FGCU XC: FGCU Invitational Recap

The FGCU men's and women's cross country programs got an early look at the site of the 2019 A-SUN Championships as both sides placed third overall at the FGCU Invitational Saturday morning at the Buckingham Course.

"It was exciting to have two of the top teams in the conference come in and look at the course early on so we were looking forward to that," said head coach Cassandra Goodson. "We had a different look with the men's team today but I think they competed well with the conditions they faced. That's what these meets are for and we'll learn from it. Gianna had a breakout race today so that was thrilling to see. Our returners ran tough, showed a lot of heart and I was proud of them. We have a little more work to do but we're excited to see what's ahead."

The men's team kicked off the home invite at 8 a.m., paced by rising junior Lucas Kiprotich with his overall sixth-place finish. Two spots behind him was classmate Boniface Mutai in eighth as sophomore Austin Redondo and freshman Benjamin Hermiston rounded off the top-20, finishing 18th and 20th, respectively. The final scorer for the Eagles was sophomore Bryce Bell, who crossed the end line 22nd to give the Eagles a total of 71 points.

In just her second collegiate race, freshman Gianna Citarella led the women's side coming in 10th overall with a season-best 5k mark of 20:00.99. Right on her heels was sophomore Jillian Felton who placed 13th, also recorded a season-best mark of 20:20.18 (eight seconds faster than FAU's meet). classmate Emily O'Connor rounded out the top-20 coming in 16th as sophomore Julia Filip, freshman Reilly Ritter, and junior Madeline Wyers finished 23rd, 32nd, and 34th, respectively. Ritter's time of 22:09.07 proved to be a season-best mark.

Up Next:
FGCU hits the road next Saturday, Sept. 14 for the very competitive UF Mountain Dew Invitational slated to start at 8 a.m. 

Men's Individual Results
6. Lucas Kiprotich – 27:06.94
8. Boniface Mutai – 27:18.00
18. Austin Redondo – 27:46.11
20. Benjamin Hermiston – 28:16.84
22. Bryce Bell – 28:45.10

Men's Team Standings
Liberty – 25
Stetson – 42
FGCU – 71
USF – 94

Women's Individual Results
10. Gianna Citarella – 20:00.99
13. Jillian Felton – 20:20.18
16. Emily O'Connor – 20:40.33
23. Julia Filip – 21:07.84
32. Reilly Ritter – 22:09.07
34. Madeline Wyers – 22:36.17

Women's Team Standings
Liberty – 16
USF – 64
FGCU – 68
Stetson – 94