By: Britton Boyle, sports information assistant

Bluffton, Ohio - The Bluffton University cross country team kicked off their 2020 competitive season on Saturday, Sept. 5 in the Bluffton University Nature Preserve.

The meet was an inter-squad only meet and consisted of a hokum karem style race pitting teammate against teammate. The teams, broken up between black jerseys and white jerseys included four women and four men on each team respectively. In the end it was the white team who came out on top after the scoring ended 18-18, with the tiebreaker being total team time (Black - 180:36, White - 179:30). The victorious white team was led by the talented freshman duo of Ethan Ly (Celina) and Makenzie Brownrigg (Davison) who finished with an impressive time of 40:35. The black team was led by the partnership of returning sophomore Britton Boyle (Middletown) and stud freshman Jenia Freewalt (Delphos/St. Johns) who finished with a time of 41:21.

Head Coach Logan Wells was extremely satisfied after the race, saying, "The meet was a huge success. It was the first time we've been able to compete as a team since February, and even though it was just against ourselves, both teams brought a lot of intensity and focus." When asked if meets like this would become more of a common thing in future seasons he stated  "I'd definitely like to make this a tradition moving forward. It's a great way to get a race-type atmosphere without having the pressure of facing other teams early in the season. I thought our men and women really enjoyed the experience and I know they came out feeling more fit and confident."

The Beavers will be in action again next Saturday, Sept. 12, when they host Manchester and Transylvania for a 3 p.m. meet at Salzman Stadium.

-BEAVERS-