Results

SPARTANBURG, S.C. -- Nine Captains secured All-Region accolades, while two runners earned automatic bids to the NCAA Championships as the Christopher Newport cross country teams pieced together a slew of historic efforts during the NCAA South Regional on Saturday afternoon at the Milliken Research Park in Spartanburg, South Carolina.

Logan Funk and Kaitlyn Ardrey both finished in the top-seven during the women's 6k while securing a pair of spots at next week's NCAA Championships. Together, they helped the Captains place fourth in the final team standings, which marked the highest finish by the squad since a third-place showing in 2016. Meanwhile, the men earned five All-Region honors and came in third overall, marking the program's top performance since winning the South crown in 2017.

Adding her name to the history books, Funk placed sixth overall after crossing the line in 22:54.1. That marked the top finish by a Captain at the Regional Championships since Christopher Newport Hall of Famer Aimee Gibbs came in third in 2003. Incredibly, in the storied history of the women's cross country program, only two Captains ever topped Funk's sixth-place showing. Gibbs finished in the top-five on three occasions, while Leigh Anne Beale was second in 1985.

Just seconds after Funk crossed the line, Ardrey was up next after placing seventh in 22:59.5. That equaled legendary standouts Cindy Smith (1983) and Megan Fogarty (2005) for the sixth-best finish by a Captain in school history, trailing only the work by Beale, Funk, and Gibbs.

Fittingly, Ardrey and Funk became just the third Christopher Newport duo to place in the top-10 in program history. Beale and Kimberly Angevine finished second and ninth during the 1985 NCAA Regional Championships, while Maura McColgan and Stephanie Baker came in eighth and ninth during the 1991 title meet.

Along with the top-10 standouts, Maggie Ralston and Madi Rawlings also garnered All-Region nods in the women's race. Ralston finished 31st overall in 24:10.9, while Rawlings was 35th in 24:14.0. The four All-Region honorees equaled the second-most in program history, trailing only the 2014 squad, which garnered five awards.

In addition to the decorated contingent, Eliza Dana also placed in the top-50 after coming in 47th in 24:52.8. With that showing, she became just the second true freshman in the last five years to place in the top-50, joining Funk, who came in 42nd in 2018. Meanwhile, Mae Savoie and Claire Garster rounded out the squad's top-seven on Saturday after completing the race in 25:10.3 and 25:21.1, respectively.

The men were equally impressive as Christopher Newport flooded the top of the leaderboard with an incredible showcase in the 8k. Overall, five runners placed in the top-25 while piecing together a remarkable 11-second spread. Leading the group, Daniel Ferrante came in 18th overall in 26:21.2, while Nathanael Ferrante was 20th in 26:23.2. With their performance, the twin brothers became the first pair of Captains to finish in the top-20 at the regional competition since the historic 2017 squad won the meet with five runners near the top of the field.

In a tight pack, Clark Edwards also came in 23rd on Saturday in 26:29.7, while Eric Speeney was 24th (26:30.8) and Ryan Henderson was 25th (26:32.2). Each member of the team's top-five hauled in All-Region honors for their work. Meanwhile, with their performance, the 2021 Captains became just the fifth team in program history to place five runners inside the top-25 at the South Championships. Previously, only the 1993, 1994, 2016, and 2017 squads accomplished that feat.

Along with the award-winning crew, Nick Tolarchyk and Sam Koltisko also added top-50 efforts during the title meet. Tolarchyk came in 43rd with a 26:59.2 clocking, while Koltisko was 45th in 27:00.7.

Aided by the squad's well-balanced performance, Christopher Newport finished in the top-three in the final team standings for the fourth time in the last six regional competitions. On Saturday, the men trailed only Emory and Lynchburg, who both entered the meet ranked in the top-25 nationally.

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