The Rebel cross country squads competed at the SEC Championship in Columbia, Mo., on Oct. 30. The Rebel men finished sixth as a team, and the women finished 14th.
The highlight of the day was men’s star Kidus Misgina’s individual finish at No. 10 in the eight-kilometer race, earning him an All-SEC second-team medal.
From the gun, Misgina jumped right to the front and worked in the lead group. Misgina consistently checked off kilometer after kilometer and hung with some of the top runners in the nation, including Florida’s Kelvin Cheruiyot, who won the race.
Coach Cory Leslie said in an interview with The Daily Mississippian that from the sideline, his message to Misgina was one of confidence in Misgina’s abilities.
“I told him I think that he could have hung back and easily been 10th place, but you don’t get to the SEC meet to play it safe,” Leslie said. “To see him up in the mix and even take the lead at a couple of different points, even if it was just step by step, I think it was a lot of fun and injected a lot of excitement.”
At the 6K split, Misgina sat right in the top pack at place No. 2. In the next kilometer, Cheruiyot and the trio of Alabama runners made their moves, and the race broke apart. Misgina finished the race in 22:38.3 for place No. 10.
Not far behind Misgina was Owen Kelley, who finished in 23:30.1 for No. 33. Leslie spoke on the improvement that he has seen from Kelley this season that led to his solid position.
“I think from (the standpoint of) how to communicate, and carry yourself, and listen and incorporate what I’m telling him on a daily basis, it’s helped him level up, and I think he’s getting closer and closer to being an elite athlete at this level,” Leslie said.
Next were John Shoemaker and Ky Hehir, who worked together and traded positions in the middle of the pack. In the end, Shoemaker crossed the final mat in place No. 46, and Hehir finished in place No. 47. Junior Samuel Ferguson rounded out the Rebel scorers in 24:13.2 for place No. 58.
For the Rebel men, after finishing third as a team in 2024 and tenth last season, this was a good bounce-back performance and showed progress towards ascending the conference standings.
In the women’s race, Alicia Finnis led the way for Ole Miss yet again. In the transfer’s first SEC Championship, Finnis completed the six-kilometer course in 20:36.3 for place No. 57.
Behind Finnis was a duo of sophomores, Leah Penick and Hannah Doyle. Penick maintained a consistent place throughout the race and ended as No. 63. In contrast, Doyle started in place No. 116 and worked her way up to place No. 83.
Rebel women’s country cross runners run in the Gans Creek Classic on Sept. 25 in Columbia, Mo. Photo courtesy Ole Miss Athletics
Leslie spoke on the ability of the women to step up and cover for each other when some teammates struggled on the course.
“To see Hannah Doyle step up and have a big day and be our third runner when Addy Mitchell doesn’t have her best day (is great),” Leslie said. “When you can be deep enough that those pieces can be interchanged and step up and still get the projected result, that (is good).”
Brooke Preputnick and Adrienne Luna crossed as the final Ole Miss scorers in places No. 86 and No. 95, respectively.
The Rebel women finished as predicted by polls at 14th. However, the Lady Rebels took down rivals Mississippi State and Texas, a point that Leslie was proud of.
“For them to run not just for themselves, but step up and run for each other, I thought there was a lot of good to take away from it on the women’s side,” Leslie said.
Full results for the SEC Championships can be found here, and a full replay of both races is available on the SECN+.
What’s next?
The Rebels will travel to Tallahassee, Fla., for the NCAA South Regional on Nov. 13. To secure an NCAA Championship berth as a team, the Rebels must collectively finish as one of the top two teams. For a Rebel to qualify individually, he must place in the top four runners not on a qualifying team.
Leslie shared the team’s mentality preparing for the regional.
“I know that, on paper, we’re on the outside looking in, but we’re going to go stick our nose in it and we’re certainly going to put ourselves in a position to (qualify),” Leslie said. “If the stars align and we have our best day, and anybody else is even remotely off, we’re going to be in the mix.”
