Benney Koch, Staff Writer
VCU women and men’s cross country teams will make their 2026 season debuts Sept. 5 at the Spider Alumni Open, returning to the same course that will host the Atlantic 10 Championships later this fall.
Last season, the team’s primary focus was development. First-year Jonathan Hess had a strong start to his collegiate career as his performances set him apart among VCU’s top performing runners.
Last year Hess earned A-10 Rookie of the Week honors twice and finished at the podium three times as a rookie across five meets. Hess was also able to finish fourth at the South Region Showdown with an 8K personal best of 24:39.9 at the A-10 Championships. He led the Rams finishing 49th overall with a time of 25:11.4.
Redshirt fifth-years Julian Lawson and Nahim Abdallah also recorded personal bests at the South Region Showdown. The two were important depth pieces for the team and served as mentors for the rest of the young roster.
Lawson and Abdallah have since graduated, leaving VCU with some new faces heading into the fall. First-year Ethan Havran joins the Rams, along with second-year transfer Jayden Curry, who comes to VCU from LIU.
Last season, the women’s team finished last at the A-10 Championships and are looking to make improvements. However the results do not tell the entire story of last year’s team. Ten of the 14 runners on the roster were freshmen. Now with a year of experience and development, we can expect to see an improvement in the upcoming season.
A bright spot for the Rams’ was their first place finish at the VSU Cross Country Challenge on Oct. 10. Fourth-year Ava Miller led the way individually and finished third. Also, Miller later ran a season-best 6K time of 22:51.4 at the A-10 Championships.
Miller and Jayanna Carroll graduated following the season, leaving another spot for a new group of runners to step in.
Four freshmen will join the women’s team this fall: Abigail Flores from Grassfield High School in Chesapeake, Hannah Hawkins from Yorktown High School in Arlington, Paige Scannell from Taranaki Secondary in New Plymouth, New Zealand and Simone Wilt from John T. Hoggard High School in Wilmington, North Carolina.
Both teams will continue under head coach Jon Riley and Director of Cross Country Austin Savage.
The Rams will also have a familiar setting waiting for them at the end of the season. The A-10 Championships will be held Oct. 31 at Pole Green Park in nearby Mechanicsville, the same course where VCU will open its season.
With a year of development behind the women’s team and a young men’s team looking to replace two graduates, both squads will get their first chance to show what they have Sept. 5 at the Spider Alumni Open.