SPARTANBURG, S.C. –- Anderson University Women's Cross Country senior Kennedy Roush (Greer, S.C.) turned in a strong season-opening performance Saturday morning, pacing the Trojans to a fifth-place finish at the Converse Kick-Off, hosted by Converse University.
 
The Black and Gold opened the 2026 campaign in a competitive fashion, tallying 121 points and securing a fifth-place team finish among 15 teams. Anderson finished behind UNC-Asheville, Emory, fellow South Atlantic Conference opponent Catawba and nationally ranked No. 3 Wingate,
 
Shortly after Roush crossed the finish line first in a field of 101 runners to earn the Trojans two points with a 6k time of 21:53.7, freshman Selah Woodworth (Pendleton, S.C.) made an impressive collegiate debut, placing 13th in 22:57.2. Freshman Ellie Parks (Durham, N.C.) and junior Molly Hanlon (Cumming, Ga.) crossed the line nearly side-by-side, finishing 38th and 39th, respectively, clocking in at 24:19.8 and 24:20.7. Also making their collegiate debut with a 42nd and 56th-place finish were freshmen Ava Jagielski (York, S.C.) and Anna Edwards (Advance, N.C.) who posted times of 24:25.1 and 24:57.3, respectively. Rounding out Anderson's seven-woman scoring group was sophomore Emory Winter (Brookfield, Wis.) with a 6k career best performance of 25:38.4, good for 73rd.
 
Also opening their collegiate careers in the field Saturday was Ella Townsend (Columbia, S.C.) and Molli Crouch (Cary, N.C.), who placed 79th and 84th, respectively. Townsend recorded a time of 26:08.3, while Crouch finished in 26:23.7
 
Following a two-week stretch away from competition, the Black and Gold will return to action at the Lewis Crossover, hosted by Lewis University, in Romeoville, Ill, on Saturday, Oct. 10.
 
A full list of results can be found here.