(Channahon, IL.) - Waubonsee Community College Cross Country runners began their 2024 season by competing at the University of St. Francis' Twilight Invitational Meet. With a majority of the field made up of four-year colleges, the Chiefs' women's runners placed ninth out of a dozen teams while the men came in eighth among the participants who traversed the 5K race course laid out over Channahon Community Park. Anna Green paced the women's team by finishing 31st out of the 98 runners with a time of 21:54. Meghan Johnson was not far behind her in 34th place, while Alexandra Lemke was 54th, Leliarosa Bonilla was 57th and Crystal Torres came in 58th to account for Waubonsee's team score of 234. Katharine Ball and Addison Talley also participated for the Chiefs, finishing 63rd and 64th respectively.

Waubonsee's David Valkanov finished seventh individually out of 134 runners in the men's race to highlight the evening for head coach Eric Baron's squad. Valkonov, a freshman from Kaneland High School, finished 0:17 behind the University of Chicago's John List for the top spot. The only freshman and lone junior college competitor to place in the top-15, Valkonov turned in a time of 15:46 overall. The Chiefs' Dayton Beatty placed 50th, Luis Baez came in 52nd, Ricardo Duran finished 68th and Finn Gannon was 73rd to round out Waubonsee's score of 250. Landon Godee and Travis Silberhorn also participated, crossing the finish line 75th and 76th respectively.