KERNERSVILLE, N.C. – Campbell junior Joan Maritim sailed to a first place victory at the High Point VertCross Invitational, completing the women's 6K in 20:41.49. She led the Campbell women to a 7th place overall finish with 190 points. The Campbell men were led by freshman Billy Knabe and finished 21st overall in the meet.
Maritim shattered her previous personal best 6K time by more than 40 seconds in the women's race, picking up her second-career individual first-place finish. Most recently, Maritim took home the win at the Asheville XC Challenge on Oct. 1, completing the 5K course in 17:46.27.
Crossing the line next for CU were Heidi Tuszkiewicz and Amina Alvarez Barkane, finishing in 49th and 50th place, respectively. Tuszkiewicz completed the course in 23:07.57 in just the second 6K of her young collegiate career. Alvarez Barkane crossed the line right behind Tuszkiewicz with a mark of 23:08.20, good for her best 6K time for the Camels.
Freshman Lize Botha came next for Campbell, completing her first career 6K course in 23:29.03 to finish in 65th place in the meet. Sophomore Roshae Jackson rounded out the top-five for the CU Women, placing 79th with a time of 23:49.85 and beating her 6K mark from last season by more than 90 seconds.
The next two runners for Campbell crossed the line simultaneously as Madeline Fitch and Ali Bowen finished .06 seconds apart, placing 115th and 116th, respectively. Other runners for CU included Aimee Fish (129th), Jade Baldwin (158th), Megan Lanzon (177th) and Jackie Koger (191st). Campbell Graduate Assistant Coach Letitia Saayman raced unattached at the meet, finishing second behind Maritim with a mark of 21:02.01.
On the men's side, Campbell raced five of its freshmen to give the rookie class some great racing experience. Billy Knabe led the way for CU, finishing the men's 8K in 27:20.88, improving on his previous 8K mark by more than 30 seconds. Graeme Fisher crossed the finish line next for Campbell with a time of 27:36.21.
Casper Duell completed the 8K course in 27:52.12, beating his Asheville XC Challenge time by 16 seconds. Classmate Travis Gallimore also improved on his previous 8K time, finishing in 29:07.71. Ka'Deem Wynn was the final finisher for Campbell, finishing the meet in 221st place.
Up next for CU Cross Country, the top-five runners on the men's team will be racing at the NCAA Pre-Nationals meet in Terre Haute, Ind. on Saturday, Oct. 15. Hunter Gilbert, Lawrence Kipkoech, Meshack Kipruto, Jacob Kipserem and Amon Terer will square off against some of the nation's top talent as the men's race begins at 11:35 a.m. For the most up-to-date information on Campbell cross country, follow @GoCamelsRun on Twitter.
