BLACKSBURG, Va. – First year Sean Gray and third year Stella Kermes paced the Virginia men’s and women’s cross country programs on Friday (Oct. 30) at the 2026 ACC Cross Country Championships at Buford Meredith Cross Country Course. Gray led the Cavalier men to a ninth-place finish, while Kermes propelled the UVA women to seventh.
Coach Dunbar on today's championship. #GoHoos https://t.co/WR2NMfonKy
— Virginia Track & Field and Cross Country (@UVATFCC) October 30, 2026
In the men’s 6k, Gray placed 18th to land All-ACC honors with a personal best time of 23:09.1. The UVA trio of Andrew Jones (23:42.0), Luke Hnatt (23:42.3) and Shane Brosnan (23:44.4) finished 52-53-54. Richard Moreno turned in a time of 24:15.1 to place 87th on Friday. In 95th, Henry Acorn crossed the finish line with a time of 24:27.2. Phillip Cupial rounded out the Cavalier scorers with a time of 24:43.4 and finished 111th. Wake Forest claimed the team title by beating out Virginia Tech and Syracuse, while Louisville’s Elsingi Kipruto won the individual conference title.
On the women’s side, Kermes crossed the finish line with a personal best time of 19:29.3 to take home a 13th-place finish and All-ACC honors. Kermes was joined in the top 50 by the UVA duo of Gillian Bushee (20:01.0) in 34th and Tatum Olesen (20:13.2) in 45th. Carly Wilkes tallied a 55th-place finish with a time of 20.19.2 while Cate DeSousa ran the course in a time of 20:21.9 to place 57th. Elaina Pierce turned in a time of 20:46.0 for 85th. Led by individual champion Hannah Gapes, NC State bested the field by 48 to win the team championship.
All-ACC
The Atlantic Coast Conference All-Conference Cross Country Teams are comprised of the top 21 finishers in both men’s and women’s Conference Championships.
Men
Women
FROM INTERIM HEAD COACH TREVOR DUNBAR
“The highlight was Stella Kermes, 13th, and Sean Gray, 18th, were big performances for them. Our team tempo was not where it needed to be. Both the men and the women left a little bit out there. We’re going to get back to work. Recover from this one and have our backs against the walls at regionals down in Spartanburg in exactly two weeks.”
ACC CHAMPIONSHIP
BUFORD MEREDITH CROSS COUNTRY COURSE
BLACKSBURG, Va.
Men’s Team Results (8K)
- Wake Forest - 48
- Virginia Tech - 94
- Syracuse - 94
- Notre Dame - 95
- Stanford - 157
- Duke - 159
- North Carolina - 206
- Louisville - 246
- Virginia - 248
- Pittsburgh - 264
- Florida State - 278
- NC State - 333
- Boston College - 364
- Georgia Tech - 373
- Clemson - 377
- California - 458
- Miami - 541
Women’s Team Results (6K)
- NC State - 65
- Clemson - 113
- Virginia Tech - 125
- North Carolina - 161
- Duke - 165
- Notre Dame - 173
- Virginia - 200
- Boston College - 214
- Florida State - 221
- Wake Forest - 267
- Louisville - 278
- Syracuse - 290
- SMU - 310
- Stanford - 313
- Pittsburgh - 407
- California - 449
- Georgia Tech - 463
- Miami - 540