Hagan Stone Park was certainly lively on Saturday, as it was time for 15 local colleges to partake in the 25th Greensboro Cross Country Invitational. Parking space was limited due to the large turnout of both fans and runners. Despite the rainy weather the vibe was akin to a rock-n-roll concert, but instead of rock stars there were runners, and dedicated fans took the place of groupies. The invitational hosted teams from Division I, II, and III schools, with Guilford being a Division III school.

Guilford had its share of success within the division. The boy’s team placed second overall in the eight kilometer race. First-year Palmer Hicks accomplished the third fastest time (30:04) in the entire division, which earned him a trophy.

“I’m gonna put it on my desk, next to my laptop!” yelled Hicks as he passed out high fives.

The girl’s team placed third, with sophomore Grace Normann scoring the quickest time (22:30) on the Guilford team.

“We had a nice pack of runners today,” said team captain and senior Chris Walker. “We need to pick up the time a little bit though.”

Despite the cloudy sky and the need for faster times, Coach Heidi Pinkerton was all smiles during the event, and brightened the mood wherever she went.

“I’m coachin’, man!” Pinkerton said, laughing at the question of whether or not she partook in the five-kilometer women’s race. “Naw, we had a lot of fun today. Everyone gave it all they had, and even though the course was muddy, everyone still had a good attitude.”

“Man, it was muddy as hell,” said a shirtless Max Karaffa. The mud seemed to play a big part in the race, as everyone was talking about it.

“The mud really slows things up,” said Walker. “You have to be careful out there.”

On the other hand, some runners actually appreciated the dark skies. “I liked the weather,” said sophomore Caroline Gadsby. “Good racing weather. Not too hot, ya know?”

All the students running at the race were soaked in mud and sweat. Sophomore Leon O’Dell even had hives going up and down his legs.

“They’re exercise induced,” claimed O’Dell.

Gadsby puked all over a tree while running the last leg of the race; a true feat of sportsmanship. Hopefully Gadsby’s “racing refund” was exercise-induced, and had nothing to do with O’Dell’s freakish skin complaint.

Times for some of Guilford’s male runners in the eight kilometer race include Tyler Brown (30:45), Max Karaffa (30:47), Chris Walker (30:49), Bobby Benjamin (32:40), Leon Odell (33:22) and Chad Currin (34:28).

Female times in the five-kilometer race include Jenn Abelin (23:27), Linnea Saby (23:24), Daryn Lane (24:34), Meg Holden (25:46), Ariel Lang (25:48), Caroline Gadsby (26:25) and Dana Small (26:32).

Guilford will return to Hagan Stone Park on Oct. 4 for the Hagan Stone Classic, which will hopefully be just as fun and exciting as the invitational.

“Should be a cake-walk,” said Pinkerton with a jokingly big grin. “I just hope it doesn’t rain again!