In the first meet of the 2026-27 season, the Gators men’s and women’s squads both finished first, beating out Georgia Tech, Kennesaw State and Emory in the Stan Sims Cross Country Opener hosted in Acworth, Georgia.
Although the Gators were the most traveled team in appearance, this had no effect on their performance, as runners such as sophomore Isobelle Jones, senior Ian Sanchez Lopez, junior Jonathan Leon, freshmen Maggie McCormick and Keeghan Edwards all finished in the top five of their races.
The women finished with 24 points, 20 fewer than second place. The men finished with 33 points, scraping by Georgia Tech who had 39.
All six women who ran finished in the top12, with Jones running a 17:58.0 5,000-meter and finishing first. McCormick had an electric first outing as she finished third, running an 18:04.2 in the 5,000-meter. Edwards and freshman Jazlyn Forbes finished fifth and sixth, respectively, and the former ran an 18:10.5, while Forbes ran an 18:14.8 in the 5,000-meter. Junior Ashley Fitzgerald finished ninth running an 18:26.2. Freshman Mary Nesmith finished 12th running an 18:36.7.
The five men who competed also all finished in the top 12. Sanchez Lopez finished third running a 19:32.0 four-mile. Leon, senior Geofrey Ronoh and junior Josh Ruiz finished fifth, sixth and seventh, respectively, running a 19:33.5, 19:40.2 and a 19:43.0 four-mile. Sophomore Riley Novack finished 12th running a 20:09.0 four-mile.
Earlier this week, both teams were ranked in the preseason coaches’ poll with the men at 21st and the women at 14th. Last season, the women finished fifth at the NCAA Championships and the men placed seventh at the NCAA South Regional.
With two more meets before the postseason begins, both teams look to build off of their early success with hopes to make NCAA Championship appearances.
Contact Katie Mosley at kmosley@alligator.org. Follow her on X @kati3mosle7.
Katie Mosley is a freshman journalism sports & media major in her first semester at The Alligator. She currently serves as the Fall 2026 cross country reporter. In her free time, Katie enjoys watching her favorite sports teams such as the St. Louis Cardinals, St. Louis Blues, Kansas City Chiefs or Liverpool F.C. Katie also takes pleasure in hiking, kayaking and canoeing. One of her favorite traditions is going hiking in the Ozarks every summer.
