GORDON STREISAND
Alligator Writer
@GordonStreisand
In Friday’s FLRunners.com Invitational in Titusville, Fla., Florida’s men won their third consecutive meet of the season.
In the 5K, freshman Carlos Miranda notched his first victory of his collegiate career with a personal best time of 15:17.60, edging out runner-up Carl Dunne from St. Leo by less than a second.
Miranda, who ran a 5K at the Western Carolina Invitational to open the season, topped his previous time by nearly 18 seconds.
Three more Gators finished in the top five, with Elliot Clemente, Mac Reynolds and Harsha Torke finishing third, fourth and fifth with times of 15:28.10, 15:31.60 and 15:41.10, respectively. All three ran personal bests, as well.
“[Friday night] was a solid race for the men, with Carlos winning,” coach Paul Spangler said. “It was a great victory for him, as he also won here last year in high school. Carlos, Mac, Elliot and Harsha worked together most of the race. Carlos did an excellent job holding of a challenge from the runner-up in the final 400m of the race this evening.”
With the FLRunners.com Invitational being the last meet for the men leading up to the Wisconsin Adidas Invitational, Spangler must now decide who will be his fifth runner going forward. After Miranda’s strong performance at the Mountain Dew Invitational coupled with his recent victory, it can be assumed he will be Florida’s fifth runner in Madison.
The Gators’ next meet will be the women’s analog to Friday’s meet. Whereas the FLRunners.com meet featured only men with the goal to fill out the top seven runners headed to Wisconsin, the Disney Cross Country Classic, which will take place on Oct. 12, will do the same for the women.
Follow Gordon Streisand on Twitter @GordonStreisand.
