Spartan Women Third at SSC Championships
LAKELAND, Fla. - The University of Tampa women's cross country team raced to a third-place finish at the 2024 Sunshine State Conference Women's Cross Country Championships. The 2024 championships were hosted by Nova Southeastern University at Holloway Park in Lakeland on Friday.
Nova Southeastern posted a score of 31 to claim the program's first SSC Women's Cross Country title. The Sharks had the first and second-place finishers, and they put four runners in the Top 10. Florida Southern finished second with 54 points besting Tampa by just one point. Both teams put their top four runners in the Top 15.
Jillian Thorning finished the 6,000-meter course in 21:45.2 to become the third SSC Women's Cross Country Individual Champion in Nova Southeastern history. Her teammate, Leena Saidi, took second in 21:58.9. It was Saidi's second consecutive second-place finish at the SSC Women's Cross Country Championship. Eden Toal, also of NSU, finished fourth for the second year in a row, finishing with a time of 22:14.9. UT's Lindsey Volkman finished third in 22:04.0 and FSC's Emma Mussante rounded out the Top 5 with a time of 22:20.8.
Top Tampa Runners
- Lindsey Volkman (3rd place overall) – 22:04.0
- Mary Richmond (9th place overall) – 22:47.7
- Taylor Guthrie (12th place overall) – 22:57.7
- Tabitha Suggs (15th place overall) – 23:06.8
- Emma Barcelona (16th place overall) – 23:10.7
Women's Team Scores
1. Nova Southeastern - 31
2. Florida Southern - 54
3. Tampa - 55
4. Palm Beach Atlantic - 107
5. Embry-Riddle - 111
6. Lynn - 189
7. Barry - 206
SSC Women's Cross Country Championship Individual Champion
Jillian Thorning, Nova Southeastern
SSC Women's Cross Country Championship Top Freshman
Mary Richmond, Tampa
SSC Women's Cross Country Championship Team
1. Jillian Thorning, NSU
2. Leena Saidi, NSU
3. Lindsey Volkman, UT
4. Eden Toal, NSU
5. Emma Mussante, FSC
6. Dominyka Petraskaite, PBA
7. Ellie Fluman, FSC
8. Mackenzie Keller, ERAU
9. Mary Richmond, UT
10. Ally Jakubiak, NSU