DARLINGTON, SC – Personal bests were on full display as the Francis Marion University men's and women's cross country teams returned to action in the Coker Invitational, hosted at Darlington Raceway on Friday evening (Oct. 23). The men's squad produced an eighth-place finish, while six Patriots received PR's alongside two season bests between the squads.
 
Francis Marion is idle for two weeks before competing at the Conference Carolinas Championship on Saturday, Nov. 7 at Milliken Research Park in Spartanburg, S.C.
 
Freshman Dalton Horton propelled the Patriots in the 8,000-meter race, placing 29th overall with a personal-best time of 27:50.3. The second Patriot to cross the line was junior Caleb Gary, placing 43rd with a personal record of 28:39.4. Following Gary was freshman Nicholas Bresnan in 52nd (29:15.8) and sophomore Ethan Simpson in 57th (29:32.2), both recipients of personal bests. FMU's next duo to finish were freshmen Andre Maldonado and Zachary Newton, who both recorded personal bests. Maldonado placed 76th at 30:20.0, while Newton followed closely behind in 78th at 30:24.6. The last cluster of Patriots to cross the line included senior Niclas Giessler (32:04.9), senior Grayson Hartson (33:24.0 SB), and junior Dominic Rigoni (37:39.1).
 
The trifecta of Patriots in the women's 5,000-meter included juniors Rowan Hearn and Alia Turcios and sophomore Deyra Martinez. FMU's first finisher was Hearn, placing 53rd overall with a season best of 24:01.5, before Turcios was right on her heels at 24:09.1 in 54th. Martinez closed out the race in 84th with a time of 27:59.5.