WSSU Wins First CIAA Cross Country Titles In School History

Winston-Salem State Wins First CIAA Cross Country Titles In School History

October 21, 2010

CARY, N.C. – Winston-Salem State made history Thursday at the 2010 CIAA Cross Country Championships at WakeMed Soccer Park.
 
The Rams took home both the men’s and women’s titles in their first year back in the conference after a four-year attempted move to Division I. They had never won a CIAA crown in cross country until this season.
 
The men’s team outscored Bowie State 26 to 50 to win the crown, and the women squad barely got by Virginia State 34 to 35 to claim the championship. The Rams also swept the individual tiles with Andrew Chebii winning the men’s 8K race in a blistering time of 24.33.3, and Brittney Killebrew crossing the finish line first in the women’s 5K race in 19.40.6.
 
“This was a great day for us today,” WSSU head coach Inez Turner said. “I have a great assistant coach and our athletes are positive. We preach positivity which helps them win.”
 
Chebii led a 1-2-3 sweep for WSSU in the men’s race. Aron Barnes was second in 25.57.6 and Desmond Wiggan was third in 26.06.0. The Rams placed seven runners in the top 20.
 
Shaw was third with 104 points followed by Saint Augustine’s College (145), Johnson C. Smith (147), Virginia State (161), Lincoln (Pa.) (173), Fayetteville State (181), Livingstone (200), Saint Paul’s (245) and Elizabeth City State (315).
 
The Rams’ Chebii, Barnes and Wiggan headed the All-CIAA men’s team, which consists of the top 10 finishers. The squad also included Darius Berry of Shaw, Daryl Sanders of Bowie State, Timothy Davison of Virginia State, Matthew Haile of Bowie State, Kevin Rice of WSSU, Ronald Exum of Bowie State and Vincent Thomas of Lincoln (Pa.).
 
In the women’s race, Killebrew finished ahead of teammate Manuela Rigaud, who placed second in 20.01.6 while Shamika Patton of Bowie State was third in 20.24.8. Three other WSSU runners - Tyrah Winfrey (8th place), Ashley Lawson (10th place) and Ashley Fraser (13th place) – finished among the top 15 runners which helped the Rams squeak by Virginia State.
 
“Virginia State was tough but we pulled it off,” Turner said.

Team Results

Women's Complete Results | Men's Complete Results