by John Karrs
MOUNT OLIVE, N.C. – The Barton men's cross country team took sixth place overall at the 2018 Conference Carolinas Championship Saturday morning on the campus of the University of Mount Olive.
Mount Olive, ranked No. 9 in NCAA Division II, won its seventh straight league championship with a perfect score of 15 points (the third time in four years the Trojans earned a perfect score). The Trojans also had the top 11 runners in the meet including the individual champion and league runner of the year in Christian Duran. Duran ran the 8K course in a time of 26:07.
Barton was led by sophomores Evan Lee (Hunt, N.C.) and Greg Gibbs (Newark, N.J.). Lee placed 27th overall with a time of 27:51 while Gibbs finished 36th overall and crossed the finish line in 28:31.
The 2018 NCAA Division II Southeast Regional Championship will take place on Saturday, November 17, in Oakwood, Ga. The University of North Georgia will serve as the host institution.
2018 Conference Carolinas Men's Cross Country Championship
Saturday, November 3
Mount Olive, N.C.
University of Mount Olive, host institution
1. Mount Olive 15
2. Lees-McRae 69
3. Emmanuel (Ga.) 88
4. North Greenville 105
5. Southern Wesleyan 156
6. Barton 169
7. Belmont Abbey 194
8. Limestone 214
9. King 214
Barton's Individuals
27. Evan Lee 27:51
36. Greg Gibbs 28:31
45. Alex Kelly 28:46
46. Peter Charles 28:59
47. Nicholas Leek 29:02
54. Deshawn Owens 29:21
67. Timothy DeVore 31:06
75. Leslie Jones 32:36
ALL-CONFERENCE CAROLINAS
First Team
Christian Duran, Mount Olive
Alexandre Durand, Mount Olive
Jereamy Hall, Mount Olive
Jacob Willis, Mount Olive
Jacob Gonzalez, Mount Olive
Second Team
Tai Smith, Mount Olive
Brandon Oduor, Mount Olive
Daniel Francken, Mount Olive
Josh Hall, Mount Olive
Jay Hall, Mount Olive
Third Team
Altan Cornu, Mount Olive
Jake Morgan, Emmanuel
Tristin Bertie, Lees-McRae
Austin Thompson, Lees-McRae
Peyton Shelton, Southern Wesleyan
Conference Carolinas Men's Cross Country Champion:
University of Mount Olive
Runner of the Year:
Christian Duran, Mount Olive
Freshman of the Year:
Jay Hall, Mount Olive
Coach of the Year:
Matt van Lierop, Mount Olive
Elite 23 Award:
Joshua Hovis, North Greenville
