University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
UNC Asheville
Big South Conference Championships
Bulldogs ready for Big South Cross Country Championships
10.28.2023 | Cross Country
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – The UNC Asheville cross country is set to compete in Salem, Va., for the Big South Championships held at Green Hill Park on Sunday morning.
Meet Information
Men's 8k – 10:30 a.m.
Women's 5k – 11:30 a.m.
Both races can be followed using the live stats link HERE.
Meet Preview
Asheville will compete against the other eight teams in the Big South. On the men's side, Charleston Southern and Asheville are No. 10 and No. 14 in the latest USTFCCCA Southeast Regional Rankings. On the women's side, High Point is No. 10 in the latest USTFCCCA Southeast Regional Rankings.
Charleston Southern won the men's 2022 Championship, and High Point won the women's 2022 Championship.
In Asheville's last meet, the men earned a second-place team finish at the USC Upstate Invitational. In terms of individual performances, junior Adam Hessler finished in seventh place in a time of 24:30.0, closely followed by fellow junior Daniel Hopkins (11th) and freshman Jan Málek (17th) in a time of 24:44.9 (PR) and 24:58.6 respectively.
At the Live in Lou Classic, Hessler recorded an 8K personal best of 24:19.0. Hessler currently holds the second-fastest 8K time in program history. Málek made his collegiate debut at the Lou and set a new program freshman 8K record with a time of 24:41.7.
Asheville has had four Big South Runner of the Week awards, with Hessler earning Runner of the Week on Sept. 20, freshman Jonas Roach earning Freshman Runner of the Week on Sept. 6 and Sept. 20 and Málek earning Freshman Runner of the Week on Oct. 4.
Isabel Richardson has had an outstanding freshman campaign thus far. In her third collegiate race, Richardson broke both the freshman record (17:58) and school record (17:36) to finish seventh in a time of 17:23.9. It was her second-straight Top 10 finish, and she was the top freshman finisher in the 279-runner field. Richardson has earned Big South Freshman Runner of the Week honors twice this season.
Emma Kennett and Sophie Lundin have also highlighted the women's side, with Kennett recording a personal best of 18:45.3 at the Upstate Invitational and Lundin recording a personal best of 18:46.2 at the Covered Bridge Open.
"Our men's and women's teams have done an excellent job preparing for the Big South Championships," Head Coach Adam Puett said. "We have worked all season on coming together as a team and doing the little things well, so I am excited to see all that hard work come together."
Men's Lineup:
Jackson Core
Alex Haines
Adam Hessler
Yates Hockaday
Daniel Hopkins
Quinn Jacquez
Dylan Major
Jan Málek
Brock Newsome
Andrew Okon
Jonas Roach
Nate Sullivan
Women's Lineup:
Alyx Beausoleil
Zoe Bos
Hanna Guyton
Maddie Hamuka
Emma Kennett
Emily Leo
Sophie Lundin
Ella Moore
Amanda Orban
Isabel Richardson
Lauren Sochia
Players Mentioned
