Leen Leads Women's Cross Country at Gans Creek Classic

Friday, September 27

Columbia, Mo.

9:45 a.m.

University of North Florida

Gans Creek Classic

9/27/2024 1:30:00 PM | Women's Cross Country

Final Results

Ospreys Finished 26th Overall in 6k Meet

COLUMBIA, Mo. - North Florida women's cross country competed well against some of the nation's top teams at the Gans Creek Classic hosted by Missouri on Friday morning. UNF went up against programs such as Stanford, Tennessee, Ole Miss, Florida and more in a stacked meet in Missouri.

Isa Leen turned in the top time for the Ospreys with a mark of 21:38.2 in the 6k race, while also reaching 103rd overall as an individual. This is the fourth time that she has lead the UNF squad with the top team time, as well as back-to-back seasons leading the way at Missouri's meet.

FINISH LINE

Leen led the Ospreys once again in Missouri with another near top-100 placement at 21:38.2.
She made her biggest jump at the 2k checkpoint, moving from 158th to 116th overall.
Emma Millson had an outstanding race as well placing 150th for a mark of 22:02.3.
Ana Markovina made her season debut on the road with a time of 22:11.4 for 160th overall.
Annika Buser was tied at the hip with Markovina finishing in 161st, clocking in at 22:11.8.
Madeline Castillo had the top freshman time on the team once again with her mark of 22:24.9.
Ella Chandler was among the top 200 competitors to turn in a time of 22:30.7 in the 6k race.
Millson, Buser and Laci Watford all improved their lifetime best marks in the 6k race, while Castillo, Cohen Kooker and Melissa Bentayeb made their collegiate 6k debuts.
UNF finished over various teams of note, including Baylor, Creighton, and conference opponent, North Alabama.

PIGG'S POINTS

"First of all, it was a great trip and a great meet. Missouri is going to host the NCAA Championships next year, so it really starts to bring in a lot of people that want to see the course and get a feel for it. To me, it's the nicest course I've ever been on in my life. I may be biased being from here, but it was just a fantastic course. It was a great day with the weather being cool. In the past it's been hot, so it was a perfect setup.

On the women's side, it was the first 6k race of the season, so we're not ideal with that. We don't bring Smilla [Kolbe] this weekend, who's our leader, so it was a new experience for a lot of these girls. It's overwhelming when you get out there and there's 350 people in a race because it's hard to gauge how things are going. If you've never had that experience, there's a lot of guidance to what you need to do.

Finish-wise, we went through with where we were, but I think it was great experience. We have the right girls and the right attitude and the right work ethic, so it was good to get that experience and it's something that we can really build on in the future.

It was a great trip as far as the first-class meet, and the way Missouri takes care of us here is fantastic. It was a good experience for our kids and it really helps lead us towards Alabama in a couple weeks, and then the ASUN Championship at the end of October. It was an excellent trip all-around and really happy with the way things went."
-- head coach Jeff Pigg