CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. ? Austin Peay State University men's and women's cross country got off to a slow start at Western Kentucky's Old Timers Classic, Saturday, finishing tenth and eighth, respectively.

"Overall, we ran okay," said head coach Doug Molnar. "The women had some first-meet jitters, but those will fade after getting some race experience. The men performed better than last week, but they still aren't quite where I would like them to be."

On the men's side, junior Tim Hall finished 24th with a time of 26:37.02 over the five-mile distance. Junior Ryne Sexton helped the Govs with a time of 27:06.44, finishing in 36th. Juniors Antonio Diaz (90th, 29:36.33), who suffered an Achilles injury and is questionable for the next race, and Lukas Siska (70th, 28:46.30), as well as freshman Jordan Payne (85th, 29:28.54) also ran well.

"The men ran better this week," said Molnar. "Diaz was running at about 40th when he got injured, and that hurt us a lot. Sexton and Hall both ran well; I was happy with Sexton's improvement from last week."

Junior Bertha Castillo paced the women with a time of 19:06.91 in the 5K, good for 31st place. Junior Anna-Claire Raines finished 49th, with a time of 20:08.15. Junior Melissa Nobbs (57th, 20:48.48), sophomore Tracee Gruskiewicz (59th, 20:52.87), and freshman Brooke Denny (53rd, 20:38.55) also scored points for the Lady Govs.

"For a first meet, I thought the women did pretty well," said Molnar. "Most teams have already had two or three meets, so they were a bit behind. However, once they get into better race shape, I think they will be fine. Overall, while I was disappointed in the team place, the effort was there and I'm confident that will start to pay off."

The men and women have two weeks off until competing Sept. 29 at the Auburn Invitational.