Jacksonville, Fla. – The Lake-Sumter State College cross country team's competed at the Florida State College – Jacksonville Invitational this past weekend with the men winning their second straight meet.

For the first time, the Lakehawks took down Daytona State College to bring home first place at the Invitational. LSSC came into the meet ranked ninth in the country and were able to top the fourth ranked Falcons on the course. The 8k event consisted of four NJCAA programs, with Seminole State being the only team that was a DI affiliate.

Adolfo Saucedo Flores finished second in the field of 26 runners with a time of 28:53. William Troupe and Alexander Croy both finished inside the top five. Nicholas Atkinson placed seventh, giving Lake-Sumter four competitors in the top 10.

"This week was a very challenging course, through the trees, with roots everywhere," said Head Coach, Cristy Snellgroves. "The runners ran about 1-2 minutes slower than normal due to the terrain, but our group had their best team performance of the season so far. I still believe the best is yet to come for this group"

Kyja Williams is on some kind of a streak, taking first place at the Invitational with a time of 21:24. During the middle of the race, while Williams was maintaining first place, she missed a turn and had to loop back around to get back on the correct route. The sophomore lost an ample amount of time, but continued to defeat the second-place runner by 26 seconds. Snellgroves said of Kyja, "she continued her winning streak this week and is the perfect example of "doing what it takes" to get the job done on and off the field. Kyja stayed composed and focused even after missing a turn on the course. She said she knew she had some time to make up and went to work."  

Victoria Bell was the next Lakehawk to come through the finish line at 27:04 with teammate, Isabel Panganiban coming in shortly behind her. LSSC finished fourth in Jacksonville as a team.

"Our women continue to improve and run well as a team," said Snellgroves. "The positive attitudes, dedication, and perseverance are second to none."

Cross country will be off until the Region 8 Meet Friday, October 30 in Tallahassee, FL.