CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Longwood men's sophomore Leon Beard and junior Gracie Piekarski cracked Longwood's top-10 lists and were the top finishers on their respective squads at the NCAA Southeast Regional held at Panorama Farms.
 
Beard recorded the first top team finish of his career on the 10K course, clocking a 33:56.3 for the eight-fastest 10K time in Longwood history. The career-best performance included a 6:42.9 pace and earned him 182nd place in the 223-runner field. Beard, who was among Longwood's top two runners at every race in 2015, climbed 24 spots from his position at the 2K mark in the race.
 
Piekarski, meanwhile, wrapped up her junior season by crossing the finish line as Longwood's top finisher in the seventh straight race. She clocked a career-best 23:45.7 on the 6K course to tie former Longwood standouts Kate Knupp and Brittany Foote for the seventh-fastest time in the Lancer record books. Piekarski notched a 155th-place finish in the 235-runner field.
 
Following Beard on the men's side were junior Johnny Leder, who took 197th with a 34:39.7, and senior ace Russell Reed, who ran through a minor back injury to place 206^th with a 35:12.5. The performance helped the Longwood men edge Presbyterian in the team standings Friday to avenge a 12-point disadvantage to the Blue Hose at the Big South Championships on Oct. 30.
 
"I'm proud of both teams for the work they put in today and this season," said head coach Catherine Hanson. "Leon and Johnny really stepped up today and raced for the first time this season at a longer distance. Russell was a bit banged up today, so I had him race conservatively because I want him to have a very good race next Saturday at the IC4A."
 
The race was the final NCAA Regional for Reed, the lone senior on this year's squad. Reed, who holds Longwood's 5K record along with top-10 finishes on the school's 10K and 8K lists, snapped his season-long streak of leading Longwood in every race, giving way to Beard who had finished as his runner-up at the previous six events of 2015.
 
The season is not over for Reed, however, as he will travel to the ECAC/IC4A Invitational next Saturday in Bronx, N.Y.
 
Also joining him at the IC4A will be Piekarski, whose team-best finish was an improvement of more than one minute from the time she clocked at last year's NCAA Regional in Louisville, Ky., on Nov. 14, 2014. Piekarski finished 237th at the postseason event as a sophomore before punctuating her junior breakout with a jump of more than 80 spots Friday.
 
The ECAC/IC4A will signal the end of the cross country season for the Lancers, who will compete in offseason outdoor track and field events in the spring.
 
NCAA Southeast Regional
November 13, 2015
Panorama Farms (Charlottesville, Va.)
 
Men's Individual Results (10K – 223 entries)
182. Leon Beard (33:56.3)
197. Johnny Leder (34:39.7)
206. Russell Reed (35:12.5)
220. Andrew Lanier (34:40.0)
223. John Bapties (39:43.1)
 
Men's Team Results
1. Louisville (29:49.02)
2. Virginia (30:00.04)
3. Eastern Kentucky (30:02.96)
4. Furman (30:13.76)
5. NC State (30:11.48)
6. Virginia Tech (30:21.12)
7. North Carolina (30:31.64)
8. Duke (30:38.66)
9. Kentucky (30:43.16)
10. Campbell (31:12.38)
11. William & Mary (31:2.24)
12. George Mason (31:21.64)
13. Davidson (31:28.48)
14. Liberty (31:27.00)
15. High Point (31:42.56)
16. Appalachian State (31:39.38)
17. Clemson (31:43.80)
18. Richmond (31:50.88)
19. VMI (31:59.74)
20. Charlotte (32:03.50)
21. Elon (32:13.22)
22. Morehead State (32:23.52)
23. Wake Forest (32:28.52)
24. East Carolina (32:36.96)
25. USC Upstate (33:09.10)
26. UNC Greensboro (33:12.00)
27. Murray State (33:09.86)
28. UNC Wilmington (33:29.90)
29. Radford (33:27.14)
30. College of Charleston (33:43.72)
31. Longwood (36:14.32)
32. Presbyterian (36:15.44)
 
Women's Individual Results (6K – 235 entries)
155. Gracie Piekarski (23:45.7)
228. Kelsey Peace (28:08.6)
232. Anna Bultrowicz (29:15.3)
233. Erica Mawyer (29:28.9)
235. Judy May (31:05.9)
 
Women's Team Results
1. Virginia (21:05.90)
2. NC State (21:17.70)
3. North Carolina (21:23.80)
4. William & Mary (21:50.54)
5. Eastern Kentucky (22:12.78)
6. Virginia Tech (22:20.96)
7. Elon (22:19.18)
8. Louisville (22:22.88)
9. James Madison (22:18.90)
10. Duke (22:27.64)
11. Kentucky (22:23.82)
12. Wake Forest (22:29.00)
13. Clemson (22:40.22)
14. Western Kentucky (22:36.42)
15. Richmond (22:43.2)
16. Appalachian State (22:43.54)
17. Coastal Carolina (22:42.50)
18. Charlotte (22:58.80)
19. Liberty (22:49.34)
20. Davidson (23:02.96)
21. East Carolina (23:15.36)
22. Murray State (23:14.58)
23. College of Charleston (23:17.04)
24. Morehead State (23:39.92)
25. George Mason (23:30.48)
26. South Carolina (23:30.38)
27. UNC Asheville (23:35.96)
28. UNC Greensboro (24:26.60)
29. Campbell (24:47.66)
30. Radford (24:39.38)
31. USC Upstate (25:31.38)
32. Presbyterian (26:37.80)
33. Longwood (28:20.88)
 
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