HUNTSVILLE, Ala.- Led by Kinley Kunkel, WKU Cross Country wrapped up action at the CUSA Championships Saturday morning.
Kunkel led the Red and White, finishing seventh and earning First Team All-CUSA. The women finished ninth, while the men placed seventh.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The women’s 6k race kicked off the CUSA Championships Saturday morning. Kunkel again led WKU, finishing in the top-10 with a seventh-place showing. Her time of 20:36 was a personal record and the third-best 6K time in WKU history, dating back to 1985.
Brooke Greenwell followed Kunkel, finishing inside the top-50 in 47th place. Greenwell was the first of five Hilltoppers in the women’s race to set a personal best. Kathryn Harris, Caterina rossomanno, and Sofia Witt also crossed the finish line with new record times. Hannah Glassmeyer competed in her first meet as a Hilltopper and finished 87th.
The men’s 8k began at 10 a.m. CT. Jake Younger was the first Hilltopper to finish, placing 28th. Five more hilltoppers followed, each finishing in the top-40. Mikie Carnell, Sam Herbig, and Trevor Hudnall all set personal bests in the process.
Two veterans also managed personal records Saturday morning. Bowling Green native Michael House finished in 25:41, and senior Wade Balcom set a new best time of 25:53.
In total, five men and five women set new records on the course. The men finished seventh out of 10 teams with 161 points, and the women finished ninth out of 12 teams with 220 points.
NOTABLES
* Kinley Kunkel set a new personal best in the 6k race,finishing in 20:36 for seventh place and First Team All-CUSA honors.
* Kunkel improved her previous PR by over 28 seconds,set at the Angel Mounds Invitational on Oct. 17.
* Kunkel’s time is the third-best in program history in the women’s 6k.
* It’s the best time in a 6k race since WKU joined Conference USA in 2014.
* Kunkel is just the third Hilltopper to earn First Team All-CUSA and the first since 2015.
* Kunkel has now finished in the top-10 in three of four meets this season.