Both the women and men claimed victory at the meet Friday night. Kinley Kunkel took the individual crown in the 6k race. In the men's 8k eight finished within the top-10, led by Hollis Johnson who took third place.
HOW IT HAPPENEDÂ
In the men's event, the first of the two races Friday night, WKU took the victory with eight finishing in the top-10. Hollis Johnson led the way, followed by seven more Hilltoppers to round out the top-10. Sam Herbig was the lone Hilltopper to set a PR in the event Friday night.
The men finished with 25 points, over 20 points better than the second place finisher to win the 8k race at the XC Town Twilight.
In the women's 6k race, the first of the season for WKU, Kinley Kunkel again set the pace, taking the individual title in the event. Kunkel was one of five Hilltoppers to cross the finish line in the top-eight.
The next four to cross for WKU were all freshmen to round out the top-eight. Sofia Witt and Tatum Maschhoff followed suit with both setting a PR in the race.
The women finished with 20 points, 67 better than the second place finisher Friday night.
NOTABLESÂ
- Kinley Kunkel claimed the individual title, leading the women to victory in the 6k.
- In the men's 8000, all eight Hilltoppers finished within the top-10.
- In the women's 6000, five finished in the top eight.
- Hollis Johnson led the way with a third place finish in 25:54, guiding the men to a first place team finish.
- Freshman Sam Herbig set a PR in the 8k race with a mark of 26:18.
- Sofia Witt set a personal best in the 6k, finishing in 24:11, good for 12th place.
- Tatum Maschhoff set a PR in the 6k as well, crossing in 25:05, taking 25th
- Both teams' first place finishes marked the best for a team at an event since the Evansville Invitational in 2013 when the women won and the men took second.Â
QUOTABLE
On the finish for the men, head coach Lee Wood said "I thought the guys ran well as a pack. Up front they raced well, it was a little different this week with who they were up against. The course was not a fast course and it was really good to see WKU jerseys in front and see them finish strong!"
On the women's performance Wood said "Kinley was five seconds from her PR on a course that didn't run particularly fast and she is looking very promising. They all complimented each other and ran as a pack. They got out and executed. Really proud. Sofia set a new PR by two minutes and Tatum by nearly a minute. We are still putting the pieces together, but I really like where we are at!"
Women's Results - 1st Place (6k)
1st - Kinley Kunkel - 21:20.60
4th - Brooke Greenwell - 22:51.80
5th - Maggie May - 23:00.40
6th - Caterina Rossomanno - 23:19.60
8th - Kathryn Harris - 23:29.00
12th - Sofia Witt - 24:11.40*
25th - Tatum Maschhoff - 25:05.90*
Men's Results - 1st Place (8k)
3rd - Hollis Johnson - 25:54.80
4th - Jake Younger - 26:05.60
5th - Trevor Hudnall - 26:10.20
6th - Sam Herbig - 26:18.60*
7th - Ryan Hendrix - 26:28.70
8th - Carter Hayes - 26:42.80
9th - Wade Balcom - 26:46.20
10th - Bryce Revo - 26:54.60
NEXT UP
WKU will compete in one final regular season meet at the Angel Mounds Invitational on Oct. 17.
FOLLOW THE TOPS: For complete information on WKU XC and T&F, follow the team on Twitter at WKUXCTF. The team is also on Instagram and Facebook.
