LOUISVILLE, Ky. -- WKU set multiple career-bests in its final meet before the upcoming Conference USA Championship as Endalow Takele and Lindsey Hinken led both teams at the 2015 Pre-National Invitational on Saturday, with Hinken notching a Top 20 placement.
Women's Results | Men's Results
Hinken posted a career-best time of 21:18.5 to earn 19th in the invitational for her second Top 20 time of the season. Takele, who competed for the first time since winning the Belmont Opener, raced out to a career-best 8,000-meter time of 24:46.3 to produce a Top 30 finish.
"We are making steady improvement," said head coach Erik Jenkins. "We achieved multiple personal bests in a quality competition. We need to stay focused and continue to work on the little things that will prove necessary for success in championship meets."
For the Lady Toppers, Katie Lever followed Hinken as she completed the course in 21:43.1 to earn 42nd, while Taylor Carlin was the No. 3 scorer in 47th with a time of 21:46.5. This race marked the first time Lever had not finished as the top runner for WKU since the 2013 Sun Belt Championship. As a team, the Lady Toppers grabbed 12th-place, beating teams that were ranked in their respective USTFCCCA Regional Rankings in Houston, Northwestern, TCU, Tennessee and UTEP.
Aaron Stevens was the second Hilltopper to complete the course as he finished in 44th at 24:53.3, the fastest time of his career. For the season, Stevens has either placed as the No. 1 or No. 2 runner for WKU. Julien Cuyeu (26.23.1), Sam Porter (27:34.3) and Mark Stice (29.04.1) all registered personal bests to round of the scoring for WKU as the team placed 25th.
WKU will return to action on Halloween morning, Oct. 31, when it hosts the 2015 Conference USA Championship.
