OWENSBORO, KY - For just the second time in program history, the Kentucky Wesleyan Women's Cross Country Team has come out of a meet victorious. They took 1st out of four teams at the Brescia Invitational on Friday, with four of their runners placing in the top ten. The men showed a lot of improvement from their previous two meets and took third.
Finishing third overall on the difficult course was junior
Abigail Lesniak, who just broke the 20 minute park with a time of 19:58. Following her in fifth was Owensboro's own
Karlee Hoffman, who came through in 20:32. Not far behind her was
Kate Keller, who took seventh with a time of 22:12.
Raffa Gano (22:50) and
Maggie Jewell (22:52) finished right next to each other, while
Abby Greene (23:11) rounded out the scoring for the Panthers.
"Our women started the day with a big win," said Head Coach
Sol Stephens. "It's extremely hard to win races at any level in the college ranks so it's good for them to see the fruits of their labor. We are very excited to see how this past month of training unfolds. We had two PR's between Gano and Jewell, which is great for that second pack. We must work to tighten up our pack over the final month of the season to accomplish what we're planning for squad goals."
The men had a great day in their own right, as four lifetime bests were set on the 8K course.
Tanner Hayes was the first collegiate finisher, setting a new personal best with a time of 28:09. Also setting a new personal best was
Dominic Cashion, who came in 11th with a time of 30:07.
Landon Harper was the third finisher for the Panthers, coming through in 31:15, while
Zachary Hardin (31:37) and
Blake Lancaster (34:06) each set new personal bests of their own.
Stephens stated "The men had a great day. The weather cooperated and the energy from campus was palpable. The cheering from our parents, professors, the track & field kids, and the softball team had the course rocking. We must keep taking care of the little things under Loi's guidance and they will continue to see the growth as well. Overall, the morning workouts have shown through, and now we have to put together the best race possible in two weeks at the conference championships.
Both teams will travel to Canton, Ohio, on Saturday, October 21st to compete in the Great Midwest Conference Championships.
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