Vanderbilt Cross Country competed on Sept. 13 in Jacksonville State’s Southern Showcase, with both the men’s and women’s teams notching top-10 finishes in only their second meet this season. The men placed ninth in the 8k and the women placed fifth in the 5k. 

Freshman Michael Skora topped the time sheet for the men’s team, crossing the finish line at 24:21.84 and placing 15th. So far, he’s led the men in both meets this season, placing first at the Belmont Opener last month. Freshman Mitchel Drees and sophomore Jackson Scruggs rounded out the team’s top-three finishers, clocking in at 25:15.14 and 25:21.04, respectively. Along with Drees and Scruggs, five other Commodores — sophomores Brady Bliven (25:29.85) and Patrick Ford (25:33.88), juniors Dylan Ballard (27:51.08) and David Song (25:47.73) and senior Zach Hodges (25:26.88) — achieved personal bests. 

For the women’s team, sophomore Bria Bennis earned the ’Dores their highest individual finish of the day when she crossed the line in eighth place with a time of 16:56.16. The top-10 finish by Bennis was certainly promising, especially since she competed only in outdoor track and field last year. Graduate student Ellie Wolski (17:15.12) and senior Julia Rosenberg (17:18.03) also finished in the top 25, with Rosenberg punching in a personal best. Junior Audrey Allman (17:34.29) and senior Cameron Fawcett (17:36.97) rounded out the Commodores’ top five.

Both the men’s and women’s teams’s performances propelled them up the ladder in the U.S. Track & Field and Cross Country Coaches Association South Region rankings. In the rankings released Monday, the men’s team sat at No. 12, two spots higher than last week, and the women’s team has slotted in at No. 10.  

The Commodores will aim to repeat their success next month at the Joe Piane Notre Dame Invitational on Oct. 4, where both teams finished in the top 10 last year.