KERNERSVILLE, N.C. – Bolstered by freshman Sage Church's 30th-place finish, Longwood men's cross country posted an eighth-place team finish in their Big South Championship debut under first-year head coach Daniel Wooten Friday morning at Ivey M. Redmon Sports Complex.
 
The Lancer men saw three freshmen lead the Longwood pack, with Church clocking a team-best 27:59.2 in the 8K, Ryan Miller running a 28:54.7 to place 50th and Noel Preece a 28:55.3 to place 52nd. The No. 1 team finish was the second straight for Church, who came in just nine seconds over the 8K personal-best of 27:50.1 he set on the same course two weeks ago at the High Point Vertcross Invitational.

The three top-52 finishers were Longwood's most since the program did so three years in a row from 2012-14 and boosted the men's team back into the conference's top eight for the first time since the Nick and Russell Reed-led Lancers did it back-to-back in 2013 and 2014.
 
"Coming into the race today I wasn't sure how the teams were going to do, but I knew we had gained some ground throughout the year after both teams struggled last season," said Wooten, who was an assistant coach for last year's teams.

"As the men's race started, the course had turned into a bit of a tough mudder. Despite that, our men placed eighth today and averaged throughout the season about two-and-a-half to three minutes faster than we were last year. Sage Church came in strong at the end of the season, and one of our other top guys, Nick Howell, ran injured the last two races but pushed through today, and his efforts lifted the men's team up in the rankings today. Additionally, I would like to recognize our senior captain John Bapties for the four years he put into the program and his leadership this season."

Buoyed by their aforementioned top three runner and a 63rd-place result from sophomore Chrishon Dollard, a 65th-place finish by Howell and a 70th-place finish by Bapties, the Lancers topped Winthrop, Hampton and Gardner-Webb Friday, climbing three spots from the 10th-place finish they took in last year's conference title run.
 
Meanwhile, the Longwood women saw sophomore captain Casey Williams put together a second straight breakout at the event, recording a personal-best 20:43.6 in the 5K to place 42nd. That performance followed her Big South Championship debut in 2017 when, as a freshman, she led Longwood's women's runners and placed 51st at the conference's premier event.

"Our women showed a lot of mental toughness with all of them running personal records for the season today," Wooten said. "Last year we only had one runner from the women's team run in the 21s at the championship, and this year we had five in the 21s, with Casey running in the 20:40s. Though the women's program placed 10th, we were less than a minute behind fifth place as a team average, which isn't bad for team made up of seven freshmen and one sophomore. Overall the women's team is about three minutes faster than we were last year."
 
Williams' 20:43.6 marked her second straight race setting a 5K personal best and sent the Longwood women to a 10th-place result ahead of Gardner-Webb.
 
Williams was one of top top-53 finishers for the Longwood women, followed by freshman Lindsey Gordon who ran a personal-best 21:02.2 to place 49th and Maddie Foster who ran a PR 21:10.4 to place 53rd. Gordon's 49th-place result was the highest by a Longwood freshman at the Big South Championship in program history, besting Williams' 51st-place mark one year ago.
 
Foster, Gordon and Williams have now occupied Longwood's top three spots in four of five races this season and become Longwood's first women's trio to place among the top 53 at the Big South Championship. Freshmen Jessica Faulk (21:47.6), Cicely Dunaway (21:49.4) and Mary Grace Currey (21:56.8) rounded out Longwood's top six, with all three running personal bests.

"Going into the fall I emphasized personal growth, academics, and athletics and it is something we focused on throughout the year," Wooten said. "It was a blast watching all three play out this year as we trekked through the season. It was also fun watching our teams bond over the last two days during team dinner and shivering in the pouring rain and wind this morning. In addition, both teams had individuals recognized for academic excellence by the Big South, Casey Williams for our women's team and Curran Atkinson for the men's team.

"Ultimately I keep reminding our team that we are young and we will continue to grow. We ran against a field of sophomores, juniors and seniors today, and we will only get more experienced, stronger, and faster as the years progress. Both programs will need to continue to develop and recruit to gain ground in the Big South." 
 
The Big South Championship marks the final scheduled team meet for the Lancers in 2018 and sets the stage for the 2018 NCAA Southeast Regional in Rock Hill, S.C. on Nov. 9.
 
#GoWood
 
Big South Championship
October 26, 2018
Kernersville, N.C. (Ivey M. Redmon Sports Complex)
 
Women's Team Results (5K)
1. High Point (23 points, 18:31)
2. Campbell (55 points, 18:58)
3. Charleston Southern (91 points, 19:31)
4. UNC Asheville (106 points, 19:46)
5. USC Upstate (160 points, 20:25)
6. Radford (181 points, 20:39)
7. Presbyterian (209 points, 21:04)
8. Winthrop (212 points, 21:07)
9. Hampton (245 points, 21:25)
10. Longwood (246 points, 21:19)
11. Gardner-Webb (293 points, 22:14)
 
Women's Individual Results (82 participants)
42. Casey Williams (20:43.6)
49. Lindsey Gordon (21:02.2)
53. Maddie Foster (21:10.4)
66. Jessica Faulk (21:47.6)
67. Cicely Dunaway (21:49.4)
68. Mary Grace Currey (21:56.8)
74. Brooke Dippold (22:39.4)
81. Kristen Lambert (25:46.1)
 
Men's Team Results (8K)
1. Campbell (27 points, 25:51)
2. Charleston Southern (36 points, 26:080
3. High Point (75 points, 27:03)
4. UNC Asheville (114 points, 27:26)
5. USC Upstate (124 points, 27:46)
6. Radford (132 points, 27:51)
7. Presbyterian (215 points, 28:45)
8. Longwood (238 points, 29:22)
9. Winthrop (266 points, 29:53)
10. Hampton (289 points, 30:50)
11. Gardner-Webb (318 points, 32:06)
 
Men's Individual Results (83 participants)
30. Sage Church (27:59.2)
50. Ryan Miller (28:54.7)
52. Noel Preece (28:55.3)
63. Chrishon Dollard (30:16.8)
65. Nick Howell (30:40.5)
70. John Bapties (31:22.0)
75. Nick O'Keeffe (32:13.5)

#GoWood