CHARLOTTE, NC – Freshman Dalton Horton led the Patriots for a consecutive race as the Francis Marion University men's and women's cross country teams participated in the Royals Cross Country Challenge, hosted by Queens University of Charlotte, at McAlpine Creek Park on Friday (Oct. 9). The Patriots men's squad placed 15th overall while the women's team did not record a team score.

Francis Marion will travel to Spartanburg, South Carolina, to compete in the Upstate Invite, hosted by the University of South Carolina Upstate on Saturday, Oct. 17. The women will race first at 9 a.m., followed by the men at 9:45 a.m. at Milliken Research Park.

For the 8,000-meter race, Horton was the lone Patriot to break the top 100, finishing 83rd overall with a personal-best time of 28:29.8. Junior Caleb Gary was next for FMU with a time of 29:32.2, a personal best to place 115th. Sophomore Luis Cedeno finished 138th overall with a time of 30:11.2, while freshman Nicholas Bresnan also delivered a PR with a time of 30:57.1, placing 158th overall. Five spots behind, sophomore Ethan Simpson finished 163rd after crossing the line at 31:27.7 to round out the team score.

Additionally, freshman Zachary Newton (31:32.8), senior Niclas Giessler (31:40.1), junior Kyle Elliott (31:42.5), and freshman Andre Maldonado (32:50.2) competed for the Patriots, as Newton, Giessler, and Elliot all earned personal bests.

As for the women in the 5,000-meter race, junior Alia Turcios and sophomore Deyra Martinez were the only Patriots who could participate in today's meet due to a slew of injuries. Turcios finished 135th with a time of 25:07.8, while Martinez finished 133rd at a 26:24.4 pace.