Lexington, KY. – The LSU men’s cross country team registered its best SEC finish since 2007 on Friday morning at the Masterson Station Park in Lexington, Ky., with an eighth-place finish; the Tigers totaled a team score of 220 to earn their placing. LSU’s women’s squad took 13th with a team score of 349 points.
“We have talked all year about being aggressive and tough” said LSU head coach Houston Franks. “That is two things you can always control. The men really went into the race and competed with a lot of toughness. It is a very young group, but they are really starting to come together. We are really excited for the NCAA Regional Championships in two weeks.”
The men’s team got things started as they were the first group to run on Friday morning in the 8k race. Once again, LSU was led by junior Eric Coston, who was the first Tiger to finish the race for the fourth consecutive meet. Coston was the frontrunner for LSU with a 20th place finish with a PR time of 23:29.9. Freshman Davis Bove continued his impressive freshman season with a 23rd place finish and a time of 23:35.6. Bove was the fifth freshman to cross the finish line, which earned him a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team. Bove is the third male runner to make the SEC All-Freshman Team for LSU in program history; he joins a list of runners that includes Dajour Braxton in 2015 and fellow teammate Eric Coston who earned the honor during his freshman season in 2017. Bove’s performance marks the fourth time this season that he has been one of the top three finishers for the Tigers. Following Bove was Blake Baldassaro who finished in 49th place with a time of 24:21.6. Rounding out the scoring for the men’s team were freshmen Jackson Martingayle (24:37.2) and Cade Martin (25:03.0) who finished in 59th and 83rd places respectively. The Tigers have relied on the performances of underclassmen throughout the season and that continued on Friday as four out of LSU’s five runners who scored were either freshmen or sophomores.
The women’s squad ran the 6k on Friday morning which was the second time they ran that distance this season. For the fourth consecutive competition sophomore runner Katy-Ann McDonald led the way for the Tigers. The London, England native placed 17th overall with a time of 20:48.7. Following McDonald was Alicia Stamey who crossed the finish line in 68th place with a time of 21:52.2. Freshman Adele Broussard followed up her impressive regular season with by contributing to LSU’s team score in her first postseason competition of her college career. She placed 105th overall in the 6k with a time of 22:36.5. Sara Funderburk extended her scoring streak to all six meets this season as she finished in 123rd place with a time of 23:12.8. The final Tiger to score for the women’s team was Amber Desselle, who finished with a time of 23:25.3 to place 126th; Desselle has also scored at all six meets this fall for the Tigers.
Up Next
LSU will continue postseason action in the NCAA South Central Regionals on November 15 in Fayetteville, Arkansas.
Women’s Results – 6k
17. Katy-Ann McDonald – 20:48.7
68. Alicia Stamey – 21:52.2
105. Adele Broussard – 22:36.5
123. Sara Funderburk – 23:12.8
126. Amber Desselle – 23:25.3
130. Jennifer Bennett – 23:37.1
131. Lauren Hendry – 23:39.9
140. Cori Mitchell – 24:26.0
Men’s Results – 8k
20. Eric Coston. – 23:29.9
23. Davis Bove – 23:35.6
49. Blake Baldassaro. – 24:21.6
59. Jackson Martingayle – 24:37.2
83. Cade Martin – 25:03.0
90. Thomas Laville Jr.– 25:26.3
91. Garrett Hamilton – 25:28.1
101. Kyle Montgomery – 25:47.0
108. Marshall Buhler – 26:31.1