NEW MARKET, Va.- EMU Cross Country did not have to travel too far for its meet Friday evening, making a short drive up I-81 for the JMU Invitational at the New Market Battlefield in New Market, Va. It was a beautiful, sunny day for a run on the rolling hills in the Shenandoah Valley.
This time around, it was only the women's team representing the Royals, and they did a great job of it in the 5k (3.1 miles) race.
Erin Loker led the way individually with a top-10 finish as EMU finished third as a team.
Anna Pucilowski from the host school James Madison won with a time of 18:28.8 as the Dukes cruised to the team title with the lowest possible score of 15 points.
Highlights
- Team Score: 3rd of 4 (76 points)
- Erin Loker crossed the line in seventh place with a 5k time of 20:23.2. Loker was the top Division III runner as well as the first non-JMU runner to cross the finish line.
- Claire Hurst placed 16th, completing the hilly 5k course in a time of 22:53.6. Hurst's time was an improvement of over two minutes from her performance on the same course last year.
- Zoe Clymer (22nd/25:45.6), Sarah Wheeler (23rd/26:15.5), Fortie Chipeta (27th/31:57.0) and Ryanna Hyppolite (28th/35:35.4) also competed for the Royals on Friday.
What's Next
EMU Cross Country will race again next Friday, Oct. 2 when the men's team competes in the Richmond Invitational at Pole Green Park in Mechanicsville, Va. The men's 8k is scheduled to start at 9:08 a.m.
The next meet with both the men's and women's teams together will be the Roanoke South Region Showdown on Saturday, Oct. 17 at Green Hill Park in Salem, Va.
To keep up to date with everything surrounding the EMU cross country program this year, follow EMU Athletics on Instagram, like EMU Athletics on Facebook or visit our website.
