Despite not having a full squad race due to injuries, the Cyclones women's team ran impressive times in their first 6K of the season at the Spartan Classic at the Northwestern Medicine Cross Country Course in Geneva, IL.

Three Cyclones ran and stayed together among the 61 runners from two- and four-year colleges and universities.

"The plan was to have all three stay together through the first mile and go from there. We wanted that first mile to be controlled, and they did just that. Assistant Coach Alvarez and I were standing at the mile mark and when our trio ran by, we noticed they looked more relaxed than some of the other women who were ahead of them," Head Coach Dimitri Dimizas said. "This was a hilly course, and many of the women slowed down the second half of the race allowing our women to pass them up. It was fun to watch."

Mariah Karamagianis earned a personal best by nearly 2.5 minutes, crossing in 32nd place in 28:41.60. Annabel Lipkie ran about a minute faster than last year on this course, coming in right behind her teammate in 33rd place in 28:45.30. In her first 6K race, freshman Rylee Milenkovic stayed poised the entire way, hanging with the sophomores for a 34th place finish in 28:58.40.

"We're going to need to rely on these three to continue racing smart so when we have our full team together we can mix it up with the other teams in the postseason," Dimizas added.

The Cyclones will race next weekend, Sept. 21, at the Gil Dodds Invite in Warrenville, IL.