It was first year runners Joseph Chebet and Lindsey Hinken that crossed the finish line first for WKU in Saturday’s Greater Louisville Classic.

Chebet ran his way to his third straight Top 10 finish, which he and the coaching staff were excited about.

“For Joseph (Chebet) to finish Top 10 in a race like that bodes very well for him down the run,” coach Erik Jenkins said.

Chebet placed 10th in the 8,000 meter contest, and roughly 30 seconds behind him was David Mokone, with a 43rd place finish overall.

The men WKU finished 25th out of 31 teams.

But with 12 schools representing the six BCS conferences, including No. 6 Texas and No. 8 Iona, Jenkins said “our top guys are running well.”

Iona won the event with 47 team points. 

In a field of 43 competitors, the Lady Toppers finished seventh, led by freshman Lindsey Hinken — who notched her second Top 25 finish in three collegiate races. 

Vasity Chemweno was next to cross the line with a 37th place finish.

“The ladies ran hard and so did the men,” Jenkins said. “For them to run a national championship course and to run like they did, I was encouraged.”