Jones Runs Historic 8K Race at UAH Invitational

HUNTSVILLE, Ala. - The Florida Southern men's cross country team ran to an eighth-place finish against nationally-ranked competition at the UAH Charger Invitational, hosted by Alabama-Huntsville at the renowned John Hunt Park on Saturday morning.

Since the grand opening of John Hunt Park in 2019, the course has turned out historically fast times. It is relatively flat, excluding one major hill, and has firm footing throughout which allows athletes to obtain more return on each stride over the eight-kilometer course.

Senior Mason Jones took advantage of the fast course and cool conditions by setting a new 8K school record. Jones ran an unbelievable race, jostling position with the best Division II runners in the nation at the front of the pack. After fighting hard at the front, Jones eventually finished fifth with a time of 23:57.18, becoming the first runner in Florida Southern history to record a sub-24-minute 8K. 

Jones led 11 other Mocs to a personal best time, including senior Joshua Wagner, who ran his first sub-25 8K (24:42) for 31st place. Following Wagner was Mitchell Kozik, who was only seconds off of joining the sub-25 club with a 25:07 for 56th place. After Kozik was a slew of men who ran under 26 minutes for the first time in their college careers, including Brady Zimmerman (25:28), Alex Guy (25:43), and Bryson Yamnitz (25:48). 

In Their Own Words
Head coach Matt Levassiur following Saturday's record-setting race with the Sunshine State Conference (SSC) Championship coming up in two weeks...
"Twelve guys raced today, 11 ran PRs, one ran a school record and looks poised to be the first All-American in program history and we ran bad. This squad has aspirations of conference titles and a top-25 national finish. We're committed to being tougher and winning head-to-head matchups when we toe the line at Holloway Park on October 23."

Florida Southern Individual Results
5. Mason Jones - 23:57.18
31. Joshua Wagner - 24:42.85
56. Mitchell Kozik - 25:07.05
75. Brady Zimmerman - 25:28.49
88. Alex Guy - 25:43.03
99. Bryson Yamnitz - 25:48.74
168. Noah Ellenback - 26:46.76
195. Seth Augustynowski - 27:13.46
202. Keith Kelley - 27:18.42
223. Luke Dickinson - 27:34.97
243. Adam Berriz - 28:01.95

Team Results

1. Pittsburg State - 90
2. Lee (Tenn.) - 107
3. Alabama-Huntsville - 119
4. Southern Indiana - 121
5. Missouri Southern - 171
6. Embry-Riddle - 193
7. Illinois-Springfield - 194
8. Florida Southern - 236
9. Saint Leo - 281
10. Fort Lewis - 326
11. Emmanuel (Ga.) - 327
12. Tampa - 370
13. Metro State - 370
14. Harding - 413
15. Houston - 414
16. Dallas Baptist - 421
17. Indianapolis- 452
18. Montevallo - 463
19. UNC Pembroke - 477
20. Christian Brothers - 493
21. Texas A&M-Commerce - 514
22. Auburn-Montgomery - 572
23. West Florida - 638
24. Ouachita Baptist - 652
25. Cumberland (Tenn.) - 698
26.  Wallace State - 849
27. Marion Military Institute - 879
28. St. Mary-of-the-Woods - 884
29. Mobile - 891
30. Calhoun C.C. - 980
31. Alabama State - 1010
32. Lane - 1088
33. Miles - 1096

Up Next
Championship season begins on Saturday, October 23, when the Mocs host the 2021 SSC Championships on their home course at Holloway Park in Lakeland, Florida.