Saturday, September 21
Lock Haven, Pa.
11:30 a.m.
West Virginia University
at
Lock Haven Invitational
WVU Victorious at Lock Haven
September 21, 2019 02:55 PM | Cross Country
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – For the second consecutive season, the West Virginia University cross country team finished in first place at the Lock Haven Invitational in Lock Haven, Pennsylvania, on Saturday morning.
Junior Hayley Jackson led WVU with a second-place overall finish, crossing the West Branch Cross Country Course finish line in a 6k time of 20:42. Redshirt senior Candace Archer made her 2019 debut, taking third place in 21:06.6. Archer was closely followed by redshirt senior Olivia Hill, who notched a fourth-place finish in a season-best time of 21:06.7.
Freshman Ceili McCabe made her collegiate debut at Lock Haven, capturing a fifth-place finish in 21:16.8. Redshirt junior Antigone Archer rounded out WVU's team scoring in sixth place with a time of 21:19.9.
"Today's race served the purpose that we came here for," Mountaineer coach Sean Cleary said. "Most of the sickness has moved through the team, and today's performance shows that. The atmosphere at Lock Haven was very conducive to running the races that we ran today. I am impressed with the times that we posted as a group. While times shouldn't mean a lot in our sport, they are a good basis for comparison to past years.
"We ran in the heat of the day with the sun above our heads, which is exactly what we hoped for. Racing in Arkansas and Texas later in the season will be very similar, so today gave us some good preparation for those races. We need to take this race and build upon it both in timing and racing as the year progresses."
WVU collected its first victory of the season at Lock Haven, topping the team standings with 15 points. Davis & Elkins took second with 177 points, while Seton Hill (195), Lock Haven (222) and Bucknell (228) rounded out the top five.
Saturday's field featured 37 schools and 403 runners, the largest meet Lock Haven University has ever hosted.
Two other Mountaineers tallied top-10 finishes as redshirt freshman Katherine Dowie took seventh (21:21.3) in her first meet in a gold and blue uniform. Redshirt sophomore Marianne Abdalah posted her top time of the season to finish in ninth place in 21:25.8.
Other WVU finishers included redshirt freshmen Mikenna Vanderheyden (11th – 21:29.4), Samantha Hatcher (24th – 22:22.7), Amber Dombrowski (25th – 22:23.1), Peyton Kukura (29th – 22:35.7) and Malina Mitchell (44th – 22:56.5). Hatcher also made her collegiate debut Saturday morning.
For Jackson, the performance marked the first top-five finish of her career, while Hill and Candace Archer finished in the top five at the Lock Haven Invitational for the second consecutive season. It also was Hill's second top-five finish of 2019.
Saturday's race marked WVU's second-straight year competing in the Lock Haven Invitational, as the Mountaineers also captured the team victory at Lock Haven in 2018.
After a week away from competition, WVU will travel to the Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for the first time in program history. The women's 5k race is scheduled to begin at 11:40 a.m. ET at the University of Arkansas cross country course.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUXCTF on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Junior Hayley Jackson led WVU with a second-place overall finish, crossing the West Branch Cross Country Course finish line in a 6k time of 20:42. Redshirt senior Candace Archer made her 2019 debut, taking third place in 21:06.6. Archer was closely followed by redshirt senior Olivia Hill, who notched a fourth-place finish in a season-best time of 21:06.7.
Freshman Ceili McCabe made her collegiate debut at Lock Haven, capturing a fifth-place finish in 21:16.8. Redshirt junior Antigone Archer rounded out WVU's team scoring in sixth place with a time of 21:19.9.
"Today's race served the purpose that we came here for," Mountaineer coach Sean Cleary said. "Most of the sickness has moved through the team, and today's performance shows that. The atmosphere at Lock Haven was very conducive to running the races that we ran today. I am impressed with the times that we posted as a group. While times shouldn't mean a lot in our sport, they are a good basis for comparison to past years.
"We ran in the heat of the day with the sun above our heads, which is exactly what we hoped for. Racing in Arkansas and Texas later in the season will be very similar, so today gave us some good preparation for those races. We need to take this race and build upon it both in timing and racing as the year progresses."
WVU collected its first victory of the season at Lock Haven, topping the team standings with 15 points. Davis & Elkins took second with 177 points, while Seton Hill (195), Lock Haven (222) and Bucknell (228) rounded out the top five.
Saturday's field featured 37 schools and 403 runners, the largest meet Lock Haven University has ever hosted.
Two other Mountaineers tallied top-10 finishes as redshirt freshman Katherine Dowie took seventh (21:21.3) in her first meet in a gold and blue uniform. Redshirt sophomore Marianne Abdalah posted her top time of the season to finish in ninth place in 21:25.8.
Other WVU finishers included redshirt freshmen Mikenna Vanderheyden (11th – 21:29.4), Samantha Hatcher (24th – 22:22.7), Amber Dombrowski (25th – 22:23.1), Peyton Kukura (29th – 22:35.7) and Malina Mitchell (44th – 22:56.5). Hatcher also made her collegiate debut Saturday morning.
For Jackson, the performance marked the first top-five finish of her career, while Hill and Candace Archer finished in the top five at the Lock Haven Invitational for the second consecutive season. It also was Hill's second top-five finish of 2019.
Saturday's race marked WVU's second-straight year competing in the Lock Haven Invitational, as the Mountaineers also captured the team victory at Lock Haven in 2018.
After a week away from competition, WVU will travel to the Chile Pepper Cross Country Festival in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for the first time in program history. The women's 5k race is scheduled to begin at 11:40 a.m. ET at the University of Arkansas cross country course.
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUXCTF on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
Players Mentioned
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
/ Cross Country
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