RICHMOND, Va. — Freshman Clinton Kipruto led wire to wire for the individual title and Norfolk State placed four runners in the top 20 to finish third out of 14 teams Saturday at the Spider Alumni Open, hosted by the University of Richmond at Pole Green Park.
The Spartans scored 65 points in the 6,000-meter race, trailing only William & Mary (33) and Georgetown (34) while finishing ahead of American (93) and host Richmond (144). Norfolk State was the top HBCU finisher in the field.
Kipruto set the tone from the opening kilometer and never surrendered the lead, hitting every checkpoint of the race in first place before crossing in 18:05.5 — a 4:51.0 mile average and a 13.5-second victory over William & Mary's Hayes Trapp. His 2:53.4 opening kilometer was the fastest in the field, and he came through 5K in 15:03.5, still out front.
Behind him, the Spartans packed in tightly. Junior Lewis Too was 10th in 18:44.3, sophomore Daniel Mathenge took 14th in 18:55.5 and junior Ian Kimutai placed 18th in 19:00.0. Junior Mohammed Mrahi closed out the scoring in 26th at 19:22.6, giving Norfolk State a team average of 18:50 and a 1:17.1 spread between its first and fifth runners.
Sophomore Jemmel Green (19:45.0) and junior Mathew Kipkoech (19:48.3) rounded out the Spartan effort in 32nd and 34th, respectively.
Norfolk State actually held the team lead through the early stages, topping the unofficial split standings at both the 1K and 2K marks before settling into third over the closing three kilometers.
Norfolk State Results — Men's 6K
Team Scoring (Top 5)
- William & Mary — 33
- Georgetown — 34
- Norfolk State — 65
- American — 93
- Richmond — 144
UP NEXT
The Spartans head to Earlysville, Va., for the Virginia Invitational, hosted by UVA. The race is set for Friday morning, Sept. 11.
