CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Virginia men’s and women’s cross country programs opened their 2026 campaign with the first of two meets at Panorama Farms this season as the Virginia Invitational was run on Friday (Sept. 11). Stella Kermes’ second-place finish headlined the meet while the No. 15 Cavalier women finished second as a team. Luke Hnatt led UVA men to a third-place finish, crossing the line 10th overall.
In the men’s 6k, the first year trio of Hnatt, Henry Acorn and Sean Gray paced the Cavaliers. Hnatt clocked an 18:03.4 to place 10th, followed by Acorn’s 18:08.0 in 11th and Gray’s 18:12.2 in 12th. Virginia placed three more Cavaliers in the top 30 with Philip Cupial (18:36.5) in 25th, Richard Moreno (18:36.5) in 26th and Aidan Cox (18:40.2) in 28th. Fellow ACC foe North Carolina claimed the men’s race with 21 points, followed by William & Mary in second with 73 and Virginia in third with 80. Norfolk State’s Clinton Kipruto won the men’s 6k with a time of 17:39.0.
On the women’s side, Stella Kermes placed second in the women’s 5k race with a personal best time of 16:54.8. The Cavaliers accounted for five of the top 10 finishers as Tatum Olesen (16:57.5) finished third with Cate DeSousa (17:08.0, PB) in sixth, Carly Wilkes (17:08.9) in seventh and Katie Payne (17:14.7, PB) in 10th. North Carolina, led by race winner Ciara O’Shea, won the team race with 27 points. UVA tallied 28 points to claim second while Wake Forest finished third with 89.
FROM INTERIM HEAD COACH TREVOR DUNBAR
“It is good to be out here competing again. It was a beautiful day here at Panorama Farms and I really appreciate all the competition that came out. It was good to be back starting off the cross country season. Performance-wise, on the men’s side, we are coming in with a young team with little to no experience. Today was a chance to see where they are at and it was not where we wanted to be, but we know we have a lot of work to do. I was really proud of the way Luke Hnatt led us. He showed a lot of heart and grit today. On the women’s side, it was a really good day. They showed an all-around good team race. They fought for each other in a hard-fought battle with UNC. Stella Kermes was fantastic with a second-place finish.”
UP NEXT
The Virginia men’s and women’s cross country teams will travel to Chicago, Ill., to compete in the Sean Earl Lakefront Invitational hosted by Loyola on Sept. 25.
VIRGINIA INVITATIONAL
PANORAMA FARMS
CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va
Men’s Team Results (6K)
- North Carolina – 21
- William & Mary – 73
- Virginia – 80
- Norfolk State – 93
- Johns Hopkins – 99
- Howard – 185
Women’s Team Results (5K)
- North Carolina – 27
- Virginia – 28
- Wake Forest – 89
- William & Mary – 127
- Johns Hopkins – 132
- Howard - 172