Kansas cross country teams post top-20 finishes at Pre-National Invitational

MADISON, Wis. – Kansas cross country posted top-20 team finishes at the Pre-National Invitational in Madison, Wisconsin on Saturday morning, with the KU women taking 13th in the White 6K race and the Jayhawk men placing 20th in the Cardinal 8K race. The women were led by senior Sharon Lokedi with a sixth-place finish while the men were paced by redshirt junior Dylan Hodgson, who finished 91st overall.
 
In the women’s White 6K race, Lokedi was sitting in second at the 2K checkpoint, less than one second back from the leader, before dropping to third at the 4K mark and ultimately clocking in 38 seconds behind first-place finisher Weini Kelati of New Mexico at 20:11.87 for her sixth-place finish.
 
Freshmen Ally Ryan and McKenzie Wilks crossed the finish line second and third for Kansas, respectively. Ryan finished 78th overall with a time of 21:35 in her first official race as a Jayhawk. Wilks placed 96th overall, clocking in at 21:46.04.
 
Hodgson, Ben Butler and Chace Hale all hit the 2K mark in the men’s Cardinal 8K race in a tie for 31st at 6:02.7. Hodgson and Butler crossed the 5.8K checkpoint in a tie for 109th at 18:03, before Hodgson made a move up to finish in 91st with a time of 24:58.90.
 
Michael Melgares clocked in second for the Kansas men, finishing 93rd with a time of 24:59.28, while Butler was the third Jayhawk to cross the finish line, placing 96th at 25:01.43.
 
QUOTES
Senior Sharon Lokedi

On the day’s race…
“I didn’t race how I hoped to, but I’m just going to keep my head high and get ready for the races to come. We’ve got big races coming up and I think for now that’s what we are going to focus on.”

On her teammates’ performances…
“I am so proud of the freshmen, they really did great given this was their first big meet. I am also so proud of the other girls, they executed the race really well. We are all so fired up and super excited for the rest of the season.”
 
NOTABLES

  • Sharon Lokedi’s sixth-place finish marks the fourth time in her career that she has placed in the top-10 at the Pre-National Invitational, finishing eighth last season, 10th in 2016 and fourth in 2015.
  • The 13th-place finish by the Kansas women marks the highest finish at the Pre-National Invitational meet since 2016, when the Jayhawk women also placed 13th.
  • The 20th-place finish for the KU men is the highest finish since 2013, when the team finished 14th.

KANSAS RESULTS
Women’s White 6K
6. Sharon Lokedi – 20:11.87
78. Ally Ryan – 21:35.06
96. McKenzie Wilks – 21:46.04
106. Riley Cooney – 21:50.96
120. Megan Paule – 22:01.41
173. Lauren Harrell – 22:33.28
199. Catherine Liggett – 22:53.66
 
Men’s Cardinal 8K
91. Dylan Hodgson – 24:58.90
93. Michael Melgares – 24:59.28
96. Ben Butler – 25:01.43
148. Ethan Donley – 25:31.96
157. Chris Melgares – 25:40.76
172. George Letner – 25:48.03
222. Chace Hale – 26:36.30
 
Women’s Gray 6K
43. Hannah Driscoll – 22:26.57
47. Cameron Gueldner – 22:32.67
 
Men’s Grey 8K
50. John Luder – 26:20.57
75. Bryce Hoppel – 27:45.31
 
UP NEXT
The Kansas cross country teams will travel to Ames, Iowa for the 2018 Big 12 Cross Country Championship at the ISU Cross Country Course on October 26.
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