ATLANTA, GA. – The Georgia State University men’s and women’s cross country teams garnered first place at the 35^th annual Georgia State Invitational.  Senior Panthers for the men’s and women’s teams crossed the finish line in first place blowing away the competition, winning both titles.

Senior Jay Morrill was the first male competitor to cross the finish line.  Jay excelled through the 8k course in 26:31.70, well ahead of Shorter College’s Jared Carson.  Zaven O'Bryant finished strong in third place with a time of 27:11.54. Chris Brannon was close behind and claimed fifth with a time of 27:22.93.  Newcomer Shawn Matthews finished ninth with a time of 27:36.87, giving the Panthers four top-ten finishers.

Dustin Murphy and Nicholas Miller rounded out the Panther’s top-twenty with 17^th and 20^th places respectively.

Senior Rachel Hannah led the pack as she crossed the women’s 5k finish line first at 18:25.70.  This marks Rachel’s first collegiate cross country win.  She was followed closely by freshman teammate Rebecca Hallam, who took second with a time of 19:09.71.  Alex Friel and Ashley King were close behind with fifth and sixth places respectively.

The women also claimed the invitational’s 11^th and 15^th places when sophomores Janel Blancett and Catherine Jensen finished at the 20:13.27 and 20:33.08 marks.

“I was really excited about our first race,” said Georgia State women’s head coach Jessica Raby.  “The girls ran really smart races and I'm proud of them."

With the first official meet of the season under their belt, the Panthers look to keep up the good work and focus on their next win.  The Georgia State men’s and women’s teams return to action September 29^th, at the Greater Louisville Classic in Louisville, Kentucky.