Cardinal Top Collegian, Patria Smashes PR at Little Rock Open

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. – When Little Rock Director of Track & Field/Head Cross Country Coach J.P. Behnke recruited this year's freshman class, he knew they had a chance to make an impact. He might not have known they would make an impact so quickly.
 
The Trojans had four freshmen post top-10 finishes with Spencer Cardinal placing as the top collegian at Saturday's Little Rock Open as the men finished second and the women third.
 
Cardinal ran an impressive 26:01.0 to beat all other collegiate competitors and to finish second overall. On the women's side, Mia Patria beat her 5K personal record by nearly a minute as she finished seventh with a time of 18:44.1.
 
More than just individual performances, the Trojans continued to show improvement. Both teams beat all other Sun Belt competition, topping Arkansas State, Louisiana and ULM. The win over the in-state foe is notable considering the Red Wolves won the women's title at last year's Sun Belt Championships while the men finished second. Both teams were beat by Little Rock's Team Saturday.
 
The men posted a team runner-up finish after three runners finished in the top 10. Behind Cardinal, Andrew Payton ran 26:30.4 to finish fourth while Aaron Soltmann ran 27:15.8 to place 10^th.
 
On the women's side, Patria was one of three Trojans to place in the top 15. Vianney Sanchez ran 19:23.9 to finish 13^th while Kimberley Boni posted a personal record time of 19:30.2 to finish 15^th. Keila Finnesetand also recorded a PR time, running 20:07.4 to finish 23^rd. In all, seven women recorded a new personal best time in the 5K race.
 
Saturday's meet marked the final tune-up before the 2020 Sun Belt Championships, which will be held in Mobile, Alabama on Oct. 31.
 
For the latest information on Little Rock Cross Country, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockTFXC on Facebook and Twitter.
 
#LittleRocksTeam