FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. -- The Nicholls State University cross country program composed a number of notable individual performances at Friday morning's ultra-competitive NCAA South Central Regional, logging six new personal records between 13 runners as both the men's & women's squads finished 22nd overall on the final team leaderboards.

On the men's side, all six Colonels to hit the course at Agri Park posted new career bests in the 10k; noticeably, sophomore Dustin Worley showcased a marked improvement from last year's showing at the same event, pushing his personal record up a significant five minutes. The freshmen duo of Olari Livingston and Octavio Vasquez-Tilley paced the group, grabbing 130th & 131st, respectively, before Worley crossed the finish line at 135th. Freshman Preston Whisenhunt (137th) and sophomore Tyler Granger (140th) rounded out the scoring runners for the Red & Gray before fellow freshman Hunter Batt closed out the day at 144th.

The final team scoring saw the men wrap up the meet with 673 total points, good for 22nd overall. Big 12 power Texas (39 points) claimed the region's title while SEC programs Arkansas (67) & Texas A&M (128) fought for second and third, respectively.

Meanwhile, the women's squad saw a trio of freshmen -- Elsa Rijpstra (121st), Augusta Marie Christensen (131st) & Skyler Goodman (135th) -- lead the Nicholls contingent throughout the 6k while sophomore Lara Reifers & junior Eleana Callejas wrapped up the scoring runners for the Colonels at 137th & 138th, respectively. While not factoring into the final scoring decision, junior Joyce Kiplagat & freshman Willow Johnson rounded out the Colonels roster on the course, trailing just behind the main group at 140th & 141st.

Similar to the men, the Red & Gray concluded the day at 22nd overall, picking up 662 points in the meet. Host Arkansas (15 points) easily secured the team championship behind an impressive showing -- all five scoring runners placed inside the top five -- while Texas (63) slid in at second and Texas A&M (106) notched third. 

UP NEXT
With the NCAA South Central Regional concluded, the majority of the cross country program will shift focus to preparation for indoor track & field, set to kickoff January 2020.

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