Both Virginia Tech cross country squads finished in seventh place in the team standings at the Under Armour Pre-National Invitational held Saturday morning at the LaVern Gibson Championship Course on the campus of Indiana State University in Terre Haute, Indiana.
Peter Seufer, the Hokies' All-American and ACC champion last season, led the Tech men, coming in 19th overall with a time of 23 minutes, 52.8 seconds. Seufer finished 32 seconds behind winner Connor Mantz of BYU in the 266-runner field.
Tech wound up with 252 points, while Mantz led BYU to the team title. Colorado finished second ahead of Iona, Washington, Ole Miss, Florida State and the Hokies.
Two other Tech runners finished in the top 50. Fitsum Seyoum was 29th overall with a time of 24:07.7, while Bashir Mosavel-Lo ended up 49th with a time of 24:26.7. Jack Joyce came in 67th with a time of 24:34.2.
On the women's side, Sara Freix led the way, finishing 23rd overall with a time of 20:40.9. She paced the Hokies on a day in which three Tech runners finished in the top 50 out of a 259-runner field and led the Hokies to that seventh-place finish. Tech accumulated 292 points, while Washington (84) won the event followed by BYU, Colorado, Michigan, Florida State, Illinois and the Hokies.
Sarah Edwards came in 29th overall with a time of 20:42.4, while Ellie Brush was 46th overall with a time of 20:55.4. Kyra Lopez finished 59th with a time of 21:01.1.
MEET NOTES
• Mosavel-Lo set a personal-best time in the 6K distance, as his time of 24:26.7 beat his previous best by nearly 15 seconds.
• Diego Zarate ran his first cross country race of the season, finishing 88th with a time of 24:43.6.
• Edwards set a personal best for the 6K distance with a time of 20:42.4, surpassing her previous time of 20:54.2.
• Brush also set a new personal-best time for the 6K distance for the second consecutive meet. Her time of 20:55.4 easily surpassed her previous best of 21:40.8.
• Kayla Richardson competed in her first race of the cross country season, running the 6K course in a time of 22:04.2.
UP NEXT
Both Tech squads return to action Nov. 1 when both competed at the ACC Championships, which will be held on the Hokies' home course – the Buford Meredith Cross Country Course. For the first time since 2012, the ACC Championships return to Blacksburg. The last time the league held its meet at Tech's home, the Tech men won the ACC team title.Gallery: (10/19/2019) 2019 CROSS COUNTRY PRE-NATIONAL MEET
