Milligan Edges Montreat to Win Women's Cross Country Championship

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - Milligan edged Montreat for the 2024 Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) Women's Cross Country championship in one of the tightest title races in conference history.

The championship meet was held at Seqouyah Park in Knoxville, Tenn., on Friday.

Both squads had their top five finishers in the top 12. Heather Murphy of Montreat won the 6K race with a time of 20:33.43 with Katie Clarke of SCAD Atlanta crossing the line in second in 20:49.42. Alyssa Bearzi of Milligan outkicked Ali Ray of Montreat to claim third place by .45 of a second.

Kirsten Geary, Ellen-Mary Kearney, and Patricia Barrera then took fifth, sixth and seventh for Milligan, while Dylan Garcia and Brooke Wiebe claimed eighth and ninth for Montreat. Karly Wilhjelm was next across the line, claiming 10th place to seal the win for Milligan as Macy Parks of Montreat finished 12th behind Avery Raymond of SCAD Atlanta.

Milligan finished with 31 points to win the championship, while Montreat amassed 34 points for a strong second. SCAD Atlanta was third with 81 points. Rounding out the rest of the field were Reinhardt (136) in fourth, Brenau (157) fifth, Truett McConnell (201) sixth, Columbia (206) seventh, Bryan (210) eighth, Tennessee Wesleyan (237) ninth, Columbia International (253) 10th, Union Commonwealth (290) 11th, and Pikeville (325) 12th.

Murphy is the Runner of the Year and the Freshman of the Year, while the Milligan coaching staff is the Staff of the Year.

Joining Murphy on the All-AAC First Team are Clarke, Bearzi, Ray, Geary, Kearney, and Barrera. Collecting second team honors are Garcia, Wiebe, Wilhjelm, Raymond, Parks, Carlyn Bobo of Montreat, and Aubrey Bahner of Montreat.

Making the All-Freshmen Team with Murphy are Wilhjelm, Rylee Fisher of Reinhardt, Gracie Franklin of Milligan, Tatum Dykstra of SCAD Atlanta, Evelyn Brodeen of Truett McConnell, and Meredith Larkworthy of SCAD Atlanta.

For complete results, click here.