Milledgeville, GA - The Emory Oxford Cross Country teams competed in the 2021 GCAA Conference Championship hosted by Georgia Military College at Council Farm Course. The women's team finished in 1st place after six Eagles claimed the top six spots. The men's team finished second behind Central Georgia Technical College.
The men's team was led by freshman Darren Ni who ran a time of 28:48.2, which was good enough for a third-place finish. Following him was fellow freshman Aaron Li (29:02.8), who finished in fourth place.
The women were led by sophomore Julia Danko, who ran the only sub-20 time (19:40.6). Danko was also named GCAA Women's Cross Country Runner of the Year. After her, the Eagles claimed the next five spots starting with Alex Bryant (20:31.4), Joyce Zhang (21:08.1), Emily Wilhelm (21:18.6), Sophia Lee (21:28.9) and Sarah Davis (21:42.6).
"I am extremely proud of how both the men and women competed today," said Coach Ella O'Kelley. "The men finished behind a very good Division I team in Central Georgia Tech and they competed well. The women did very well and we are excited to be bringing back home some hardware!"
Coach O'Kelley was named the GCAA Women's Coach of the Year.
Next up for the Eagles is the NJCAA National Tournament on November 13th. This will also be held at Council Farm Course.