in 83rd (28:48.37), sophomore Alexis Byers in 89th (29:09.26), and sophomore Jasmine Watson in 126th position (37:34.50).

The host Bulldogs placed three runners in the Top 10 to capture the women's team title with a 43 score.  Francis Marion totaled a 285 tally to finish ninth in the 19-team field.

Bustos Jaimes finished the men's 10,000-meter race in a time of 35:51.63 to placed 35th.  Other Francis Marion runners included senior Jonathon Reid in 51st (37:05.87), senior Devin Nelson in 91st (40:18.80), junior Brandon Boggs in 103rd (42:27.38), junior Carlos Oliver in 110th (43:12.05), and junior Robert Hahn in 117th place (47:09.74).

Augusta University saw five of its runners finish in the Top 8 to allow the Jaguars to run away with the men's team championship. FMU, with a 305 team score, placed 11th in the 15-team field.

The participating teams used Saturday's event as a preview for the 2017 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional championships, slated for Nov. 4 on the Bulldogs' home course.

BULLDOG STAMPEDE WOMEN'S TEAM STANDINGS
 1 Wingate                             43         
 2 Augusta                             63         
 3 Georgia College                  101          
 4 Mount Olive                       125         
 5 Catawba                           191         
 6 Lincoln Memorial                 199                   
 7 Belmont Abbey                   242         
 8 Limestone                          262                   
 9 Francis Marion                    285              
10 Meredith                           292         
11 Coker                               306              
12 Emmanuel (Ga.)                  314                   
13 Brenau                              319              
14 Barton                              359                   
15 Lees-McRae                       392                   
16 Converse                           424                   
17 Johnson C. Smith                428              
18 S.C.-Aiken                         429                    
19 Lander                              495    

BULLDOG STAMPEDE MEN'S TEAM RESULTS
 1 Augusta                              27         
 2 Mount Olive                         55         
 3 Wingate                              77         
 4 Georgia College                   129         
 5 Lincoln Memorial                 132              
 6 Lees-McRae                       147         
 7 Morehouse                        228         
 8 Emmanuel (Ga.)                  245         
 9 Catawba                           246         
10 Limestone                         289              
11 Francis Marion                   305              
12 Belmont Abbey                  365                   
13 Barton                             378                   
14 Johnson C. Smith               405              
15 Lander                             413