ELON – The Elon men's and women's cross country teams return to action Friday afternoon at the adidas Cross Country Challenge in Cary. The men's 6K will start at 5:15 p.m. ET, followed by the women's 5K at 5:55 p.m. ET. Both races take place at WakeMed Soccer Park.
 
MEET INFORMATION

• Date & Time: Friday, Sept. 19 | 5:15 p.m. ET (Men's 6K) | 5:55 p.m. ET (Women's 5K)
• Location: Cary, North Carolina | WakeMed Soccer Park
• Results: FlashResults.com
• Course Maps: TheXCChallenge.com

 
LAST TIME OUT

• The Phoenix opened the 2025 season by hosting the Elon Opener under the lights Aug. 29. Elon's women dominated the 4K race, winning the team title behind five top-10 individual finishes, including Abby Beville's first-place effort of 13:36.6.
• Hannah Weber (third, 13:48.1), Sarah Petitjean (fourth, 13:53.1), Quinn Smith (ninth, 14:09.3) and Amelia Summers (10th, 14:10.2) dotted the rest of the top 10 in Maroon & Gold.
• Caden Strickland clocked 18:47.2 to take 13th individually and lead Elon to a sixth-place finish in the men's 6K. Freshmen Luke Chisum (18:56.1) and Max Bixler (19:19.0) placed 18th and 26th, respectively, in their collegiate debuts to round out the Elon men's top three finishers.

 
WHAT TO KNOW – ELON WOMEN

• Beville was named Coastal Athletic Association Co-Runner of the Week on Sept. 2 for her performance at the Elon Opener. The junior's 13:36.6 was a personal-best time in the 4K and earned Beville her first collegiate cross country win.
• The Phoenix women have been plenty successful previously at the adidas XC Challenge, winning the team title in 2023 while taking fourth place in both 2022 and 2024. Nine current Phoenix ran in last year's 5K race, led by Beville, Weber and Petitjean, who finished 21st, 29th and 34th in the event. Current senior Katie Blount, who did not race in the Elon Opener, finished 11th at the 2023 adidas XC Challenge to help the Phoenix win the team title.
• Elon returns 16 women from a 2024 squad that placed third at the CAA Championships last November.
• Two of Elon's newcomers – Ashland Dickel and Emilia Smith – raced in the Elon Opener. Dickel clocked 14:36.2 for 23rd place, while Smith was 15:10.3 for 43rd.

 
WHAT TO KNOW – ELON MEN

• Strickland paced the Elon men with 19:02.6 finish (48th) at the 2024 adidas XC Challenge 6K. The Phoenix took seventh overall in the 2024 race, and Strickland was followed by fellow returners Jack Kane (50th, 19:08.9), Evan Taylor (54th, 19:11.3) and Joe Lavelle (56th, 19:12.9).
• Taylor, who did not race in the Elon Opener in August, was a 2024 All-CAA honoree – Elon's first men's selection since 2022 – last fall after placing 13th (25:18.10) in the conference meet.
• The Elon men's roster includes 11 returnees and six freshman newcomers. In addition to Chisum and Bixler, who were 18th and 26th, respectively, in the Elon Opener, fellow true freshman Franklin Wimbush also made his collegiate debut in the race.

 
STAY POSTED
For further coverage of Elon cross country, follow the Phoenix on X (@ElonXCTF) and Instagram (ElonXCTF).