SMYRNA, Del. – Making their third trip to a Delaware State hosted meet, the University of Maryland Eastern Shore cross country squad looked to continue their impressive season. They did not disappoint as for third straight week they swept the meet, with the men’s and women’s teams each finishing first as well as having two Hawks cross the finish line in first place.
Freshman Nelson Kimutai won his first collegiate race with a time of 26:45.8 with fellow Eldoret native and Hawks junior Mark Tuwei finishing third with a time of 26:59.0. Sophomore Derrick Cheruiyot scored another top five finish this season with a 27:44.0 finishing time, while freshman Stanley Meli ran a 28:13.3 to round out the top ten. Sophomore Nassor Whitehead placed 16th with his time of 28:45.4 to round out the scoring. In the end, the Hawks finished with 35 total points, 16 points ahead of second place North Carolina A&T. With the victory, UMES remains unbeaten on the men’s side this fall.
Faring even better, the Lady Hawks finished with 28 total team points, edging Morgan State by eight points for their third straight win. Once again, they were led by sophomore Barbora Blahutova who ran a time of 18:33.7 in the 5k race to remain undefeated as a Hawk. Both junior Shantol Hemley and classmate Jheniel Kelly finished with their best places of the season, as Hemley earned a fourth place spot with a time of 19:31.1 and Kelly’s time of 19:32.7 placed her fifth. Sophomore Rachel Halmon drew an eighth place finish with a time of 19:54.9, while junior Margret Wilmot-Francis finished at 20:27.6, good for 14th place to round out the Lady Hawks’ top five.
One final trip to Smyrna awaits the Hawks as they look to secure their first MEAC cross country championship in six years for the Lady Hawks and eight years for their male counterparts. A 9:45 a.m. start time is scheduled for November 1st.