SALISBURY, Maryland — Numerous personal records were shattered and a Hawk won in her debut, as the University of Maryland Eastern Shore cross country women took fourth place and the men captured fifth during Saturday's (Sept. 29) running of the Don Cathcart Invitational.

"It was another awesome weekend for the Hawks." Head Coach Damion Drummond said. "I don't know what's gotten into them, but everyone is setting personal records like crazy. I'm just so delighted at the competitive spirits from both programs this year."

Freshman Mercy Chemutai (Eldoret, Kenya) won her debut event as a Hawk, earning a time of 21:58.56 in the women's 6K. Her senior teammate Neus Quinonero (Valencia, Spain) finished fourth with a time of 23:01.03, running the fastest mile splits since her freshman campaign.

The women's team took home 103 points to finish fourth. Also helping the cause was freshman Arianna Krcik (Pasadena, Maryland), who ran a personal record time of 24:39.22 to finish 33rd.

On the men's side, junior John Akakeya (Staten Island, New York) earned a top ten time of 26:05.43 to finish eighth in the 8K. Joining him among the Hawk leaders was junior Hector Cime (Parksley, Virginia), who finished 12th with a time of 26:39.54, and sophomore Ngoy Yamitshi (Germantown, Maryland), who placed 24th while running the course in 27:14.53.

All three times serve as personal records for the male trio.

Host Salisbury won the women's meet, and Stevenson University won the men's event.  

The Hawks will finish the 2018 regular season with two meets in Smyrna, Delaware on October 5th and October 12th.