Statesboro, GA - The Citadel men's and women's cross country teams wrapped up the 2005 season after competing in the Southern Conference Championships hosted by Georgia Southern this past weekend.

Both teams finished ninth, with 10 teams competing in the men's race and 11 in the women's. Appalachian State took home the championship for the men while Davidson took the top spot in the women's event.

The Citadel women's team tied their highest finish since the 2001 season, placing ahead of Georgia Southern and Wofford. The Cadets' final tally was only one point behind Western Carolina and 16 behind the College of Charleston, a team the women actually beat for the first time two weeks earlier.

Freshman Megan Jenkins again had the fastest race for the Bulldogs as she placed 35th in a time of 19:46. Junior Laura Hewston finished right behind Jenkins in the 37th spot with a personal best 19:48. Freshman Sarah Strickland also recorded a personal record 19:50, beating her previous time by 13 seconds and coming in 40th.

"I think even though we equaled our best team finish, the ladies were disappointed with ninth place," said head coach Jody Huddleston. "We felt we had a chance to finish sixth or seventh. We ran pretty well, but some of the other teams ran better than we did on Sunday."

For the men, junior Will Wilson paced the Bulldogs finishing 38th in a time of 25:56. Junior Matt Holmes was the second runner in for the Cadets as he took 44th in 27:23.

The Bulldog cross country season has come to a close, but several runners will participate in the NCAA Southeast Regionals hosted by Furman Friday, November 12. The Citadel's indoor track and field team begins the season at Clemson the weekend of December 2-3.