BOONE, N.C. - The App State men's and women's cross country teams are set to open the 2025 campaign with the Covered Bridge Open on Friday. Action at the Don Kennedy Trails at State Farm in Boone will start at 9:15 a.m. with the women's 5K. The men's 6K race will follow at 9:45 a.m.
Friday's field of competition will include App State, College of Charleston, Gardner-Webb, Georgia, Roane State, South Carolina, and Tennessee Tech.
Season Rewind
The Mountaineers return to the course after a historic 2024 season, where the men's and women's squads swept the Sun Belt Cross Country team titles for the first time since joining the league. The men earned their second consecutive title with a score of 30, two points shy of their 2023 total of 28. The women clinched their first Sun Belt team title since 2018 after scoring 45 points, which was 61 fewer points than the runner-up's score. Additionally, 10 Mountaineers earned all-conference honors while
Henry Stark and
Breanna Budzinski swept the league's cross country Freshman of the Year accolades, and distance coaches
Brad Herbster and
Annie Richards swept the SBC Cross Country Men's and Women's Coach of the Year awards.
At the NCAA Southeast Regional, the App State men placed 14th out of 33 teams, while the women finished 16th out of 34 teams.
Preseason Rankings & Recognition
The Sun Belt announced its 2025 Preseason Coaches Poll on Aug. 22, with the App State men and women both favored to defend their team titles. The men's team earned 79 points and seven first-place votes while the women earned 165 points with 10 first-place votes. Additionally, the men's squad was ranked 12th in the NCAA Southeast Region in the USTFCCCA preseason rankings.
Following the announcement of the SBC Preseason Coaches Polls, senior
Tucker Sangster was named to the inaugural All-Sun Belt Community Service Team on Aug. 25. Off the course, Sangster made an impact in the High Country with his volunteering efforts last year, individually logging 60 hours of service.
Roster Roundup
Nine Mountaineers return on the men's team, including six from last fall's SBC Championship squad.
Ethan Lipham, who placed fourth individually at last year's conference championship with an 8K time of 24:40.60, returns for his senior season. Redshirt senior
Chase Burrell also makes his return after rounding out the top five at the 2024 SBC Championship with a time of 24:47.20. For his efforts on the course last fall, Burrell was awarded the SBC Elite Award. With times of 23:53.0 and 24:20.3, Burrell and Lipham currently stand third and seventh, respectively, in the program all-time list for the 8K.
On the women's side, seven Mountaineers return to the High Country from last year's squad.
Breanna Budzinski, who was named SBC Women's Cross Country Freshman of the Year, returns to Boone alongside junior
Rhys Ammon. Budzinski and Ammon finished among the top 20 at the SBC Championships with 5K times of 18:14.25 and 18:21.56, respectively.
The Mountaineers added 16 runners to their ranks for the 2025 campaign, evenly splitting eight additions to the men's team and eight to the women's team.
Up Next
The Mountaineers will venture to Charlottesville, Va. for the Virginia Invitational on Sept. 12. The men's 8K is slated for 8:45 a.m. with the women's 5K to follow at 9:30 a.m.
