RICHMOND, Va. – The No. 6 and No. 20 ranked Virginia men’s and women’s cross country programs kicked off the 2025 season with a pair of victories at the Spider Alumni Open on Saturday (Aug. 30) at Pole Green Park in Richmond, Va. The Cavaliers were led by individual victories by Nicholas Bendtsen in the men’s 6k and Stella Kermes in the women’s 4k to mark the third consecutive year in which Virginia swept the meet.
Junior Richard Moreno was also in the mix recording a sixth-place finish with his time of 18:10.1. Cayden Dyer (18:30.4), Charles Perry (19:01.9) and Alex Valencia (19:44.4) also opened their season in the 6k race in Richmond.
On the women’s side, sophomore Stella Kermes secured the victory with her time of 13:17.3 and bettered her season opener from this meet last year where she crossed the line in 13:56.9 for 10th place. Junior Mary Ellen Eudaly and sophomore Ella Woehlcke rounded out the top three finishers crossing the line in 13:20.0 and 13:26.1, respectively. The Cavaliers occupied six of the top ten spots as Cate DeSousa (13:57.7), Tatum Olesen (13:38.2) and Katie Payne (13:40.8) finished in fifth, seventh and eighth place.
Junior Clark Stewart (14:09.6) and senior Katie Dorsey (14:10.5) opened their seasons with top 20 performances in 14th and 16th place. With all eight athletes finishing in the top 20, the Virginia women finished atop the team standings with a total of 18 points.
Pole Green Park
Richmond, Va.
- Virginia — 18
- William & Mary — 59
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Richmond — 88
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American — 106
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JMU — 157
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Longwood — 172
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George Mason — 174
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Christopher Newport — 240
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VCU — 273
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Hampton — 293
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Mary Washington — 345
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Marymount (Va.) — 388
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St. Mary’s (Md.) — 405
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Virginia State — 426
- Virginia — 16
- William & Mary — 80
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Richmond — 89
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American — 95
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Geroge Mason — 121
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VCU — 154
- Christopher Newport — 202
- Longwood — 215
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Mary Washington — 257
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VMI — 310
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Hampton — 350
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St. Mary’s (Md.) — 356
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Virginia State — 369
The Virginia men’s and women’s cross country teams will host the 2025 Virginia Invitational at Panorama Farms on Friday, September 12th. The men’s 8k race is set to begin at 8:45 a.m. with the women’s 5k race going off at 9:30 a.m.