In Waynesburg University men’s cross-country history, 60 men have run the 8K under 30 minutes. After this past weekend at the Lock Haven Invitational, freshman Aidan McGee became the 61st athlete to break that mark.

“After running sub-30, I hope to improve my time by possibly breaking 29 minutes,” McGee said. “The main goal is to stay consistently under 30 for the rest of the season.”

In head coach Chris Hardie’s 14 seasons coaching cross-country at Waynesburg University, he has coached 56 of the 61 men who have achieved this milestone. Hardie mentioned how proud he is that McGee is now part of this group.

“Aidan ran a good strategic race and held a solid pace from the start,” Hardie said. “He was very consistent from the opening gun to the finish.”

At the Lock Haven Invitational on Oct. 28, the men raced against Division I school St. Bonaventure, as well as several Division II schools, including Walsh, Malone, Pitt-Johnstown, West Virginia Wesleyan, Lock Haven and Tiffin. The Yellow Jackets finished 15th out of 18 teams.

McGee crossed the finish line first for Waynesburg, finishing 82nd out of 187 runners. Sophomore Kyle Casella finished 132nd, followed by freshman Ethan Wilson in 140th.

“Having schools we don’t usually face at Lock Haven took some pressure off,” Casella said. “It allowed us to focus on running personal and season bests.”

Hardie remains committed to the team’s plan for achieving the results they want at the Presidents’ Athletic Conference Championships.

“We’re sticking with the plan,” Hardie said. “We’ll push hard for another two weeks, and then we’ll start to taper our mileage as we approach PACs.”

With only two more meets until the PAC Championships, the team is trying not to focus too much on that big race, but rather take things one meet at a time.

“It’s important to remember where we are in the season, and we still have a month until our key races,” Casella said. “A lot can happen in a month.”

As for the women’s cross-country team, they finished 25th out of 29 teams this past Saturday at the Lock Haven Invitational.

Junior Grace Tanksley led the team, finishing 130th out of 246 runners. Freshman Taylor Severt finished 159th, while junior Reagan Pettis crossed in 173rd for the Lady Jackets.

Hardie highlighted the benefits of Tanksley, Severt and Pettis running together, which he believes will help them improve as the season progresses.

“Running in a pack builds confidence and consistency. It’s been key to our success over the years,” Hardie said. “The three of them are working well together, and it’s fun to watch. As they get more comfortable running as a group, you’ll see even better performances.”

Looking ahead, the women’s team is focusing on one key factor, with that being health.

“Right now, we need to take care of ourselves. Some people are dealing with pain and burnout,” Tanksley said. “Before PACs, we need to figure out how to push past that and support each other. We can’t place well if we don’t take care of ourselves and each other.”

Despite the approaching championships, Hardie is focused on the team’s next meet and how they can improve, one race at a time.

“We’ll be running hard for the rest of the season,” Hardie said. “We’ll attack the Muskingum course. It’s new for us, so we’ll preview it Saturday morning, but we’ll be ready to race and give it our best.”

Both the men’s and women’s cross-country teams will travel to New Concord, Ohio, for the Muskingum Invitational on Saturday, Oct. 11.