KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — The Montreat College women's cross country team was back in action on Friday morning at the NAIA Appalachian Challenge in Knoxville, Tenn., hosted by Tennessee Wesleyan University. The Cavaliers placed sixth out of 20 scoring teams in a field that featured three nationally-ranked opponents.

Montreat finished with 218 points, placing 13 points ahead of St. Thomas University and 42 behind the University of Tennessee Southern. Fellow Appalachian Athletic Conference (AAC) member Milligan University claimed the team title with 34 points.

Carlyn Bobo led the Cavs in the 5k race, finishing 10th among 199 runners with a time of 18:37.33. Elena Fibraio followed in 28th place, concluding her effort in 19:11.57. Ragan Speer also turned in a strong performance, setting a personal record of 19:58.54 to finish 55th overall and improve her previous best by 28 seconds.

Freshman Audrey Poole set a career record of her own, ending 73rd in 20:11.59. Eliza Nelson rounded out Montreat's scoring five with a 95th-place finish in 20:37.83, shaving nearly three seconds off her previous best. Naomi Smith represented the Cavaliers as well, finishing 154th in 22:54.09.

"Phenomenal day from the women," said Head Coach Rylan Hincher. "Everyone stepped up across the board knowing we were without one of our key pieces today. Beating all the conference schools outside of Milligan was a great confidence boost heading into the conference championship in November. Great things ahead for this group."

For full results from the NAIA Appalachian Challenge, click here.

Montreat will next compete at the AAC Cross Country Championships on Friday, Nov. 6 in Knoxville, Tenn. The race will be held at Sequoyah Park and is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m.