Three Florida Cross-Country Runners Earn SEC Honors

Three Gators landed SEC weekly honors following their performances at the Nuttycombe Invitational last Friday to wrap up the regular season.

Junior Judy Chepkoech and sophomore Kelvin Cheruiyot both earned SEC Runner of the Week honors, while Maggie McCormick was named SEC Freshman of the Week.

Chepkoech earned this award for the second time of the season after her photo finish over the weekend. She surged her way to the lead, passing Betty Kipkore from Iowa State, and took the title by one-tenth of a second. Her time of 19:19.5 (6K) was the second-fastest ever recorded on the Thomas Zimmer Champion Course behind Parker Valby’s 19:17. This performance also earned her the USTFCCCA Women’s National DI Athlete of the Week award. 

Chepkoech was the force behind the Florida women’s second-place finish at the Nuttycombe Invitational, which helped the Gators climb nine spots in this week’s USTFCCCA Coaches’ Poll, jumping from No. 13 to No. 4. 

Freshman Maggie McCormick was another strong performer, earning the SEC Freshman of the Week honor. She crossed the line fourth for Florida with a time of 20:11.7, her fastest of the season. McCormick placed 40th overall and was the 10th freshman to finish. She is the first Florida freshman to win this SEC honor of the season.

On the men’s side, Cheruiyot earned his second SEC weekly honor of the season after leading the Gators at Nuttycombe. He finished sixth with a time of 22:39.6 (8K). He started off reserved, crossing the 2K in 26th and making moves to position himself in eighth place by the 6K mark. He picked off two more runners before crossing the finish. 

The Florida men also improved, moving up one rank from No. 10 to No. 9 in the USTFCCCA Coaches’ Poll.

The Gators will turn their attention to the SEC Championships in Columbia, Missouri on Oct. 30.

Category: Gators Cross Country