Sophomore Kellen Rutto paced the Norfolk State women's cross country team again on Saturday, finishing in second place overall to help the Spartans take home third place in the HBCU Challenge of the Great American Cross Country Festival.
Rutto finished the 5K (3.1-mile) course in 19 minutes, 5.8 seconds. Senior Jennifer Chichester was next for NSU, finishing sixth in a time of 19:40.8.
Juniors Jamia Hutto and Syeeda Gee finished 15th and 26th overall. Hutto finished in 20:38.9, and Gee in 21:20.
Freshman Lillian Morales-Gonzalez rounded out the Spartans' top five. She placed 31st overall in 21:41.5.
Men's Cross Country Keeps Rolling, Wins 3rd in a Row at Great American Cross Country Invite
CARY, N.C. - Led by personal-best performances from its top three finishers, the Norfolk State men's cross country team turned in a first-place effort for the third consecutive meet Saturday at the Great American Cross Country Festival.
The Spartans, ranked eighth in the USTFCCA Southeast Region poll this week, easily won the HBCU Challenge section of the competition for the second year in a row. The Spartans tallied 24 points, well ahead of second-place Winston-Salem State's 81.
Junior Josef Tessema took his third consecutive meet victory, finishing the 8K course in a personal-best time of 24 minutes, 47.8 seconds. Sophomore Vincent Rono was second overall and also ran a PR, finishing in 24:59.5. Junior Amos Kipkosgei capped the Spartans' 1-2-3 finish with a PR of 25:06.1.
Junior Philemon Kimutai took eighth place in a time of 26:16.4. Sophomore Kameron George rounded out the Spartans' top five in a personal-best time of 26:38, good for 10th place overall.