Wolf Pack men first, women second at Belhaven Invitational

CLINTON, Miss. — Loyola University cross country placed first in men's team scoring and second among the women Saturday in the Belhaven Invitational at Choctaw Trails.
 

Wolf Pack senior Jace Luckoski was an individual champion for the second consecutive race. He ran 8,000 meters in 26 minutes, 24.8 seconds and was one of six Wolf Pack men in the top 14. Luckoski produced the first individual victory at Choctaw Trails for Loyola's men since Walter Ramsey in 2018.
 

Freshman Genevieve Blanc led the Wolf Pack women for the second straight meet and placed ninth with 25:25.6 for 6,000 meters. Blanc — one of six Wolf Pack women in the top 20 — produced the first top-10 individual finish at Choctaw Trails for Loyola's women since 2018.
 

The Loyola men scored 29 points, 16 fewer than runner-up Mississippi Christian (formerly Mississippi College). The Wolf Pack finished ahead of three NCAA Division I schools, including fourth-place Louisiana Tech. Nine teams qualified for team scoring,
 

The Loyola women scored 68 points. Louisiana Tech won with 25. Ten colleges, including nine four-year schools, qualified for team scoring.
 

Notable for the Loyola women was finishing 20 points ahead of fourth-place Blue Mountain Christian, which outscored the Wolf Pack in 12 consecutive Southern States Athletic Conference championship meets (2013-19, 2021-25). Loyola and Blue Mountain will meet again Nov. 6 in the SSAC meet at Choctaw Trails.
 

Also competing for the Loyola men were Dylan Brown, second in 26:45.7; Jacob Kennedy, sixth in 27:18.3; Aubrey Gibson, ninth in 27:42.5; Cole Savoy, 12th in 27:51.7; Adam Merkle 14th in 28:17.3; Alastair Casler, 25th in 29:26.2; Jacob Mullis, 31st in 30:17.6; and Daniel Miller, 50th in 32:44.8
 

Also competing for the Loyola women were Ashlynn Yonge, 10th in 25:27.6; Meera Hijazi, 14th in 26:00.8; Sela Myers, 17th in 26:23.2; Noah Watson, 18th in 26:40.2; Kinslie Badon, 20th in 27:11.9; Sophia Freeze, 32nd in 28:40.2; Vivian Bravo, 34th in 28:55.7; and Caitlyn Summers, 43rd in 30:41.8.
 

The men led off the meet under partly cloudy skies, temperature 79 degrees, humidity 100 percent and a variable wind at 6 mph.
 

Next for Loyola will be the Florida State Invitational Friday morning at Apalachee Regional Park in Tallahassee. The men's 8K race will start at 7:40 EDT, and the women's 6K will start at 8:20.
 

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