Lions Place Second at Royals Pre-Region Challenge

CHARLOTTE, N.C.-- Mars Hill's men's cross country team placed second among Division-II teams in the Royals Pre-Region Challenge, held Friday afternoon at McAlpine Creek Park.

Lion runners accumulated 93 points. Alex Griggs finished 9th overall to lead MHU. Mars Hill was the top South Atlantic Conference team in the event. The race was held on the same course the Southeast Regional Championship will be held on in November. King (Tenn.) took first-place with 62 points. Over 220 runners representing 28 schools competed in the race.

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Griggs finished the 8K race in 25:29.1. Griggs improved upon last-season's finish in the race by 10 spots.

Nathan Jones finished 15th overall with a time of 25:57.5. That time was second-best among Division II freshman and the best by any non-Division I freshman in the race.

Derek Gibson continued his strong start to the season with a 25th-place finish in 25:57.5. Cesar Reyes and Brady Adcock rounded out Mars Hill's top five.

The Lions will seek their 17th-consecutive SAC-title when they run in the SAC Championships on Saturday, Oct. 26 in Black Mountain, N.C. Mars Hill will serve as the host-school for the event.