The Virginia men's and women's cross country teams took first and third places respectively in Saturday's Lou Onesty Invitational at Darden Towe Park in Charlottesville.
Virginia coach Randy Bungard said he used this meet as a learning experience for the team's rookies.
"We didn't run our top people," Bungard said. "This was mostly our second team group. We wanted to see how the kids we were unsure about went."
|
Freshman Walton Kingsberry finished first for the Virginia men with a time of 26 minutes, 7.8 seconds - less than one second ahead of teammate Jeff Binggeli. The other top-10 finishers for the Cavalier men were Ryan Webb and Andrew Filachek. The Cavs won the meet with 39 place points, outdistancing William & Mary by 13.
"My teammates did a great job of showing me the pace," Kingsberry said. "What I finish on the team doesn't really matter to me because I just want us to get the lowest score possible."
Kingsberry and his fellow freshmen have to adjust to the eight kilometer races of college cross country, a distance considerably longer than the 5K races they are used to running in high school.
The women's team was lead by veteran runner K.C. Meehan, who finished the 5K women's race in 19:43.7. Meehan was the only Cavalier woman to finish in the top 10. William & Mary won the meet with 36 place points to Virginia's 83. Liberty finished second with 39 points.
"I did all right," Meehan said. "What's most important is in November and preparing for the ACCs. This was really just to get a race under our belt."
Meehan, clearly focused on the season ahead, looks to return to her position as a scoring runner for the 2000 season. Just as this was the debut for freshman runners, it was also the coaching debut for new assistant Jason Dunn, who brought a new training philosophy to the program. Rather than ending serious training in late September, the team is now training through October in preparation for the ACC Championship Oct. 28 and for the NCAA Championships in November.
"I think the training is going incredibly," Meehan said. Dunn "is so smart and I think the whole team feels confident under his training"
Read More
Lacrosse defenseman Cole Kastner announces transfer to Stanford basketball
By Michael Liebermann | 18 hours agoKastner is reviving a hoops career that has lain dormant since he graduated high school.
Virginia gets second Notre Dame rematch in a dynamic ACC Tournament bout Friday
By Michael Liebermann | YesterdayThe Cavaliers will get a shot at redemption against a vaunted ACC foe, in a game with serious postseason seeding implications.
Mel Josephson and women’s lacrosse prepare to take center stage
By Xander Tilock | 2 days agoJosephson's ability to perform throughout a game's biggest moments is crucial for the Cavaliers.
