HIGH POINT, N.C. – Competing in their final tuneup race before the SoCon Championship in two weeks, the VMI cross country teams showed well in preparation as the men place sixth and the women seventh in their respective races Friday evening in High Point, North Carolina.

Logan Luckett paced the women in their 5k race with a 23rd-place finish time of 19:14 and was pursued closely by teammate Anna Armfield, who came in 29th place in 19:27. Freshman Sara Belamarich finished third for the Keydets in 19:49 (40th), while Kathleen Yates (55th, 20:11) and Emily Hattman (65th, 20:32) also score team points for VMI. Isabela Melendez also competed for the Keydets, finishing in 21:59.

The App State women came in first in the race with 28 points ahead of host High Point's 53. Campbell (92) and UNCG (118). Charleston Southern (146) and ETSU (175) also placed just ahead of the Keydets' 183 points.  

“The ladies ran a very strong race,” said VMI head coach Dr. Drew Ludtke. “I was happy with their effort and team placement. This has been a good season with a strong focus on staying healthy and getting ready for the conference meet. This meet will set us up very well for the SOCON Championships. Logan Luck ran strong in the number one position this week, much improved from the George Mason meet two weeks ago.

In the men's 8K race, Davone Hernandez again led the Keydets by placing fifth in the field in 25:25. Gavin Jenkins has been a consistent second runner for VMI this season and placed 23rd in today's race in 26:33. Andre Jordan (46th, 27:15) and Walt Kitson (52nd, 27:28) finished third and fourth for the Keydets, respectively, while senior Kyle Sabourin also scored team points with his 64th-place mark of 27:48.

“Davone ran another good race placing fifth overall and first for VMI,” Ludtke said. “This was a good race for Davone to see some of the conference competition.  Overall, the men looked strong. We have a chance to do very well at the conference meet. We will need to work our pack of runners further up in the race to be satisfied at the conference meet, but we have confidence we will do well.”

Zach Lauster, Kellen Reeves, Ian Irizarry Negron and Jack Ryan also competed for the Keydets.

ETSU finished first in the men's race with 36 points while Coastal Carolina placed second with 84. App State (94), UNCG (138) and Marshall rounded out the top five just ahead of the Keydets' 155 points. VMI placed ahead of Louisburg, High Point, NC A&T, Radford and a host of other schools.

Men's 8k Race

Davone Hernandez        5th        25:25.21

Gavin Jenkins                23rd       26:33.52

Andre Jordan                46th       27:15.66

Walt Kitson                   52nd      27:28.42

Kyle Sabourin                64th       27:48.25

Zach Lauster                  82nd      28:16.30

Kellen Reeves                83rd       28:17.69

Ian Irizarry Negron          84th         28:23.45

Jack Ryan                             87th         28:31.52

Team Results

1. ETSU – 36
2. Coastal Carolina – 84
3. Appalachian State – 94
4. UNCG – 138
5. Marshall – 149
6. VMI – 155
7. Louisburg – 157
8. High Point – 158
9. NC A&T – 258
10. Radford – 266
11. Presbyterian – 338
12. Longwood – 372
13. Coker – 387
14. NC Wesleyan – 397
15. UNCW – 431
16. Claflin – 516
17. William Peace – 542
18. Patrick Henry – 544

Women's 5k Race

Logan Luckett – 23rd – 19:14.69

Anna Armfield – 29th – 19:27.23

Sara Belamarich – 40th – 19:49.65

Kathleen Yates – 55th – 20:11.90

Emily Hattman – 65th – 20:32.49

Isabela Melendez – 107th – 21:59.98

Team Scores:

1. App State – 28
2. High Point – 53
3. Campbell – 92
4. UNCG – 118
5. Charleston Southern – 146
6. ETSU – 175
7. VMI – 183
8. NC A&T – 264
9. Coastal Carolina – 274
10. Marshall – 290
11. Radford – 317
12. UNCW – 328
13. Presbyterian – 339
14. Longwood – 374
15. Coker – 467
16. NC Wesleyan – 520
17. William Peace – 530
18. Claflin – 539