Reigning Champs Look to Win More Titles at Sun Belt Championships

BOONE, N.C. - The App State men's and women's cross country teams look to defend their 2024 Sun Belt Cross Country Championship team titles on Friday as they make an appearance at the 2025 championship meet in Foley, Ala. 
 
The App State women, who are seeking their second consecutive team title, will start things off with the women's 5K race at 9:30 a.m. ET (8:30 a.m. CT). The App State men aim to capture their third consecutive team title and will compete in the men's 8K at 10:15 a.m. ET (9:15 a.m. CT). The meet will be available to stream on ESPN+. 
 
Last Time Out 
The Mountaineers closed the regular season with the Princeton Fall Classic on Oct. 17. Sophomore Thomas Wlazlowski set pace for the Mountaineers in the men's 8K, finishing 64th out of 318 competitors with a personal best time of 24:12.5. He surpassed his previous personal best by 33 seconds. Fellow sophomore Aaron Kidd and redshirt senior Chase Burrell were next to cross the finish line with times of 24:25.2 (PR) and 24:27.5, respectively. All eight Mountaineers in the women's 6K clocked personal bests, led by freshman Josie Jackson, who clocked a time of 21:39.8 to place 105th out of 270 competitors. Her time was a 32-second improvement on her previous best. Fellow freshman Elizabeth McCart and sophomore Breanna Budizinski were next to cross the finish line with times of 21:41.2 (PR) and 21:50.3 (PR), respectively. 
 
Last Time at the Sun Belt Championships
At the 2024 Sun Belt Championships, the App State men captured their second consecutive SBC team title, and the women secured the sweep with their first team title since 2018. It was the first time in the program's Sun Belt era that the Mountaineers swept both titles. App State previously swept both league titles in 2012 as a member of the Southern Conference. In addition to sweeping the team titles, men's distance coach Brad Herbster and women's distance coach Annie Richards were named the Sun Belt Men's and Women's Coaches of the Year. Between the men's and women's teams, 10 Mountaineers collected all-conference accolades. Henry Stark and Breanna Budzinski collected Sun Belt Freshman of the Year honors and Chase Burrell earned the SBC Elite Award. 
 
In the men's 8K, five Mountaineers crossed the finish line in fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh, and eighth place, scoring 30 points to repeat as team championships, coming within two points of the Mountaineers' 2023 score of 28 (the lowest total at the SBC Championships since 2013). Ethan Lipham led the charge, clocking an 8K time of 24:40.60 to finish fourth overall. Chase Burrell placed fifth (24:47.20), Calbert Guest took sixth (24:55.20), Henry Stark finished seventh (24:56.40), and Thomas Wlazlowski placed eighth (24:56.90). Ethan Turner rounded out the top 10 with a time of 25:02.10.  
 
With an 8K time of 23:52.80, Arkansas State's Jacob Pyeatt won the men's individual crown. 
 
Jasmine Donohue led the Mountaineers in the women's 5K, clocking a time of 17:18.85 to place third overall. Lauren Johnston and Emma Russum followed close behind, placing sixth (17:43.92) and seventh (17:46.34), respectively. With a time of 18:01.82, Lana Farris took 13th and Breanna Budzinski stopped the clock at 18:14.25 to finish 16th overall. 
 
Marshall's Kylee Mastin captured the women's individual title with a 5K time of 17:06.43.
 
The Mountaineers' victories at the conference championship occurred a mere 35 days after Hurricane Helene hit western North Carolina, which caused widespread damage to the Boone and Watauga County area. 
 
Up Next 
The NCAA Southeast Regional is slated for Nov. 14 and will be hosted by Virginia at Panorama Farms in Charlottesville, Va. The women's 6K race is scheduled for 10 a.m. with the men's 10K to follow at 11 a.m. Parking will be ticketed at $20 and must be purchased online in advance by Nov. 10.