Lakin Williams, Erin Holmes and Sydni Garcia, CFNN Reporters

The team poses for a picture after a great race Saturday.

This past Saturday, the force was with the Lady Colts XC team as they competed in yet another Invitational. This week was the Dorothea Dix Invitational in Raleigh. 

Lily T shows off the Bling after a successful race.

 Top runner Lily Terwilliger, placed 7th out of 66 girls and helped the Colts finish 7th overall out of 18 teams with a time of 21:37.24. Also she was the only lady Colt to receive a medal for being in the top ten. 

“The course was definitely tough and I encountered not only a physical, but mental battle,” said Terwilliger. “I was constantly being boxed in and blocked by Sanderson runners, but I didn’t allow that to slow me down. It helped push me to get ahead and go one on one with one of them towards the end of the race.”

Ilyana Walker ran a time of 25:01.40.

“It was cold and had a lot of uneven ground,” said Walker of the tough conditions on race day. The terrain was certainly a factor for the runners; however, Lily Terwilliger, Natalie Autry, and Gracen Ray all made Personal Records (PR).

Natalie Autry paces herself on the way to setting her PR on Saturday.

Natalie Autry PRed with a time of 26:25.68.

 “It was really exciting to make PR, and I’m glad I got to experience it,” said Autry. “Each meet I just try to keep getting better. I’m really proud of myself for that. The course was pretty rough, there were many hills and you definitely had to run the course twice to get a good feel for it”

Gracen Ray also set a PR with a time of 29:17.95.

“ We definitely work our butts off every single day to be as successful as we are now and it definitely pays off. It felt absolutely amazing to PR,” said Ray. 

Lily finishes her race in the top 10 on Saturday.

The girls have continuously worked hard to make big gains this season. Through all the challenges, they still maintain high placements and low times. 

“At the end of the day, I’m proud to say I didn’t let them pass me and instead was able to push myself to a new PR on a course as tough as this,” said Terwilliger

Catch the Colts on the course again this Wednesday, October 9 at Overhills High School!