TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – The Illini women's cross country team earned a ninth-place finish on Friday morning at the NCAA Pre-National meet hosted by Florida State. Illini senior Emma Milburn led the way for the women's squad, taking home an 18th-place finish with a time of 20:14.3 in the women's 6k race. On the men's side, Colin Yandel paced the Illini, finishing first for the Orange and Blue with a time of 24:23.0 in the men's 8k race.
"Our women were great today," said head coach Sarah Haveman. "We need to continue to trust and know who they are and what we are capable of accomplishing. Each race we have been able to build and we are excited about what that means for the upcoming meets."
"Our men had a good opportunity to grow this weekend. We faced some uncontrollable things and in the future we hope we can pull from this experience to put together a performance we are capable of."
Freshman Annalyssa Crain was the second Illini to finish, crossing with a time of 20:44.2 and finishing in 55th place in a 246-person field. Rebecca Craddock, Allison McGrath, and Olivia Howell rounded out the top five finishers for the Orange and Blue, each earning spots in the top 100.
Senior Jack Roberts was the second Illini to finish for the men's squad, who took 37th place. Tyler Cushing, Irwin Loud, and Michael Madiol led the way as the first five to finish for Illinois.
Three Illini competed in the women's open 6k race, as Margaret Gamboa took home 25th place with a time of 21:38.5, followed by Ayah Aldadah (21:56.7) and Katie Hohe (23:13.1). Bennett Melone was the lone Illini to compete in the men's open 8k race, finishing with a time of 26:12.6.
Illinois Results
Women's Garnet 6k:
18. Emma Milburn (20:14.3)
55. Annalyssa Crain (20:44.2)
71. Rebecca Craddock (20:53.9)
75. Allison McGrath (20:55.7)
86. Olivia Howell (21:03.6)
107. Halle Hill (21:17.5)
112. Sam Poglitsch (21:20.9)
147. Madison Marasco (21:45.9)
Men's Garnet 8k:
141. Colin Yandel (24:34.0)
205. Jack Roberts (25:00.1)
228. Tyler Cushing (25:14.7)
243. Irwin Loud (25:24.2)
249. Michael Madiol (25:28.2)
254. Eddie Lennon (25:33.8)
260. Nicolas Dovalovsky (25:37.0)
283. Ben Giblin (26:09.6)
 Women's Open 6k:
25.. Margaret Gamboa (21:38.5)
37. Ayah Aldadah (21:56.7)
132. Katie Hohe (23:13.1)
Men's Open 8k:
112. Bennett Melone (26:12.6)
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