by Benny Benton
CARY, N.C. – junior Joel Lagat and senior Heather Cuddington both recorded collegiate 5K personal records on Friday in leading their respective Barton College teams at the Adidas XC Challenge, hosted by North Carolina State University.
Lagat was the top runner representing a men's collegiate program. He finished seventh overall among 75 runners in the non-Division I contest, trailing only three unattached runners and three participants from area club programs.
The Eldoret, Kenya, resident recorded a time of 16:24.7 on the WakeMed Soccer Park course. His previous best at the 5K distance had been 16:33.1, which he set in 2014 while running for Claflin University.
Lagat helped Barton finish first among the five collegiate programs competing in the race, and third out of seven teams overall. The NC State Club team won the meet with 28 points, followed by the Bull City Track Club with 45 and the Bulldogs with 92.
Hampden-Sydney College was fourth with 99 points, followed by another NCAA Division III program, Guilford College, in fifth with 133. Winston-Salem State University was sixth with 162 points, and William Peace University was seventh with 189.
Following Lagat for the Bulldogs was junior Sebaston Barrett, who placed 35th overall with a time of 18:00.7. Junior transfer Tevin Aitken was next for BC in 37th with a time of 18:08.4, followed closely behind by teammates Adam Pope (39th, 18:11.2) and Raekwon Fiddermon (40th, 18:11.2). Qasim Ray rounded out the Barton team, placing 49th with a time of 19:03.7.
Unlike the men, the women only had one race, as 14 of the 18 teams hailed from NCAA Division I programs.
Barton was 15th overall, but was second among the three non-DI collegiate programs. The Lady Bulldogs trailed Winston-Salem State but defeated Salem College. NC State won the meet with 40 points, followed by the University of North Carolina with 54 and Florida State University with 76.
Cuddington produced a PR time of 20:04.2, topping her previous best collegiate mark of 20:09.4 set in last year's Royals Cross Country Challenge. The Saratoga, N.C., resident placed 79th overall among 161 mostly DI runners.
Junior Judith Melly was next for Barton, finishing 123rd with a PR time of 22:29.4. Redshirt senior Jamicia Jones was 132nd with a mark of 23:20.1, and senior Jayvona McDaniel was 141st with a time of 25:13.4, her best in two seasons as a Lady Bulldog. Sophomore Courtney Ricks, who was a hurdler and sprinter on the track team last season, made her cross country debut in the race, posting a time of 28.45.3 to place 156th.
Barton will take a few weeks off from competition before returning to action on Friday, Oct. 7, at the Royals Cross Country Challenge, which will be the final tune-up for the league championships two weeks later.
Adidas XC Challenge
Barton men (of 75)
7. Joel Lagat – 16:24.7 (PR)
35. Sebaston Barrett – 18:00.7
37. Tevin Aitken – 18:08.4
39. Adam Pope – 18:11.2
40. Raekwon Fiddermon – 18:11.2
(49). Qasim Ray – 19:03.7
Barton women (of 161)
79. Heather Cuddington – 20:04.2 (PR)
123. Judith Melly – 22:29.4 (PR)
132. Jamicia Jones – 23:20.1
141. Jayvona McDaniel – 25:13.4
156. Courtney Ricks – 28:45.3
