The Union Women’s Cross Country team made a solid start to their season after a successful 2022 season. The team has completed two meets thus far: The Memphis Twilight Classic and the Rhodes Invitational. The Bulldogs managed a top-10 finish and a second-place finish respectively, providing an optimistic outlook as they prepare for the rest of the season. The team’s success thus far has been driven by their new additions and a strong team spirit.
The Bulldogs began their season on Sept. 2 with the Memphis Twilight Classic. The team took 10th place in a field of 21 colleges from multiple levels of the NCAA. Freshman Victoria Markham was the first Bulldog to finish with a time of 19:19.25, making her 31st overall. She was followed by sophomore Ayla Young at 19:30.77 (38th overall), freshman Addi Aguayo at 19:34.37 (47th overall), junior Mary Scott Tritt at 20:20.39 (82nd overall) and senior Sydnee Meadows was the final scoring member at 20:30.25 (90th overall). Sophomore Lindsey Dismuke completed the race at 22:08.56 (120th overall), Holly Blackwood finished at 22:55.56 (134th overall) and junior Cami Haas finished at 23:25.64 (139th overall). For her excellent performance, Markham was recognized as the Gulf South Conference (GSC) Freshman of the Week.
“It was so cool getting freshman of the week. It was honestly such an honor to be able to get that and see the picture of me wearing my Union jersey,” Markham, an elementary education major, said. “It made me proud to be running for Union and made me want to perform my best for the school as long as I am here running.”
The Bulldogs second race of the season was the Rhodes College Invitational on Sept. 16. The team took second place in a field of 12 competing colleges. Victoria Markham was once again the first Union runner to finish, with a time of 19:19.60, making her the 7th overall finisher. She was followed by Addi Aguayo at 19:25.80 (9th overall), Ayla Young at 19:47.00 (14th overall), Mary Scott Tritt at 19:47.30 (15th overall), and Sydnee Meadows was the final scoring runner at 19:52.10 (16th overall). Lindsey Dismukes completed the race at 21:25.08 (39th overall) and Cami Haas finished at 23:15.40 (50th overall).
“We got five girls under 20 minutes, which is pretty good,” Tritt, a junior cell and molecular biology major, said about the Rhodes Invitational. “That was one of our goals for the season, so we’re really excited about that.”
“We are only two races into season, but the girls are already showing so much potential,” Meadows, a senior athletic training major, said. “Our team average last weekend was the fastest we have had in a couple years, and it’s been super rewarding to see our hard work at practices pay off.”
The Bulldogs next meet will be the Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival on Sept. 29 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
