OXFORD, Ala. | Running for the first time in almost two years, the Alabama State women finished ninth and the men 10th in the season-opening Foothills Invitational at Choccolocco Park Friday night.

The Lady Hornets had a pair of runners finish in the top 45 of the race with Shamia Jones (Albany, Ga.) leading the way in a time of 16:23.03 to finish 40th overall, and she was followed closely by her teammate Vinnelle Grant (Amityville, N.Y.) in 42nd place with a time of 16:26.50.

Rebecca Bernadia (Turk and Caicos Island) finished just outside the top 50 in 52nd place in her first race as a Lady Hornet with a time of 16:52.26, and she was followed closely by Jamila Thomas (Lewisville, Texas) with a time of 16:54.01.

On the men's side, Matthew Kibet (Eldoret, Kenya) led the Hornets with a 57th place finish in a time of 17:27.43, while Kevin Smith (Saint Catherine, Jamaica) finished just behind him in a time of 17:30.26. Another pair of runners ran well in Ricky Thornton (Indianapolis, Ind.) in a time of 18:16.78 and Lovensky Demelien (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.) in a time of 18.53.87.

UP NEXT
Alabama State returns to action next week at the Azalea City Classic in Mobile (Ala.), in a race hosted by the University of South Alabama.

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