Richmond’s Bendura, NC State’s Frazier Win 2024 Collegiate 10K Road Race Championship
Richmond welcomed 1,700 college students to Richmond for 10K Championships
April 20, 2024 - RICHMOND, VA – The Collegiate Running Association and the city of Richmond welcomed 1,700 college students as part of the 9th annual Collegiate 10k Road Race National Championship event, held within the Ukrop’s Monument Avenue 10k presented by Kroger. University of Richmond senior Jordan Bendura won the men’s championship and overall title while NC State University PhD candidate Ryen Frazier defended the title she won one year ago on the streets of Richmond, Virginia.
The men’s race started as a 'cat and mouse' affair with a pack of 8 runners passing through the opening mile in 4:59. Shortly after, Evan Leach started pushing the pace. The volunteer coach at nearby University of Richmond, Leach had several of his team members chasing him. They included Stuart Terrill; last year’s runner-up, Jordan Bendura; last year’s 3rd place finisher, Henry Haase; a top 10 finisher last year plus William Marhold and George Mason’s, Travis Albon. By the 5k point, Leach had opened a sizeable 17 second lead hitting 15:13 for the first half. Terrell was shadowed by Bendura and Haase as they separated from the field.
By 4 miles Bendura and Terrill had closed on Leach and they injected a 4:40 mile for the 5th mile. It was a shoulder-to-shoulder duel from 5-6 miles between the Richmond teammates. Just before the 6-mile point, Bendura made a strong push and over the final 500 meters it would prove to be enough as he crossed the line in 30:18 for the victory and the $1,000 prize as top the college student. Terrill would stop the clock 7 seconds later for the runner-up position again this year with Haase in third (31:14).
“I grew up in nearby Glen Allen and have known this race my entire life. After placing 3rd last year I wanted to come back and win it,” said Bendura. “I stayed patient early and let the race develop. It was so nice having a teammate there the last two miles. We were pushing each other. I’m happy with the win.”
He said the Richmond crowds were huge along the course.
“There were bands and people all along the course cheering for us,” he said. “The support the entire way was pretty amazing.”
The women’s race was one of the best in the history of the Collegiate 10K Road Race National Championships. By two miles five women were close together including the top three collegians. Last years champion and the Collegiate Running Association's 2023 Athlete of the Year, Ryen Frazier (NC State), Bethany Sachtleben (NOVA) who won this race in 2018 and 2019 and Anna Rigby (Virginia Tech). Rigby recently won the NIRCA 5k track title.
The three ran shoulder-to-shoulder early. By 5k, Rigby ran 17:31 and proved the aggressor building a 4 second lead over Sachtleben and Frazier. Laura Labuschaigne and Allison Kelley were close behind in 17:36.
The trio of Rigby, Frazier and Sachtleben separated themselves from everyone by 4 miles but the title and order of the top three would not be determined until the end. Frazier marked her second visit to Richmond with a win, finishing in 34:44, a time 25 seconds faster than her winning time last year. Sachtleben was only five seconds back in 34:49 and Rigby closed out the top three running a personal best of 35:04.
Frazier claimed the $1,000 prize as the top college student, Sachtleben claimed $500 for second and Rigby earned $250 for third.
“To be honest I felt a little less prepared than last year,” Frazier said. “I just told myself to stay relaxed and enjoy it. I like the course and I wanted to try to keep an eye on who I thought were the college students. It worked out.”
The Collegiate Running Association runs its national championship 10k road race as part of the Monument Avenue event and awarded $3,500 in cash prizes to the top three male and female finishers who have taken at least one college class this year.
Frazier said the fans that lined Monument Avenue gave her extra motivation. The $1,000 first-place cash prize was motivation too.
The university student who required the most travel came from Alaska while Richmond-area university runners were well represented. Of the 10 collegiate men’s winners, five were from the University of Richmond and three from VCU. On the women’s side, two of the top 10 finishers attend the University of Richmond, two attend VCU and one attends the University of Virginia.
“Everyone needs to place this event on their list," said Collegiate Running Association co-founder, Steve Taylor. "We are really excited about the competition today. Both races were competitive up front and the outcome wasn’t determined until the final two minutes of the races. Additionally, we are ecstatic to have 1,700 college students entered in the event. It shows this is an event for literally everyone.”
"For the CRA one of the most exciting things about this event is getting to support college students and following their careers after graduation. One of our favorite parts about putting on these events is watching the athletes as they continue on to do amazing things down the road in their careers.”
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