The William and Mary men's cross country team beat nine higher-ranked teams Saturday at the Pre-National Invitational, including a pair of regional rivals as the Tribe finished 31st out of 52 teams. No. 2-ranked Colorado took the win over No. 4 Oregon, 90-113, and defending NCAA champion Kennedy Kithuka of Texas Tech won the 8K race by more than 30 seconds with his 22:52.8 showing.
Leading the way once again for W&M was junior
Rad Gunzenhauser (Pittsburgh, Pa.), who ran 24:42.6 for 112th overall and a 29-spot improvement over his spot at the 5K mark. Freshman
Trevor Sleight (Asheville, N.C.) was second for the Tribe in 138th overall with a time of 24:52.7, and
Nathaniel Hermsmeier (Charlottesville, Va.) was third in 24:59.9 for 159th overall. Sophomore
Ryan Gousse (Apopka, Fla.) ran 25:04.3 for 175th, and
Joshua Mercado (Citrus Heights, Calif.) finished the scoring in 229th with a time of 25:19.5.
David Barney (Lynchburg, Va.) and freshman
Faris Sakallah (Chantilly, Va.) rounded out the team in 25:24.5 and 25:38.0, respectively.
The next race on the docket for William and Mary is the Colonial Athletic Association Championships, Saturday, Nov. 2, in Towson, Md. The Tribe is aiming for its 14th-straight conference title.
Pre-National Invitational - 8KWabash Valley Family Sports Center - Terre Haute, Ind.Top Five Teams1. #2 Colorado 90
2. #4 Oregon 113
3. #18 Iona 126
4. #29 Stanford 148
5. #9 Tulsa 159
...
31. William and Mary 814Top Five Individuals1. Kennedy Kithuka (TTU) 22:52.8
2. Anthony Rotich (UTEP) 23:25.5
3. Chris O'Hare (Tulsa) 23:32.0
4. Edward Cheserek (Oregon) 23:33.0
5. Sean McGorty (Stanford) 23:39.0
Southeast Region Teams15. #4 Duke 586
19. #10 Virginia Tech 622
30. #8 Furman 803
31. #11 William and Mary 81435. #6 Kentucky 840
37. #7 Liberty 849
42. #13 Wake Forest 1053
W&M Individuals112.
Rad Gunzenhauser 24:42.6
138.
Trevor Sleight 24:52.7
159.
Nathaniel Hermsmeier 24:59.9
175.
Ryan Gousse 25:04.3
229.
Joshua Mercado 25:19.5
246.
David Barney 25:24.5
268.
Faris Sakallah 25:38.0
