LOUISVILLE, Ky. (Oct. 3, 2026) - The ETSU women's cross country team posted a banner set of results on Saturday morning at the Louisville Classic to come home third in a deep field, led by Deena Ludtke posting a mark that landed her in the record books.

Ludtke's 17:50.2 that saw her finish 12th on Saturday in Louisville was not only a personal best, but the 25th fastest time in the women's 5k for ETSU cross country. Ludtke was followed home by Mackenzie Armstrong in 16th with a personal best in her third consecutive race, running an 18:05.2 5k to shave 38.5 seconds off her best 5k time from the Eye Opener on September 4.

All five of ETSU's freshmen set new best marks in the race. Aubrey Jones was the fastest with an 18:17.1 that brought her home 29th. Hannah Robinson ran a personal best 19:04.8, followed by Ava Berkheimer with a 19:11.2, AJ Thomas with a 19:14.7, and Paige Remillard with a 19:16.8. Gracie Franklin finished 51st with a season best 18:49.6, and McKenzie Fitzgerald rounded out the scoring places with an 18:49.6 in 60th. Eliza Everett set a personal best with an 18:55.6 to come home 73rd.

ETSU as a team finished third in the 24 team field with 168 points. West Texas A&M won the team event with 34 points, and Marshall's Rachael Withrow won the race with a 16:26.4 race time, 42 seconds clear of the field.

The cross country season is halfway over. ETSU will have one more tune-up before the SoCon Championship when they return to Spartanburg for the USC Upstate Invitational on October 17. The women's race is at 9 a.m.

For more information on ETSU cross country, go to ETSUBucs.com.