Stoddard Notches Strong Finish at SEC Championship
LEXINGTON, Ky. – South Carolina women’s cross country senior Anna Kathryn Stoddard placed 34th in the field of 143 runners at the SEC XC Championships on Friday morning at the Kentucky Horse Park.
On a course that was 70 meters longer than a typical 6K, Stoddard crossed the line in 21:12.3. Coming in second for the Gamecocks, Hannah Twine finished the race in 22:03.5. Hillary Neely came in third for Carolina with a time of 22:30.1
Even though the course was longer than normal, Kelsey Larkin surpassed her 6K PR (22:44.0) by almost five seconds, stepping across the line in 22:39.2. Taking the fifth spot for the Gamecocks, Maryah Nasir completed her run at 23:14.5. Finishing back-to-back, Savannah Bowers took the sixth spot in 23:54.2 and Sarah Riser nabbed the seventh spot with a time of 24:11.7.
“I was very pleased with AK’s (Stoddard) finish in 34th,” cross country coach Andrew Allden said. “She ran a very strong race and continued the progress back from the foot injury she had early in the season – very, very solid race for her. Hannah, as a redshirt freshman, did a great job for us at number two.
“Hillary continues to impress as a true freshman, having another solid outing for us. Kelsey Larkin as a senior essentially had a PR (Friday). We would have liked to have had a stronger team finish. We’re missing some important personnel. Heather Stone, our one, would have made a significant difference to our team score, but we’ve got to go to war with the folks that we have healthy right now.”
Overall, the Gamecocks finished in 14th as a team with 367 points.
RESULTS
Anna Kathryn Stoddard – 21:12.3
Hannah Twine – 22:03.5
Hillary Neely – 22:30.1
Kelsey Larkin – 22:39.2
Maryah Nasir – 23:14.5
Savannah Bowers – 23:54.2
Sarah Riser – 24:11.7
Leah Ford – 24:22.5
Morgan Lee – 24:29.8
Morgan Adams – 24:35.7
Sarah-Sims McGrath – 25:13.7
Up next, South Carolina continues preparation for the NCAA Southeast Regional hosted by the University of Virginia on Friday, Nov. 15.
