Carbondale Reporter

The Southern Illinois Salukis men's and women's cross country teams competed at the Live in Lou Classic in Louisville, Kentucky, achieving several personal bests. Ben Chance led the men's team with a lifetime-best time of 24:51.0 in the 8K, breaking the 25-minute barrier for the first time and finishing 55th overall among Division I runners. Teammates Brady Faulkner, Will Foltz, Calen George, Drew Twyman, and Parker Davidson followed, with both Twyman and Davidson also setting new personal records.

On the women's side, Hannah Meiser delivered a strong performance in the 6K with a time of 18:16.6—improving her previous collegiate best by 43 seconds.

Head Coach Angelina Ramos expressed satisfaction with her athletes' efforts. "It was a huge day out of Ben Chance and Hannah Meiser in how both competed and attacked the race with intentionality," Ramos said. "That's a lifetime 8K for Ben by 36 seconds and the first time sub-25, and a 43-second collegiate 5K cross country personal record for Hannah."

Ramos highlighted Meiser's progress compared to last season. "She was 16 seconds ahead of pace from where she was fitness-wise at this point last season," Ramos added. "It was great to see her put together a complete race this early in the season."

Twyman and Davidson were recognized for breaking the 27-minute mark for the first time as well. Despite some team members recovering from illness or fatigue due to recent workouts, Ramos commended their perseverance.

"A lot of our men's pack was still recovering from some big threshold workouts, and half our women's team is sick right now," she said. "In spite of that, freshman Ellary Blakey raced with a lot of heart for her team and came within nine seconds of her lifetime personal best despite barely being able to breathe."

The Salukis will next compete at the Angel Mounds Invitational on October 17 as they prepare for upcoming championship meets.

For updates on Southern Illinois cross country teams, fans can follow them on X (@SalukiTrackXC), Instagram (@SIUTrackXC), or Facebook (@SalukiTrackandField).