KERNERSVILLE, N.C. – Longwood men's cross country finished fifth out of nine teams at the Vertcross Invitational on Friday night in their final regular season race this fall.
 
Placement/Times (8K)
5. Longwood: 145— Avg time: 27:16
 
29. Benjamin Goulet: 26:40.7
36. Sam Sager: 27:00.8
40. Ethan Pettyjohn: 27:07.9
42. Saad Khan: 27:17.9
57. Alec Daniel: 28:11.8
65. Andrew Schaefer: 28:41.7
67. Misha Wiley: 29:01.4
73. Tim Slater: 29:42.9
75. Shahmique Cromwell: 30:32.2
76. Connor Williams: 30:36.0
78. Javier Roldan: 30:54.8
79. Zachary Lam: 30:57.6
 
HOW IT HAPPENED:
 
Benjamin Goulet posted his second-fastest time of his Lancer career to lead the Lancers, and he finished the 8K in under 27 minutes for a second straight race. His time of 26:40.7 was five seconds shy of his personal best, set two weeks ago in Louisville, and he finished 29^th in the field.
 
Sam Sager followed it up with a 27:00.8 to smash his previous personal by 44 seconds. He has shaved nearly two full minutes off his season-opening 8K in the fall, and he finished 36^th in the field.
 
Ethan Pettyjohn was seconds behind Sager to finish 40^th with a 27:07.9, and the sophomore has run his past three 8K's in under 28 minutes.
 
Saad Khan set a new PR by knocking five seconds off his previous best 8K time. The sophomore set that time two weeks ago in Lousville, and he finished 42^nd today with a 27:17.9.
 
Alec Daniel rounded out the Lancer runners to score as he finished 57^th with a 28:11.8.
 
In addition, Misha Wiley posted a new personal best at 29:01.4,48 seconds better than his personal best.
 
WHAT THEY SAID:
 
"Our guys accomplished what they set out to do," said Longwood head coach Brooke Craig. "They set a few more PR's to cap off our regular season. It's been a breakthrough year for them, and I'm happy to see so many gains coming into the Big South Championship in two weeks."
 
"Our top four ran a really strong race together," said assistant coach Colt Resnick. "It's something we've been working on, and they executed it well today. Alec was our fifth runner and was in no-man's land, but he really pulled through with a gritty race."
 
ADDITIONAL NOTES:
 
For the Lancer men, it marked the third straight race where at least three runners set a personal best.
 
Goulet ran sub-27 minutes for the second time in his Lancer career. The sophomore has shaved nearly two minutes off his season-opening 8K at the Lancer Pink Invitational.
 
Andrew Schaefer, a freshman, ran his 8K in under 29 minutes for the third time in four races in his debut season.
 
Khan, also a sophomore, has trimmed nearly two minutes from his season-opening 8K at the Lancer Pink Invitational.
 
UP NEXT:
 
Longwood will host the Big South Championship on Saturday, Oct. 29 across the street from the Longwood Athletic Complex.
 
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